Hi guys, I'm fairly new owner of a '04 F-350 FX4 and all that. Anyway, it's not my primary car and mostly sits in a garage but I think all of these trucks have a block heater as an OEM install right? And if this is the case could somebody point me in the right direction as to where to start my search for the 120V plug, i.e. where the block heater is and the way that the cord is usually routed to the front...

Thanks in advance!

 

Mine was found right behind the Passenger side fog light. It was zip tied up there and had to look twice. Or look by the starter to see if there is one hooked to the block heater itself.

2004 F350 4x4 CC LB KR

 

All trucks have the block heater installed but not all have the cord installed. This link will give you information on cord routing.

Diesel Technician Society

Since you mentioned you were new to the 6.0, I'll mention that this engine is susceptible to stuck turbo vanes if it sits for long periods of time. This engine is a workhorse but it needs to be exercised on a regular basis or you'll have problems.

 

10-4 on that, Thanks for the link that's perfect! I'm going to go look for it as it might just be zip tied, thanks amdriven2liv

 

I have an 05 f350 6.0, I have looked everywhere for the cord, it is not there, last night I crawled all over my truck and it does not even have the heater in the block with out the cord, followed the link that was posted, I guess on some trucks it was an option and they opted not to put it on mine.....has anyone self installed one?

 

The cord is there...you'll have to lay under the truck to see it on the '04. It will be on the passenger side, inside of the frame right behind the tow hook/eye. Once you've got it...grab behind the plug and give it a good tug, it will pop loose from the factory mounting that KTP put it in to keep it out of trouble. The only reason I can think of that you wouldn't have it on a '04 is if a PO removed it after a failure...and didn't replace it. Like cowboy said...if you let it sit long enough your going to have vane issues from rusting. I don't drive mine everyday...but I try to take it out once a week for at least 45 minutes and some where in there do an "Italian Tune-up" or sometimes called a "Redline Tune up" either or will get the job done.

The block heater is there, Navistar put it in all engines (6.0L & 6.4L) before they were shipped to KTP. But starting with YM '05 trucks...not all of them got the cord; that something Ford's did. The block heater cord plugs into the element right above the starter...on the passenger side of the truck. If yours doesn't have the element...that's a first. I'd go over that link Cowboy posted...there some helpful information there from DTS.

 

I had asked our local dealership 2 yrs ago about the block heater cord. He told me not all of the 05 F-250s have a cord or a heater. I looked into whether my truck had the heater again this year before Christmas. Called 6 different dealerships. Half said yes all trucks come with the heaters but may or may not come with cord. The other half said NO they do not come with the heater.

So now I am not sure who/what to believe.

 

My 05 Excursion had the heater, but no cord. The truck was originally sold in Phoenix, AZ. I've heard that southern trucks did not get the cord in 2005.

I bought the cord and installed it myself. Took about 1 hour.

The resistance measures about 14.5 ohm. So, I estimate the heater requires about 8.25 A and should put about 1000W into the engine block. I use a timer to turn it on 3 hours before I go out to the truck. Worked fine at 11F yesterday morning.

 

Here is a page with a picture of location of the block heater from above the starter.

Diesel Technician Society


note orange cord is attached on this one.

2004 F350 6.0L CC LB King Ranch
Coolant filter
high idle
upfitter switches.

 

This is pretty close, I have read in a couple of places that the heater is rated at 1200 watts and measures 15 ohms resistance. Which would require 8.9A at 120Vac.

 

The heating element is there, International/Navistar built ALL the PSD engines with the heating element in the block. Remember, the 6.0L (along with 7.3L & 6.4L) are used in International trucks/school buses as well so to save time they built all the engines with the element installed; it was up to the chassis application if the cord was installed or not. Starting with the 2005 year model (YM) trucks Ford didn't put the cord on all trucks as they rolled down the assembly line at KTP. Trucks (F-series & Excursions) sold to Southern dealers wouldn't get the cord...unless it was special ordered by the dealer. Like I told sskeetr1...if your truck doesn't have the element that's a first and I'd like to see the photo evidence. If you don't have the cord on your truck, you can go to Ford ($130), International ($45) or eBay ($30) and get one. The 6.0L and 6.4L use the same cord and it mounts the same way/location. Personally I'd get the International just for the fact that I'm not a fan of China parts on my truck; the one on my truck was made in Canada.

 

zhilton, yep banging my head on a wall is exactly how I feel after talking to several dealerships. Should have just checked this forum before even messing with the dealership. Thanks for the advice on the cord from International.

 

I just finished measuring mine it was 14.5 ohms

 

K guys, I would believe you over any dealer, I have checked for cord and looked for heater, I have not made it my primary mission just browsed pretty good when doing other work on truck, now it is my primary mission to locate this thing, stayin pretty cold here in ohio,and pretty rough starts. if it is not there I will def. post some pics.Once again thanks for the help and will be in touch soon...

 

I read the first few posts and nobody really could answer the question about whether or not the truck would have a block heater cord. All trucks prior to '04 (including the '04 models) came installed with the block heater cord. In 2005 they started only installing them depending on where they were being shipped out.

And about the stuck vanes thing that was posted earlier on, it happened to me. My truck sat at a dealership for a while. When I first got it it ran fine. After a few days, I was riding home from school and I hit the gas and noticed that it sounded very very funny. My truck had straight pipes, but I did not even notice the fact that I heard no whistle when I hit the gas. I had no clue what the problem was at first, I just knew my truck had absolutely no power until I got up to about 50 mph (and it sure took forever to get there, and my mpg's SUCKED!!!). I just so happened to be on the powerstrokehelp.com website and there was a video about the vanes getting stuck. He said that the best thing to do if this happens is to just lay on the gas and they will eventually break free. Sure enough, I tried it and it worked right off the bat.

Anyways, I do have one question about the block heater. How much power do they pull exactly? I have a digital indoor timer that I was going to hook up in the garage and run an extension cord out to my truck. But the timer is rated for up to 1200W. Is that enough for these heaters? I just don't want to leave it plugged up all night because the lowest it gets here at night might be like 10 or 15 degrees.