What to watch for......

[Cowcop]

One of my friend's sons has purchased a 2005 F350 Auto with the 6.0 Liter diesel. Seems in good shape with approx. 70K on the odometer. Being from the 7.3 world, is there anything he should be checking or be concerned about relative to the 2005 model?
I will also be encouraging the young fellow to start checking out this site.
Thanks..

[wldwilliam]

Originally Posted by Cowcop

One of my friend's sons has purchased a 2005 F350 Auto with the 6.0 Liter diesel...I will also be encouraging the young fellow to start checking out this site.

The best thing you can do is point him here and have him browse this forum for a day of two. He may get freaked out a little because so much of the discussion is about problems with the 6.o but he will gather a ton of knowledge about good maintenance practices and helpful mods to increase engine reliability. Send him here!

Of course, you could browse the forms for a couple days and translate for him

[mlwest]

Point him to oil cooler failures on this site.

Long story short - get an aftermarket gauge set that will allow for the display of oil and coolant temperatures.

If oil temp > coolant temp + 14 then oil cooler must be replaced otherwise other ugly things will follow.

Motor may run great but still be suffering from a plugged oil cooler.

[fonecop1]

Originally Posted by mlwest

Point him to oil cooler failures on this site.

Long story short - get an aftermarket gauge set that will allow for the display of oil and coolant temperatures.

If oil temp > coolant temp + 14 then oil cooler must be replaced otherwise other ugly things will follow.

Motor may run great but still be suffering from a plugged oil cooler.

I agree, I went with the Edge Insight for $249 from a site vendor (performance truck products) and immediately I was enlightened that my oil cooler needed to be replaced because my oil temps were more than 14 degrees hotter than my coolant temps.

[Cowcop]

He has now looked and will be asking questions after he registers etc. He will be looking at the oil cooler situation asap.
Cheers..... back to 7.3 land!

[bismic]

If you are looking at used 6.0's here are a few considerations (along w/ the OASIS and CARFAX reports that are essential).

Some 6.0L weak points (things to check):

Look for signs of coolant degas bottle overflow (dry white residue on and around the degas bottle or no level in degas bottle).

Lots of idling can cause EGR problems. I look at the hours on the engine (if it has this monitored) and divide the miles by the hours (is it below 30? If so, may have had lots of idling).

Even without much extended idling EGR valves can plug quickly - maybe negotiate for a new EGR valve. In fact, I would negotiate for them to pull the EGR valve to inspect it (have them show it to you when it is out and then you need to look into the intake). Check for wetness (w/ rear end jacked up) and for excess soot. Wetness indicates an EGR cooler leak. If the valve is gunked up, have them replace the valve. If the intake is real bad, you may push them to clean it as well.

Look underneath for oil leaks - some trucks have had a lot of them.

If you buy from a dealership, I would negotiate for them to install the latest flash of all 3 processors (PCM, FICM, ECM).

Negotiating for an extended warranty is always a good thing as well.

Try to find out about the routine maintenance:
· Filter change intervals on time? What kind of oil (CI 4 + or CJ 4 - one of these is required)?
· OEM filters? Look at them and see what kind they are. Aftermarket filters can cause MAJOR problems.
· Find proof of Transmission being flushed/changed - it is recommended every 30,000 miles.
· Any exhaust problems visible (i.e. lots of white or blue smoke)? White smoke may mean an EGR cooler leak.

Check for any FLUID leaks (as stated previously - LOOK SPECIFICALLY FOR OIL LEAKS - 6.0L are prone to many of these from many possible places!!).

CEL (Check Engine Light) on? Consider getting a code reader and check for DTC's. You can have active DTC’s without a CEL.

The Electronic Shift on the Fly ESOF sometimes fails due to vacuum leaks. Be sure to check this out (several times in and out of 4WD and/or take front wheels off to inspect).

Check for excessive wheel bearing wear (looseness), sway bar (end link looseness), or ball joint looseness. Ball joints and sway bar end links tend to go out in the 70k-90k range. Jack one side up at a time and see if each wheel moves top to bottom only, if so, it is the ball joints. If it moves in all directions then probably wheel bearings.

Check the coolant - it should have the Motorcraft Gold Coolant - anything else and there may be problems. Look in the "degas" bottle and inspect the fluid - it should be gold colored and there should be NO OIL visible (oil emulsified in water can show up as brown sludge). As previously stated, the degas bottle should not have white residue around the sides of it (possible overheating issues).

Any evidence of a tuner (aftermarket air filter, gauges, etc)? Tuners may or may not be bad. Some tuners are MURDER on the transmission. Some dealerships will cause you a lot of problems w/ them - even if you bought it that way used.

Aftermarket air systems could be a problem. Many of them (like K&N) do not filter as well and could cause issues. Up to 500 hp, the stock air system is best!

Try to find out if the original owner ever ran it empty on fuel or have plugged filters (fuel pressure below 45 psig can damage injectors)?

Then the common stuff I'm sure you know:
· Look at and smell the fluids. Make sure fluids not burnt, not too thick or dirty.
· Check the tires - abnormal wear?
· How do the brakes look? Any pads need replacement? Are the rear brakes excessively worn?
· All electronics working? Especially the AC (repair can be expensive)?
· Dents? Air bag been replaced, etc.
· See if he has any repair or maintenance records.
· Take off the price for windshield dings, paint chipped, torn upholstery, etc.
· Does the truck look too clean? Does it look like the oil was just changed? May be hiding something.
· Any extras - tool boxes, bumpers, etc.?
· Drive it - does it hesitate, stutter, or surge? Does it blow white or black smoke? When driving, brake fairly hard - note any pulls, pops, clunks, rattles, etc. How does it accelerate? You should romp on it pretty good. Drive in reverse and then back and forth - listen for clunks.

Add or subtract value based on condition, high miles, and presence of extras.

[mlwest]

Nice write up Bismic.