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Expected performance with current mods?

2K views 15 replies 6 participants last post by  Master_Chase 
#1 ·
Hello! I tried searching the forum but couldn't really find anything that fully answered my question. I'm curious if my truck is where it should be performance wise based off of what is done to it. I'm new to diesels and none of my friends have a 6.0 to compare it to.
Basically, I have a 2006 F250 6.0 with an automatic tranny with 170,000 miles. All I have done to it is an egr delete kit (Straight pipe, no block off plates), a SCT4 tuner, blue spring upgrade, and a coolant filter. Everything else is stock, no lift or anything. Oil and air filter changed 3k miles ago. I typically drive on performance mode because I get the best mileage that way. But if I'm towing something then I switch it over to a towing mode.
In performance mode when I accelerate from a dead stop, the truck is a dog until the rpms rise up and I'm going at least 15 to 20 mph then it'll take off. If I push my foot down more until the rpms rise up, all I do is shoot out a bunch of black smoke and very slowly accelerate until it reaches a certain speed and then takes off. Is that normal? In the other modes it acts the same way, but I don't see any smoke and when it does take off its considerably slower. I know there's supposed to be turbo lag and everything, but I feel like it shouldn't be this slow from a stop? Are other 6.0's able to spin the tires from a dead stop? It's to the point where I have to wait for a very open road before I can turn onto it in fear of not accelerating fast enough.
 
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#2 ·
You don't have a gasser, don't drive it like one. You can't just mash on the pedal and expect it to go, it will lag until the boost builds, then it will take off.
 
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#3 ·
I don't mash on it; I never have my foot to the floor because I know it responds better when the pedal is in a "sweet spot" while accelerating. I just expected it to have more low end power from a stop than it currently does. Like I said, I'm just new to diesels and don't know what regular or irregular behavior is.
 
#4 ·
I have same year, same mods. I havent experienced any black smoke issues with the street tune but to be truthful, I haven't hammered it since stock headbolts and dont want to be shelling out any funds just yet. Ours has barely 80k miles so it could be possible your VGT turbo may be sticking. I did notice some turbo lag from a stop once (with no smoke) but it was pulling our 4.5k boat at 7000ft elevation so think it was more of that combination than anything else. At that point in time, I was running the stock tune (pre SCT purchase).
 
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#5 ·
Check your cac boots for cracks and check for any other boost or exhaust leaks. It will have some lag but it does sound like its a little more than just turbo lag.
 
#6 · (Edited)
Any diesel truck that I have ever driven will blow black smoke if you mash it from a stop on a race tune.

These are "turbo" diesels. Turbos have lag. Your turbo really won't do very much until you get up to about 1500-1800rpms. If you mash it under 1500rpms on a race tune... then you will see smoke.

Maybe find someone you know local that can take your truck for a drive to see if it is acting normal :poke

Next thing I would do is get some custom tunes.
 
#7 ·
It's very possible my turbo is dirty, it's probably overdue for a cleaning. I'll also check all the boots to see if any of them are showing signs of leaks.
Will custom tunes help out acceleration from a dead stop, or is it just a con of a diesel? Are there any mods I can do to help it accelerate? I'm not looking to street race or anything, but I would feel better if I had the instant power available to me.
 
#8 ·
A custom tune will DEFINITELY help with spool up off the line... but you can't expect supercharger performance with a turbocharged vehicle, there will always be a little turbo lag right off the line. The fastest spooling tunes I have ever used are from Truck Source Diesel. 6.0tsdtunes@gmail.com


Here are a few things that will help spool up:
Clean turbo
Check for boost/exhaust leaks
Add a billet wheel to your turbo
Get a better air filter
ported intake manifold
upgraded intercooler
 
#9 · (Edited)
So I popped the hood to check out the boots and to do an oil change since it's that time again, and I noticed there was a lot of black soot on the engine and on the bottom side of the hood near the cab. The boot coming out of the hot side of the turbo was completely black (along with a few other parts on that side of the engine) so I took it off, cleaned it, and noticed there were some small tears in the blue part of the boot. They don't seem to go all the way through though from what I was able to see.
Would a leaking boot cause black soot to cover the engine, even if they are tiny holes? I also did some research and a few people noted that the exhaust could have a crack in it as well. Is there a common weak point in the exhaust?

Are boots on Amazon any good? The reviews are 50/50 and it seems like most the issues are people not installing it correctly or something. Id rather spend $20 on a boot than $60 (from what I've been able to find)
 
#10 ·
A crack boot will cause black smoke out the tailpipe but not in the engine bay, black soot in the engine bay is caused by an exhaust leak. So you have 2 problems a cracked boot and an exhaust leak, I'm betting it's the up pipes leaking, you could test that by getting a friend one of you is looking in the engine bay for smoke, the other is holding the brake to the floor in R (D will work as well but I like R so I don't run the person over if the brakes fail) while mashing the throttle to create smoke.
 
#12 ·
Coolant temp is low should be 190F, check the thermostat or is the fan is stuck on?
 
#14 ·
The fan isn't completely mechanical, it's bolted to the water pump but the computer controls the fan clutch lock %, if you want a 100% mechanical fan clutch get the 1997 7.3 clutch a few of us here have it.

Pull the thermostat and put it in a pot filled with water then heat it up and take note of temperature it opens at anything less than 190F and it's bad.
 
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