The most common places for rust on these big wagons is the inner/outer rocker panels (get under and look into the inner to inspect), the “dogleg” section where the second row rocker transitions to the rear wheel house and the door bottoms.
Early V-10s ‘00 - ‘02 had too few spark plugs threads in the heads, makes them prone to spitting plugs. Proper torquing (over torquing) when changing plugs seems to greatly reduce the chances of a blowout and there are some very good repair insert system kits available to repair the damaged threads from a blowout. Later 6.8s had twice as many threads there and typically don’t suffer the plug ejection issue. But of course proper torque is still important.
All modular motors seem to have the broken exhaust manifold stud issue eventually. It is a bit of a pain to deal with but can be done in the driveway by a motivated (cheap, like me!) owner, shops will charge $600 - 800+ for the job, so use this as a price negotiation point when buying a rig with any missing studs.
The newest EXs are all now old enough to vote, so be sure to test all switches and electrics/electronics. The age and mileage also puts the steering and suspension systems in question, so be sure to check for any play in joints and such.
The 4R100 transmission behind the 6.8 is pretty durable, most of the lower mileage failures you read about will be behind hopped up 7.3 PSDs. If the seller can show that the trans has had proper 30K fluid changes/flushes that would be excellent. But as always, check the trans operation up and down through the gears and listen for any noises.
With your future travel trailer plans (and maybe taller tires) it would be beneficial to find one with the optional deeper 4.30 gears vs the standard 3.73s. It will have better all around performance and will tow much better, proper gearing is needed to make the 6.8 a good tow rig for a heavy trailer.
Good luck!

 

You still (I didn't see it) haven't told us your location. If you see one you like shoot one of us a message here or post a link and we'll tell you what we think Don't worry, nobody here is going to scoop it out from under you.

 

His profile says California...

 

Welp, there goes any help I can give. I know nothing about Cali and there are so many places so far from each other... I'll never figure out what's "close" to him. Texas roads VS. Virginia roads is still making me confused.

 

WE3ZS is on point with gearing and the 6.8. We’ve got a 2-WD. When the Ex had its 3:73 gears, it couldn’t pull a slight grade without down shifting. That was by itself, empty and towing nothing. In 2000, the comparable F-350 was more than 1,500 lighter than the Ex. In my humble opinion, the Ex is handicapped by its enormous weight problem.
We went to a 4:56 TrueTrac and never looked back. With a tune and headers it pulls our 28’ TT with ease.

 

It's so stupidly cheap (considering the few things we can do) anyone who drives a gasser should have the tuner and the 6.8 the headers as well.

 

Through testing and trial and error it seemed that the headers didn't actually help the V10 as much as even I would have expected, not saying they don't help at all, but it was interesting. There happens to be a video circulating by @JAck19 in which after installing a Accufab he exited his driveway in an un-intended gravel slinging burnout, its actually a good and funny watch.

I can also attest that on my truck it made a world of difference to drive ability, and it made the torque the engine already had, easier to utilize without triggering a pull back to 3rd gear. And it puts the throttle response where in my opinion, it should have been from the factory. It made a bigger difference than the 5 Star tunes did, and seat of the pants feel was almost like a minor gear change, like say 3.73 to 3.90, quite noticeable indeed.

I should have done my headers when i did the motor, but with all the other stuff i did at the same time as the engine, i didn't have the coin in the moment to add them on, probably do them eventually, maybe when the i end up with a manifold leak which seem to be inevitable on V10s over time.

 

I have the banks headers and I can attest that they do make a difference. What that is in terms of measurable performance I can't say, but on an otherwise stock vehicle there was a noticeable change. But that being said gears make the biggest difference in terms of performance. 4.30s or lower gears will really wake the v10s up more than any other mod.

 

Yes, the Banks headers do help, mostly noticeable (to me) when working the 6.8 fairly hard towing our heavy (12.5 K) TT up a decent grade. But as far as the main 3 mods that I’ve done the headers are third, tunes are second and the deeper gears are on top. I ran barely over stock sized 32” tires for two years after I swapped in the 4.88 gears, with that setup the V-10 EX felt like a hot rod around town unloaded and towed like a locomotive! Don’t fear the gear!

 

6.8 V10 X's up here in Oregon aren't going for much. Had the chance to buy a very clean 2003 4WD X with 35's and about 125k on it for 10k... but wasn't sold on V10. Ended up flying to Montana and buying my current 7.3 with 215k for 14k... probably still overpaid but it is what it is.

The V10 market isn't nearly as high as 7.3. Anything above 100k miles shouldn't be more than 11-12k. If it is, then open up your search area to less expensive areas and buy yourself a place ticket... that's what I did for my 7.3 as where I am they are going for 25-30k. A plane ticket and a road trip saved me a lot of money.



2002 Excursion 4x4 217k


Kobra

 

To echo many if not all of the sentiments already laid out by the others, there’s a handful of tried-and-true mods for the 6.8 2v. In case you didn’t already find out, cams are off the menu, so if you were hoping to have a little chop, this ain’t the one.

In my own truck, which just rolled over 300,000 miles this week, I purchased tunes from 5 Star tuning, regeared it at 4.88 (along with swapping in a Dana 60 front axle from a similar-era F350 SRW), Jones 3030XL muffler along with a Magnaflow generic universal catalytic converter, then most recently the Accufab throttle body and Volant CAI.

Gears of course made the most dramatic difference. Going from worn-out 3.73 and a lousy LSD to 4.88 with a TrueTrac (and an E-Locker up front) absolutely changed the truck. To their credit, the 3.73 netted my best mileage, as I was driving ~110-120 miles round trip daily for work, all on the interstate, and I averaged 12.5 mpg on 35s. Since the gearing change I typically average 10.9, but I no longer have the long commute and do a lot more country road driving, i.e. accellerating to 60 for a few minutes, then stopping at a stop sign or blinking light, accellerate to 60 again, stop again, etc. City driving is probably less taxing since the speed limit’s lower.

The tune made a big difference with the way the transmission shifts. It really changes your experience, having that perfectly timed shift. I recommend the 5 Star “Performance” tune; their others are underwhelming. The included tune in my SCT X4 does well too. It shifts a hair better than the 5 Star, but gives up some HP at the top end.

The Accufab is a must-have. Period. It’s easy to install and will give you a notable bump in output and response. Some say they notice it in the mid-band or here or there, I noticed it everywhere. Throttle from a stand still has a little extra oomph, the midband definitely jumps up, and even up at the top end she’s got a little extra. When I did mine, I also did a Volant CAI. The Volant has been discussed numerous times over in various threads; don’t expect much (if any) gains. I did it purely for the sound. The CAI lets out some nice sounds that get muted by the stock intake. Same story for my muffler, my cat was clogged, so I figured I’d toss on the muffler while replacing the cat. It’s got a nice tone to it. Lots of midband rasp, as you’ll see in the aforementioned video.

I don’t have headers currently, and I’m not sure if/when I’ll take that jump. I see my two SuperDutys going the way of dodo bird sometime this year to make way for something newer with some more power, and I’m not sure if I’ll hang onto the Ex or sell it to help that cause. If I keep her, I’ll likely do an engine rebuild and add the headers then.

Now, for the goods:

 

30k is way too much. Maybe if it was a low or reasonable mile/age of truck ratio diesel 7.3 or fully Bulletproof 6.0 I can see 25/30k. But a 03 V10…pass.


what to look for

truthfully at such age/miles combo……what shape is the truck in at this point in time…..also a huge one is .maintenance and repair records are what to look for. Don’t get enamored with lift kits tires and accessories. All that stuff can be bought and installed to your liking

when yiu walk up to the house does the house look like hell or nice and clean? If the guy doesn’t care for this house he won’t care for his cars.
where’s the truck parked? Look underneath. Is it sitting in a Exxon Valdez oil spill or ckean concrete? Is the exterior clean ? Interior clean or full of stuff? If it’s dirty that shows neglect imo. Is it safety checked, smog test completed (if needed for transfer).

does the truck have regular scheduled maintenance and repairs…WHO is doing the repairs. If it’s a shop there should be records. If it’s the owner there should at least be parts receipts. I do my own work but i keep records of all maintenance and repairs. You can clearly see my lift and toolboxes and wall full of oil filters fluids etc.
any head work? Spark plug changed! Any blown spark plugs. HOW were they repaired avd by whom. What kit was used? The parts that were used for repairs ? Factory or hood aftermarket or eBay or Amazon Chinesium special no name white box special parts. Tires….brand name or Chinese Tires?
anyone who wants top dollar for their vehicle (and I don’t blame people for wanting top dollar) but your vehicle better be immaculate with records.

 

Also, make sure you get a true cold start and listen for roller follower ticking. If it sounds like a time bomb, pass