OK, I'm going to buy my first diesel. Looking for a F250 or F350 2wd to tow my travel trailer. Love my 5.4 F150, but just want more power, more brakes, and more truck.

With my budget, I am going to have to buy used, and with all the reading I've been doing lot's of folks love thier older 7.3's and lots of folks love thier 6.0's. I'm looking at 2000-2003's. Well 2003's have both!

What is your opinion on the differances between an older (2000ish) 7.3 or later model (2003 or 2004) 6.0. Also, is the later 6.0's better.

Thanks for your help.

 

Well, where to begin, both used will be just that, used. You may be able to find a used 6.0 with warranty left. If you are dead set on an automatic for towing, get the 6.0, the tranny is 100% better than the 7.3 auto. If you are wanting maximum fuel mileage, get the 7.3. Its possible for you to buy an 05 6.0 for a pretty good deal. You should have no problem finding a truck with warranty left in the next few months. This is what I would try to wait for. It is going to be tough finding a 7.3 with factory warranty left on it. Either way you will be happy. One more thing on the 05 model if your looking at 4X4 the 05 has coils up front and turns a little tighter, and also rides a tad better.

 

My co-worker had a 2002 7.3 and his was slow as a dog. He thought he was being cool by installing a K&N air filter and I think that he sand blasted or dusted his turbo and then his truck was so slow that he traded it in on an F-150. I would suggest a late model 04 or newer 6.0. My engine was made in June of 04 and it has been bullet proof and powerful with no turbo lag.

 

If you're dead-set on 2003 at the latest, get the 7.3. All of the 99.5 to 2003 7.3s were great engines........Most of the first edition 2003 6.0s were dogs....and they had problems into 2004 also.

Dieselhound.....describing a friend of yours truck is anecdotal evidence only......and what defines slow?.....Compared to a high-horsepower gas engine, maybe......But if AZ 56 & 03 is looking for towing power........and money is an issue and he wants up to '03.....I don't know any 6.0 owners that would recommend to him to purchase an '03, or even an '04 6.0L diesel. The widespread problems with the '03s and '04s are well-known...are cited by those who own (or owned) that year engine....and caused many to consider leaving the realm of Ford trucks (especially diesels) altogether.

Again....Up to '03 (and '04)....get the 7.3L....2005 and beyond?.......If you can get a 6.0 for your price range....maybe worth a shot....especially if you're considering mileage......

Good luck

 

I guess when buying any Late model truck, Oasis is the key. cmpd, actually the 03 strategy trucks made the most power and had the best ecm to work with. Mine had 60,000 on it when I traded up for my 05. It did have 4 injectors, FICM and a transducer replaced at 20k, but nary a problem for the next 40k. I would bet (the techs have had real insight to this recently in a thread) a buy back or a trade 03 that might have been a problem child (head gaskets, injectors and posibly intercooler) that had all the proper repairs made correctly when time was not a factor would probably be a steal if the price was right. Remember when they came out the techs were behind the 8 ball big time, due to lack of training and real world troubleshooting and were throwing parts at them to try to keep customers happy. Mix in district reps that started saying no to parts and trying to head off warranty overatures, and you get what you had. There are still problem trucks as there were in the 7.3, they all ain't perfect. However the odds of you finding a good tech to fix it right the first time are 1000 fold better now than then. I remember in 03 you couldn't hardly get a tech to respond in this forum. Cannot say that I blame them, they didn't have the answers back then, no one did, not even Ford. Either way running a oasis report should be a must, it will cut to the chase quickly and let you know what really went on with it, not what the salesman tries to tell you.

 

Good points, Ryan.

Definitely wasn't bashing the 6.0 per se, and the torqueshift is better than the 4r100.....Just heard too many horror stories about the 1st year or 2 ('03 and '04)....

Steve

 

Steve, I know you were not bashing. However, Vic at superchips (at that time) said if you could ever hang on to an 03 strategy truck, do so, as he had much more to work with tuning wise.


Now to the flipside, the ones that were bad were really bad, damn near the point of being possesed, which is impossible for all things mechanical. Wire harness and connector issues were to blame for much of that. It took a LOOOOOOONNNNNGGGG time to figure all that out though. As for all the rumors about how horrid the c92 injectors were, Jeff (Beachbum) still has all of his, as does Tim Lamkin, so go figure? As for the head gaskets, IH quality control looks to be the frontrunner of that problem (heads not properly torqued on assembly, deck surfaces out of tolerance for flatness) more than likely the tuners exaggerated the issue. That said, I had one on my 03 and never lost a drop of coolant, and I was not gentle with it. The 6.0 will probably be the best choice of the 2 simply because you don't have to mod a 6.0, they pull great right out of the box if mods are not your thing. Also as coveted as the 7.3 is, it is getting harder and harder to find a low mileage one that lasts longer than a week on the lot.

 

AZ 56 & 03

I have a 03 and 98,000 miles tonight on the way home. It runs GREAT!!!
Had an oil leak and needed reflash when it was new and it has not been back to the
dealer since. I love this truck!

But there are some bad ones out there.

 

That last sentence made the most sense...(haha)......I bought mine in June of 2005....It's a 2000.....only had 40000 miles!.......4X4...crew cab....short-bed......Beautiful......Had my sales guy on the lookout for when one came in....Called me at about 7pm....It had come in that morning.....Went to see it the following morning.....after driving, haggling, etc., made the deal.....While it was still on the lot and the dealership was drawing up the papers, a couple of guys were sniffing around at it and would've bought it if I didn't just agree to the purchase. That sucker would've been bought that afternoon or evening if I hadn't gotten it.

 

Thank you all. I am looking for an AT, I'm only going to drive it to tow, or on weekends to drag things around. I've found a couple of 05's for sale, but higher miles. I've found a couple of 02-03 with 60k or less. Found a 2000 F350 with 80k 4x4. Don't need the 4x4, I'm just highway. They're out there, but you're right, they go quick and almost as much as the 05 with similar mileage!

Thanks again. You've given me alot to think about.

Happy Holidays to you all, I'll keep you posted.

Billy

 

What I am trying to say is that not all 7.3's are God's gifts to the trucking world. I would imagine that some have been screwed up by their former owners, putting oversized tires on them without changing the differential gear ratios, dusting their turbos with crappy aftermarket air fliters, bad mods. I wouldn't just drop my pants and pull out my checkbook on just any 7.3 that was on a dealer lot. I feel sorry for whoever bought the 7.3 that my co-worker traded in. What I meant by slow was that when the lights would turn green, everybody would pass that smoker. He drove as slow as Jethro in that old truck in the Beverly Hillbillies.

 

I suggest you drive both. The 6.0 has more power, but the 7.3 does seem to have less problems. Every year the 6.0 had some changes. In general 05 and later have fewer problems, 03 and early 04 are more of a gamble.

 

I've listened to everything everyone has said. I don't think diesel's are any different than buying any used or collectable auto, buyer beware. You take a certain risk the minute you buy something used. You have to trust your instincts, your salesperson if from a dealer, or a private party. If I had more money I would wait and by a 2009 6.4 (a year after its arrival!) I think if you do enough research, figure out what not to by, than after that, drive it, trust your buying instinct and pray the Ford Gods are with you!

Again, thank you all!

 

I have owned a 2002 F250 7.3, 2005 F-350 6.0, and a 2006 F350 6.0 and my experience has been this: I put 70K miles on the 2002 (bought it with 18k and sold it with almost 90K) and only needed to replace the oil pan, the 2005 I had flatbedded @ 5k due to injector failure and also had tranny problems which there was a recall on, and my 2006 F350 which I own now I had the computer replaced @ 9K and it doesn't appear that the proble is fixed yet. I prefer the 7.3 myself, but some people with the 6.0ltrs have had no problems at all.

 

Blue:
Thanks for the info. I'm looking for mostly 7.3's at this point, until I can buy a new 08!
Good luck!