I am new to this board and to Fords. I just purchased an 2006 350 crew cab DRW with the power stroke. I have a couple questions that I am sure you can answer.
1. What kind of fuel mileage can I reasonably expect. (6.0, auto trans, & 4.30).
2. What if any querks can I expect with this vehicle. Please remember I have never owned a Ford or a Diesel before.

Thank you
Neal

 

Congrats on the New Truck and welcome to the Forums. Since it's a '06 we hope nothing goes wrong w/ it yet. Just be gentle on her breakin it in and hopefully no problems arise.

 

Welcome to FTE. If we don't know I'll just make it up.

Unfortunately, dually crew cabs are not exactly the most fuel efficient of the Super Duty's. I would say that after break-in on the 6.0, you're probably going to get anywhere from 13-15 city/14-16 mpg hwy, unloaded with a moderate weighted foot.

It won't fit through most carwashes, bank drive-thru's, fastfood drive-thru's, and parking spots.

There is also a 6.0 Forum further down the page that has some good info.

 

WELCOME to FTE! I'm sure the guys will answer your questions

Or just make it up ...

 

Welcome to FTE Neal, stick around as there are great things happening on this forum. Mileage, as members stated, you will get anywhere from 10-16, will really depend upon your driving habits, if you take it easy on the go pedal you will get some decent mileage for such a large badboy of a truck.

As for quirks to expect, really you will just find as you drive the unique things about a PSD. For my family, the rattle clang whistle and beautiful noises the PSD makes is music to their ears as it puts them to sleep when we travel. Other things, which really are not quircks is just your regular maintenance. Drain your HFCM regularly, change your oil and filter regularly (I change every 5K), and replace fuel filters at 15K. My PSD has treated me very well, so I treated her to a set of 295/75/16s.

Again, welcome and enjoy your ride.

 

Congrats on your new beast Neal. These are awesome trucks.

First, make sure you closely follow the break-in schedule found in your manual. Proper break-in is critical for a diesel.

Second, allow a minute or two warm up when you start it cold and then don't drive it hard until the water temp is up in the normal range. I keep mine below 2000 rpm and 10 lbs boost until it's warm. This will go a long way to helping preserve your head gaskets.

Third, allow a couple minutes of cool down before shutting it off. If you've been towing or running at high speeds for an extended period, I would allow no less than five minutes of cool down before you shut off. This will go a long way to helping preserve your turbo.

Fourth, as Deac said, stay on top of your maintenance. If you take care of your truck, it will take care of you. Neglect your truck and it will leave you stranded on the side of the road.

As far as quirks go, give yourself some time to get used to the tendencies of a turbo diesel. There's a fair amount of turbo lag when starting from a dead stop or when accelerating from a steady speed, such as when passing. Remember, these are not gas engines and the power isn't there right when you press the accelerator pedal. The turbo has to spool up before you get the power. So don't get yourself in a tight spot expecting to immediately accelerate out of it.

 

Thank you for all of the replies. This will be a learning experience for me and I will be frequently testing your patience with my stupid questions.

Again Thank You