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I have an 2000 4 x 4 Excursion with a 7.3 psd and 200 K miles. I am thinking about purchasing an '03 4 x 4 Ex with a 6.0 engine and 100K miles on the ticker. There is nothing wrong with my 2000 but am looking to upgrade to a newer model and all the upgrades (such as entertainment system, etc.), not to mention fewer miles. What are the drawbacks to the '03 models? Thanks, I value your opinions.
It seems that a lot of people will say the only drawback would be the 6.0 diesel engine. I'm sure somebody would be more than happy to get an Oasis report for you so you could see whats been done to the Excursion your looking at and make sure theres no potential problems with engine.
cj my buddy has an 03 6.0 and he hates it. That engine year was the first year tester model and he has replaced plugs and PCM. He has also lost some injectors. He hates his truck and wishes he could find the trustworthy 7.3 around. It also seems for some reason it costs more to fix and repair items on the 6.0 Of course ymmv on each truck but I would look into it deeply. Many folks on here can get you an Oasis report. I can say from personal experince. My 00 7.3 has 157K on it and i just replaced GPR , one alternator, fuel pump ( my fault , let fuel gel and wifee burnt it out) and a new carrier in the rear. Other then that I love her and that is with taking her off roading too. ( of course I have replaced the ball joints but who hasnt. LOL
a general FYI -
i used to work for International / Navistar that made the 7.3 in Indianapolis. My understanding from our engineers is that ford used 100% of our 7.3 built by us. Ford decided they could do it better / cheaper / etc. They used our parts, but assembled it with ours and their parts. from what i have heard, the 6.0 is unpredictable and is a crapshoot on what you get.
We have a large Ford dealership here in town that has a separate truck division that does all the heavy and diesel truck work. I have yet to talk to any of their mechanics who has anything good to say about the 6.0 PSD's.
When I was down at John Wood automotive a couple weeks back for my built tranny, John said he got rid of all his 6.0L PSD'd because he hates them. "They're junk" he say's, not as reliable as the 7.3's or made as well. "Besides," he added, "with all the performance parts that are now available for the 7.3, they can be made to be as fast or faster, while still being more reliable in the long run."
My 6.0 has been reliable. It is an early '04, and I realize that not all were. One big advantage of the 6.0 is the Torqshift trans. In tow/haul, I think it performs as good as a standard trans.
There is nothing wrong with my 2000 but am looking to upgrade to a newer model and all the upgrades (such as entertainment system, etc.), not to mention fewer miles.
Out of curiosity, why not look at the 2005 model? Think about it ... you cannot upgrade any further beyond that. If you get an '03 now, will you be hankering for an '05 later?
You could also look for a 2003 7.3l too! I bought mine new and they wanted me to wait for the 6.0 But I told them I wanted the 7.3. Then they offered it to me for 45,000 thousand dollars, and said i could not get it any cheaper any where else so the first thing I asked was what were they going to give me to buy it from them. I got the winter floor mats clear coat mud guards and they towed it on a trailer from Keiser WV.
I think I got a good deal. sticker was $51,000 before tax
...and all the upgrades (such as entertainment system, etc.), not to mention fewer miles.
I have a factory entertainment center in my 2000 Excursion that I had the dealer add. However, if I had to do it again, I'd have gone aftermarket because they have bigger screen sizes available.
As far as the miles are concerned, you do realize this is a diesel we're talking about and not a gasser, right?