Hey gents!! well, long story short 2006 F250 turbo diesel, 8 inch lift and full RBP exhaust. I also have a SCT tune. Truck has been running great and really no issues as far vehicle stuttering or exhaust gas. However, the only thing is that the vehicle does not blow out hot air at idle. I have to gas it or drive around for the hot heater air to blow. A/C works great, just won't blow hot air during cold mornings or defrost my window. I took it to Cerritos Ford and they ran tests and told me it was a bad EGR cooler so they recommended replacing the EGR cooler and oil cooler. For $3500.00!!! I said whoa!!! They also recommended my turbo being cleaned due to it small coking. With that, I was looing at $5400.00. Of course with my exhaust, they said its not covered with my extended warranty. I read about the EGR cooler upgrades from bulletproof diesel and was wondering if it would help in my situation. Im sure it would being a better design then OEM ford's. But the main thing is finding a decent shop in the area of Downey/Whittier. Preferably something in the LA county areas if possible but willing to drive a bit out to save a couple of g's versus getting work done at Ford. Any input would be appreciated. Thanks!

 

I've used Diesel Tech in San Jacinto and they are reasonable.

 

thx for the quick response, I'll keep that in mind

 

i use Diesel Tech too. Loren is the man!
www.dieseltech1.com

 

Cool, Thx brotha, seem they have a good rep!! I was just wondering if any of u guys have had the same symptom regarding the heater not blowing hot air but the A/C working fine. I am by no means a wrenchhead, but would that symptom alone constitute a bad egr cooler. Like I said, truck runs perfect with no engine issues as of yet!! but like many, coolant level is gettin low. Not fast, but over a short time period. Maybe the bad EGR cooler is barely starting!!!

 

A low coolant level will also affect heater operation IIRC.

BTW.... They can't deny you warranty just for an exhaust unless they can PROVE the exhaust caused your problem. EGR/Oil cooler failures are a coolant problem NOT an exhaust problem, but it might not even be worth the hassle. Check your PM's

 

Yea, I heard that a low coolant level will affect operation related to the heater, I agree about them proving that it was the exhaust and thats what I told them. I spoke to the service manager and he was telling me many dealerships have received technical bulletins stating that full open exhausts plus the removal of the cat converter directly affect backpressure which in turn affects the EGR cooler and blah, blah, blah, etc..... So, in the end they wanted to charge me $5000+ to change EGR and oil cooler, and clean the turbo out and I said go pound sound!! So, im planning on taking it to Diesel Tune Inc in Downey, any1 have any reviews on them?? A couple buddies have gone there and they state they specialize in Ford Superdutys! I just wanted them to fix my heater damn it!! LOL! I guess its better to take care of this and save bigger bills down the road!

 

wow, I have yet to tag anyone for that crap. Did you ask to see a copy of the bulletins? Ive been at this awhile and thats not one I have seen yet.

 

I agree on the exhaust but do you think they may have him on the tune?
But I agree it would be a tough link for them to make.
I think its a matter of retail work paying better than warranty work, if you know what I mean.

 

wanna know the truth about how diesel guys feel about retail work? It sucks and half of the time it pays less. Its more of a hassle. With retail I have to wait to see what hole the customer is going to blow out of when they get the price. Then many people dont have the money to fix them (I could not afford to either) so the job walks.
with warranty is all about getting it in and out of your stall. send the parts request threw and go to work.. no waiting, no games just work.
Heres is the op's issue... He can fight it and odds are he could win. What he will lose is the fine if the shop gets pissy and turns him in to the epa for emmisions tampering.
seen that too.

 

Well if it ain't on the exhaust it could be on the tune too as far as warranty work. Ok, let me breath and try my best to clarify this issue! I just finished some time at diesel tune in Downey, who specialize in Ford superdutys. Old Mechanic by the name of Mike, guy knows his Sh@t, very nice guy who took me to my truck and let me see him perform diagnostic testing. He's been working on nothing but light diesels (especially fords) for the last 25+ years! First, he checked my coolant. he said it was fine, didn't look low. pressure tested, and as far as he could tell no leaks. I haven't put coolant in since my last service about 6 months ago. We test drove my truck while hooked up to his labtop to determine if their was a big difference in temperature between coolant and oil temp? At most about 5 degrees! We drove it hard, and it rode like a champ. No engine problems whatsoever, didn't overheat, and no exhaust smoke whatsoever. He said a common sign with a bad oil cooler or EGR cooler was a big temperature difference between oil and coolant temps. Checked fine. He ran tests on the EGR cooler itself and the results were all within parameter, said it came back fine. He tested the turbo, again no problems since I was worried about possible coking or sticking. So as far as he could tell visually and through his computer testing, all was fine. Especially since I have had no engine problems or exhaust smoke whatsoever(except black smoke when I gun it ) So, worse of all, I haven't been able to recreate the initial problem of the heater not blowing hot air during real cold mornings during the initial start. All times, I have started it cold, it takes a bit but eventually gets warm. Also maybe cuz southern cali mornings ain't too cold to start, especially during the last week or so. So, in the end so far everything looks decent. I am just worried cuz the Ford techs said the symptom of not blowing hot air on the initial start up was directly related to a faulty EGR cooler and oil cooler! But when the Ford techs tried to recreate that problem of no hot air, they couldn't recreate it either. But then again it was about noon time, not cold at all. So in the end, im back to sqaure 1 with a good running truck and no major problems. At least for now??

 

It usually takes my truck about 10-20 miles of driving to warm up enough for any kind of significant heat to come from the heater on a truly cold morning.

Just wondering.....what setting are you running the heater controls on? Only two settings DON"T run the compressor.

I'm still wondering how the original dealer determined you had a bad EGR cooler when you have NO coolant loss and NO white smoke. Thank the good lord you had a second opinion.

 

I wonder if you have a bad heater valve? they block flow to the core when the A/C is on max ,, but if it had an issue it would blocke heater flow,, I would be breaking out my infared gun and shooting some hoses

 

Hecks yea on a second opinion, I only dropped $70 for a test but saved $3500 + from work. Thats what I was thinking all along, how can Ford tell its a bag EGR/Oil cooler with just a heater issue with no other symptoms such as rough driving, overheating, and exhaust smoke. Now that I think about it, it was really really cold mornings when this issue occurred, not that southern cali mornings can compare to easterly, but a little colder then usual. So far, the heater and A/C have been working great and truck has been driving like a champ. I know common problems with our trucks are the Egr/oil coolers so Im definitely going to keep an eye on it.

 

we can tell by following tsb 09-08-03.
perfrom a pressure test and vacuum test on the cooling system.road test and moniter ect/eot. then remove and bench test egr cooler if needed.