Moving on up
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Joined: Sep 2003
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Moving on up
hey everybody,
i am in the market for a new truck right now. right now i drive an 85 f250 4x4 with a 351w. great truck, but she's not going to last much longer. i have decided the next truck will be a diesel. i love the idea of gobs of torque and great gas mileage. now i am a ford man all the way, but i hear so much crap from people about ford diesels.
heres my question. what all do you really need to do when you own a ford diesel? i live in northern missouri and the winters get pretty cold. please help i want to know the truth!
andrew
i am in the market for a new truck right now. right now i drive an 85 f250 4x4 with a 351w. great truck, but she's not going to last much longer. i have decided the next truck will be a diesel. i love the idea of gobs of torque and great gas mileage. now i am a ford man all the way, but i hear so much crap from people about ford diesels.
heres my question. what all do you really need to do when you own a ford diesel? i live in northern missouri and the winters get pretty cold. please help i want to know the truth!
andrew
Lead Driver
Joined: Apr 2002
Posts: 7,746
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From: Tampa Bay, FL USA
You definitely need to read through ALL the posts in this forum and in the 6.0 PSD forum. The early 6.0 definitely had it's troubles, but there's a cut-off date for the bad ones. I believe that anything built after April of 2003 should be OK, but I'm sure someone will be along to correct me if I'm wrong.
As far as cold weather is concerned, that's no longer an issue. I've had diesels sit on my lot for 2 weeks unstarted in the middle of January (that means -10 at night, maybe 5 above during the day), and they start on the first turn of the key without the block warmer plugged in. Plug it in and you'll have heat within the first mile of driving. Beyond that, there's nothing special you have to do for the cold, but there are some things you have to do for a diesel differently. Ask your local Ford dealer for the 6.0 owner's manual for all the details.
As far as cold weather is concerned, that's no longer an issue. I've had diesels sit on my lot for 2 weeks unstarted in the middle of January (that means -10 at night, maybe 5 above during the day), and they start on the first turn of the key without the block warmer plugged in. Plug it in and you'll have heat within the first mile of driving. Beyond that, there's nothing special you have to do for the cold, but there are some things you have to do for a diesel differently. Ask your local Ford dealer for the 6.0 owner's manual for all the details.
Senior User
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 359
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From: Maryland
aj10,
I really don't think that you have to worry about all the "extra" maintenance. The difference is that it costs more to perform that maintenance. Day in and day out is really not much different than a gas engine. Replacing injectors, turbo, etc. would ceratinly add up to big $, but normal and regular maintenance will extend the life of the durable diesel engine.
I love mine and it does start right up in the winter. Its been in the teens here with snow the last three days and it started right up today w/o being plugged in. Plugging in definitely gives you heat quicker.
Good luck on your decision.
I really don't think that you have to worry about all the "extra" maintenance. The difference is that it costs more to perform that maintenance. Day in and day out is really not much different than a gas engine. Replacing injectors, turbo, etc. would ceratinly add up to big $, but normal and regular maintenance will extend the life of the durable diesel engine.
I love mine and it does start right up in the winter. Its been in the teens here with snow the last three days and it started right up today w/o being plugged in. Plugging in definitely gives you heat quicker.
Good luck on your decision.
Junior User
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 50
Likes: 0
Maintenance costs are a little higher but with more MPG and more power it is well worth it. If you are going to go Brand new check out Edmunds.com you can see what people are really buying trucks for your area. Then email the dealer from their site. It gives you more leverage and you don't have to haggle with the regular salesmen you can go right to the fleet manager. I saved more than six grand off the MSRP
