need help deciding

[pickit]

I posted this in the excursion forum and 6.0 forum. I'm trying to get opinions from everyone as well as positives and negatives for each one. I will more than likely be purchasing one of these two. Thanks for y'alls input.

I've been looking for an excursion for awhile. Now, i've found two. I was dead set on a 7.3, but now i think I might want a 6.0. So here's the two excursion.

2001 7.3 4wd limited
-105,000 miles
-original owner, 70 year old man
-middle seat has been sat on maybe a dozen times, third row was taken out and put in a spare bedroom the day he brought it home from the dealer.
-middle bench and third row bench
-very clean
-turbo temp monitor
-trans. temp, turbo boost, and egt pillar gauges
-no performance mods
-stanadyne in every fill up
-transmission had a problem at 50,000, the old man said it was a part part in there that ford knew about but didn't recall. he said basically a rebuilt tranny by ford.
-pulled a 5,900 boat probably a dozen times a year
-pretty much untouched stock truck
$14,000

2005 eb 4wd
-145,000 miles
-2 owners
-interior is clean, two front seats show some wear
-second row captains and third row bench very clean
-dvd (factory)
-navigation (pioneer)
-oasis shows
*feb.08, 69,396 miles replaced 2,3,6,8 injectors
*feb.08, 69,396 miles replaced egr cooler hose and resealed egr cooler
*apr.08, 73,450 miles replaced hpop fittings
*sep.08, 92,113 miles cleaned turbo veins
-sct tuner
-no gauges
-4" lift
-18" wheels with 33's
-the owner now replaced the FICM this year
-clean truck
$13,500

I was set on the 7.3, but now I'm not sure. What are your opinions on both and if you were in my shoes which would you buy?

Thanks - Shaun

[MyTractorsSexy]

after seeing the number of issues that 6.0 has had id go with the 7.3 i am a firm beleaver that some trucks come as a pos from the dealer and some dont. my truck didnt have a single issue till 85k miles when i flushed the radiator and that made my deltas sky rocket on the oil cooler. i also feel any truck that had blown EGR cooler even though the head gaskets didnt blow im sure it started to do its damage on those Head gaskets. not to mention if you dont have a monitor to take with you to buy that 6.0 just buy the 7.3 its known to be much less of a hassle. on a side note i do love my 6.0.... im not trying to bash it...

[dieselcrawler]

I'd deff get the 7.3... that's one nice truck for the money. We paid $10K for our about a year ago, with 243K miles, with the same options, and very clean/rust free for the mileage. And it has low miles... I'd snatch it up asap.

[pickit]

Thanks for the responses brothers! My gut said go with the 7.3. But, then I was letting little bells and whistles, 2nd row captains, dvd, nav., make me doubt myself. I posted this in three different places on this site and everyone said 7.3. Even the 6.0 guys that said they love there 6.0.

Thanks again! Great forum!

Shaun

[dentexpowerstroke]

I love the 7.3 but would trade it for a 6.0 in a heartbeat. The problem with the 7.3 trans that you speak of is the mechanical diode trans they used in 01. The 6.0 is a good motor if you maintain it. I'd get the 6.0 and egr delete it, get good tunes and rock it. They are solid motors when maintained and you don't abuse it. The biggest thing is that's a really low mileage 7.3, it will last a lot longer but I wouldn't rule out the 6.0. You don't want to be in my shoes in 2 years saying "Wow, I wish I had picked up that 6.0 when I had the chance." Knowledge is key in the 6.0 world. You put it thru the abuse people put 7.3s thru and you will have a failure, you maintain it and it will be an amazing motor.

[85_305]

Originally Posted by dentexpowerstroke

I love the 7.3 but would trade it for a 6.0 in a heartbeat.

Agreed with that.

[BigRed02]

Just traded in my Ex last week, where were you then lol? I loved owning that beast, until the dreaded oil cooler problem came up. It only had 80k miles on her. I'm def not at the wrench level to fix all that, so I opted with the full Bulletproof diesel change over...which costed $4000 installed! Switched out the Ford gold crap for red and put in a coolant filter. If I had more money to dump, I would have put aftermarket studs and finely I would have felt at ease to chip it. Only had 101k miles when I traded it and the dealer gave me 15. If I could do it all over again...7.3 without hesitation. I love my sd for that reason, no problems since new. But if you take care of the 6er, you can't go wrong. I'm going to miss that whisle from the turbo, but I think the 45-50mpgs are going to make up for it with the new Jetta TDI. Good luck in your choice.

[pickit]

The 7.3 is the route I'm going. Now, when I get it where do I start with mods! Let the fun begin!

[Tj Krawler]

Originally Posted by pickit

The 7.3 is the route I'm going. Now, when I get it where do I start with mods! Let the fun begin!

I would have went for the 7.3 between the two. For mods, start with an intake (less than $50 from Napa, 6637 filter) exhaust. If it already has gauges, then tunes.


Make sure the EGT probe/sensor is in the manifold and not after the turbo. If it's in the manifold, there is a very good chance it's on the drivers side towards the back of the motor. If it's after the turbo, the reading will not be as accurate.