Newbie looking for some help on a 6.0

[daddysbluetruck]

Hey Guys.

I have a chance to get my first PS and need some info. I found a 04 350, 6.0 truck auto FX4 long bed CC. it's got 75k on it. According to the dealer it has a branded title as it had low water damage. from what I was told, the truck was bought from the ins. company towed to the shop and checked out. All the fluids changed, and gone thru but no water damage was found other than a fried starter and bad batteries. they have been driving this truck for a couple of months and had the ICP go out on it. they repaired it to the tune of $850 then drove it a couple more weeks and the HPOP goes out. They are offering the truck to me at a really good price but I have to fix the HPOP. they have the truck at the local ford dealer and the cost to me to repair is $1070. Do you think this would be worth persuing? I already have the plan to go over this truck with a fine tooth comb and check everything including under the mat, dash connections, fuse boxes, etc to look for any water damage that some one might have left out. any other stuff I should look for? If I buy the truck I am looking at a programmer of some type, as well as a propane injection kit on the motor, I am thinking about having them put the black onyx gaskets and head studs in as well. is this a good idea? is there any other thing engine wise I need to consider or look at? Since the motor is going to be taken down to a long block to do the pump is there any other parts I might want to look at replacing and approx cost? I want to be sure that If I get this truck it will be fine and reliable when it's done as when I buy a vehicle it's a real long term thing with me. Last 2 trucks I have had I owned for 10 and 16 years. This truck is in ft.wayne, should I let the local ford dealer repair it or are there any other diesel places I should consider up there? The plan is to get the truck fixed there and drive it back to No. KY. Any and all help would be greatly appreciated as I look to join the ranks of the diesel owners.

Thanks in advance,

Arin

[JohnO]

You live in N KY? I"m just west of Lexington, few of us KY strokers around here.

First thing to do as long as it's at the dealer is ask for an OASIS report. That tells you all the work that has already been done on it. If it's had a bunch of things, back off and think about it - that can indicate that the previous owner didn't take good care of it. There were some problems in 03 and 04 with the 6.0, but they should have shown up by now if they were going to happen at all. Better still, post the OASIS report here and see what the experts think.

I doubt they're pulling the cab to replace the HPOP, not at that price, and you really need to pull the cab off if you're going to put in studs. That is not cheap, in the $2k range I think.

Raising power on the 6.0 isn't like bolting on a few parts on a gas engine. A lot of things are different. Remember that the 6.0 is already tuned in stock form, it makes quite a few more HP than the larger 7.3 it replaced. I'm no expert on the subject, looked into boosting power on my 06, and decided that the cost to do it right was high, and the cost of doing it wrong was even higher, so I left it stock and it's been great. If you want the most reliable 6.0, leave it at stock power levels. It already has enough torque to move a small building.

Be prepared to throw out a lot of assumptions you made about boosting power on a gas engine. These diesels are different, and they seem to be less forgiving of error than a gas engine when you go adding power.

[KyBlue]

Just an update on this for ya'll...

Arin spoke with the dealer in Fort Wayne that's working on the truck, and they told him that it'd need more than just a HPOP. They put a Injector in #7 Cylinder, but it didnt fix the problem. The injector was supposedly sticking open. It ended up burning a hole in the #7 Piston. Sooo... The Search Continues!

John I'm up in Georgetown, and Arin is outta Latonia.

[JohnO]

Sounds like a hurt puppy. There's enough trouble in life without buying trouble.

He might check with Earl Floyd Ford in Carrollton, that's where I got mine. They had a pretty decent selection of used PS's on the lot, and sure made me a good deal. I went up there to look at an 01 F350, ended up leaving with this loaded up 06.

Saw a white 04 F250 with PS sitting on the Chevy dealer's lot in Versailles yesterday. Don't know anything about it, just saw it sitting there.

[KyBlue]

Mine came from Earl Floyd too. I snapped it up cause its got the 6spd in it..