'06 6.0 better than 03'? Nope.

[incredilion]

I want to preface this post with a little information.
I AM a Ford guy. Bought 3 different FLEETS of trucks (Aerostars, F-150's) for my company in Farmington Hills, when we lived there. Had Mustangs, Thunderbirds, Expeditions, 150's, and now 2 different 250's. Family works at both Wayne Assembly and Wixom. I have been as loyal as I can be, but I just had a vacation wrecked by a POS 2006 Ford F-250 King Ranch.

Just bought a used (w/16K miles) 06 6.0 CC 4x4 King Ranch to replace my 03' King Ranch that I had mucho troubles with.
I'll make this as short as I can.
Towing my 28' fifth wheel w/ wifey & baby & dog...
Thursday:
Left from CoeurD'Alene Idaho. Got 130 miles away, almost to Elllensburg, Wa., when truck started running REAL rough. Called dealership in Ellensburg, they said that their diesel mechanic quit on Monday. Got ahold of Ford Roadside assistance (by now truck would barely pull itself). They had a towtruck come out and tow back to Moses Lake, Wa.
Cost me $150.00 to tow my fifth wheel. Ford picked up the other $350.00. So far, so good.
Spent the night camping in the dealer's parking lot.
Friday:
Around noon, dealer says truck is all good. Replaced 3 injectors.
We load up, take off, and within about 10 miles I can feel a miss.
At 15 miles from the dealer, the turbo hose blows off.
Back to the dealer at 25 Mph for 15 miles.
They "fix" my problems, tell me all is good.
We again leave.
Get to just past Ellensburg, when truck starts missing, only not as bad as previously. Continues to get worse, until we stop.
We leave truck off for 5-10 minutes, then drive it for 8-12 miles before it goes to not enough power to make 45 MPH.
We do this for 135 miles all the way to the dealer in Issaquah, Wa.
Saturday/Sunday
Leave the truck at the dealer until Monday, because they aren't gonna work on it on the weekend.
Monday:
They tell me that they don't have the parts, but they will get them at the end of the day and have me gone Tuesday.
Tuesday:
Truck is finished at noon. They replaced a check valve, a "rail" and 2 more injectors. Prior to their doing this, I argued with the service manager trying to get him to replace all of the injectors. He said Ford woouldn't pay, and neither was he.
Ford pays for the rental car, and offers to pay for my "camping fees". After an '06 truck rips off my family for 5 days of our vacation, they want to offer me $30.00 a day?
Finished the rest of my vacation.
On our way home tonight, at around 150 miles away from home, truck started running bad again. I suspect more injectors bad. Got it home and watched mileage go from 13 down to 4 before we got there.
I have HAD IT.
I'll be talking with Dodge or GMC tomorrow. ENOUGH is enough.
Obviously, I must have one of the "bad" ones. And that wouldn't bother me so much except I just went through the same thing with a 2003 6'0. Replaced Turbocharger, injectors, sensors, and finally a thermostat that stuck on a mountain pass, stranding me & my family.

[earnhardtfan55]

Did you get an Oasis report before buying this used truck? I would have to wonder about one traded in (or dumped) with this low miles. Either someone has money to burn or it was a bad one he was dumping. I would bet it is the latter.

[incredilion]

Sorry, I've never heard of an Oasis report. I also suspect that someone was basically trying to get rid of it. Just can't believe I'm having this many problems with it.

[snoeproe]

was the truck ran stock since new?
hardly sounds like it.
i have 40k on my 05 now and it's been a good runner.

[mev403]

too bad about your vacation, that sucks. we just got back from 2 wk. vacation driving with our 15000 pd fifth whl.2005 hoilday rambler 4 slides, got a 2006 250 6.0 crew cab.4x4. drove from buffalo ny. to yellowstone park in wy. via powder river pass 9500 ft. not a problem, left park through so. entrance to utah more mts. then east more mts. got about 9.5 on flat terraine got about 7.5-8.5 in the hilly areas., had a 2003 6.0, just had to have it reflashed about 20 times , & blew one turbo , didn't want to chance it in the mtnts. so i took atavantage of the 5.000 rebate progame they had this spring .agin sorry about your vaction. ps. about 50 % of tow vechiles in yelloestone were power strokes.30% cummins

[incredilion]

I don't know what you mean by "hardly sounds like it". I'm assuming that you mean that it's full of mods. It doesn't. The truck has an AFE intake.
I ran it back from Richmond, VA, pulling a trailer full of wood (between 9&10K, I think). It ran great, no problems.
I spoke to a service manager from a dealership that is not related to my truck today and I asked him; do all of the 6.0's have problems or what's the deal? He told me- "off the record, I wouldn't own one".
And here's the thing- I WANT to. But I'm not going to go through all of this garbage just trying to get along.
My other truck had a Banks 6 Gun w/ Loader. It also had MBRP Exhaust, a K&N Filter, and was driven, for the most part, on level 3. The truck did not get beat on. And it still gave me a lot of trouble.

[incredilion]

Thanks for the condolensces, Mev.
See, that's the part that's killing me. I also see a lot of Powerstrokes out there, but the one I end up seeing on the side of the raod a lot is ME???! I'd really like to just have one that works right, because I love the truck, (and I HATE to get anything else).
But this stuck on the road stuff has GOT to end.

[Rich807]

I'm really sorry about your vacation crap out, we use our PSD exclusively to pull our TT, zero problems so far and it's night and day better then the Dodge we owned before.

1. Did you put that intake on there or was it already on the truck, just curious? If it was already on there I'd be suspicious of previous owner mods.

2. It sounds like most of your current problem is related to incorrect, incomplete, and/or incompetent servicing by the places you got stuck taking it to for work. I know that doesn't help get your vacation back but a good service dept/technician would've probably done the job right the 1st time. Yes you had a Ford problem but the dealers you had to go to made it 10x worse by either not diagnosing it right to begin with or messing up other stuff while trying to fix the original problem.

3. What I don't understand is why you guys mod these trucks? All it does is set you up for warranty and breakage problems. My advice to people is if you need to modify your truck to do your task then you bought the wrong truck. Move up to a medium duty truck like a toter home style rig if you really need that much towing prowess. The fact is the odds of you having serious mechanical breakages are so much higher when modified it's almost a certainty (especially when truck is used to tow). I blew a headgasket in my Cummins while only running a 50hp Edge chip (I learned my lesson and will never chip a vehicle I own ever again).

My point is you owned a modified 2003 6.0 and had a ton of problems with and now you went and bought a newer one that's either already been modified by the original owner or you've started down the modification road again yourself. "Burn me once shame on you, burn me twice shame on me", pretty much everyone knows that expression.

Again, I really can imagine how ticked off I'd be if my vacation was ruined as we RV all the time, but it sure sounds like you had your problems compounded by service departments.

[4drdually]

I have to agree about the mod thing. From everything I read, and everything I here from service guys, MOST problems are caused by someone screwing around with something. I would be hesitant to buy a 06 with 16k. My family has been in the car dealership business a long time and we would all stay away from that. Buy new, or buy a seasoned, well maintained vehicle. just my 2 cents. sorry about your vacation though

P.S. The other 2 aren't any better at fixing problems eithier!

[01F350PSD4x4]

wow had the same problem on the same road just last weekend. look under blew my 6.0 post and there's my story similar to yours only I didn't stop or loose speed but I had MAJOR clanging/missing/sputtering. I'm the 6th or 7th generation ford lover in my family but after all of these problems with this engine my loyalty is fadding fast. I hate to say it but you don't hear of bow ties having all of these problems. ( It brings a tear to my eye to stay that!) I know your pain and just pray with all the rest of us that the new 6.4 will be just as bullet proof as the mighty 7.3.

[incredilion]

Rich, thanks for your input. Especially about the Dodge....
And here's the answers-
I put the intake/filter on. I don't believe for a second that it would/will cause any trouble at all with the engine.

I agree totally that the first place that worked on it, Discovery Ford in Moses Lake, Wa, messed up big time, moreover, twice. The second dealer let me know that one of the injectors had what he called "bent pins".

OK, now let's talk about "mods".
First off, the Banks, exhaust and such I put on my 03 were all done well after I started having problems with the truck. I owned the truck for over a year before I did anything with it, modification-wise, at all. So, no, IMO the modifications did not cause the problems I had with that truck. One of the dealers that I was in contact with recommended that I get the Banks precisely because it would limit turbo boost if the EGT's got too hot. It's the main reason I did it in the first place.

In terms of my "starting down that road", I think that's a little presumptuous, when the only component added to the truck is an air filter.

As to "mission", here's what my trucks do. They plow in the winter in Idaho, pull a fifth wheel for a few weeks in the summer, and tow a 24 foot boat when I go fishing. Aside from that, I pull my equipment trailer and haul a New Holland Skidsteer occasionally. I don't think that this is asking too much of the truck, or that it isn't or shouldn't be perfectly capable of towing and handling these loads. I work my trucks, and always have. Just never had the issues I have with them now.

I don't know, really, what I should do. I just ordered (and paid for) some 18 inch rims to use this winter on the truck, because I can't get snows/studs on the 20's that are on it now. It's something else, to me. If the engine runs right, it's the best truck on the market. If the engine doesn't run right I might as well have my '98 250 back. That truck NEVER broke.

[awayne]

My 2006 is completely stock and has been like that since new. I have had all my injectors replaced, EGR, EGR cooler, HPOP & alternator.

I am waiting for a call from my local rep to see about getting it bought back. We will see what happens.

[incredilion]

Wayne- I'd really like to hear what they do for you on your truck. Could you possibly post something on this? Thanks!

[Rich807]

Well, I hear where you're coming from but let's deal with the facts/reality of the situation you're now in:

You own a 6.0.

Ford (and others) are on the prowl for voiding warranties

Although not alone in this case, 6.0s are known to break when modified

Don't give FMC ANY repeat ANY reason to void your warranty (especially when you're not really gaining anything) The stock air filter/intake is very very well designed and performs excellently. If you don't have any power mods then there's absolutely no performance reason to run a K&N, a least not on the 6.0. There's another thread right next to this one where a guy here in Vegas is being charged for repairs out of his own pocket because of a K&N. The K&N may or may not have caused his MAF sensor problem but they have a valid reason not to warranty his situation as the oil can be sucked out of gauze filters and into the intake tract on turbo charged vehicles. It's not uncommon.

Find yourself a really good technican someplace around your area and you'll be just fine. I know you've just been through a lot but I think your problems, like many before you, are more to do with mechanics not properly diagnosing and fixing an issue(s) then a stream of bad part/bad design after bad part/bad design.

Take care and best of luck to ya.

[incredilion]

I appreciate your input, Rich.
And I can see where FMC wants to void warranties, too.
The truck is going to a dealer today, one here in Spokane that has given good service before.
One of the main reasons that I buy diesel is for longevity. If the truck doesn't have that, I may go looking for a V-10 Gasser. I'd (and I know this may sound nuts) rather spend more on gas than sit on the side of the road.
Having to fight FMC is also something I'm not interested in. On the other hand, I spent my money, good money, on a product that is touted as "the best". It's not, to me.