I recently purchased my first ever diesel engine pickup, a 2008 Ford, F350, 6.4L, 2x4, DRW, Cab/Chassis, Crew Cab. It had 67,000 miles on it when I purchased it from the original owner who used it as a crew truck in the oil field. It is all stock with no modifications to the engine, body, or computer. I am using it as the primary vehicle for my new small business, and typically use it to pull a 20' trailer with a small-ish (8,000 lbs) backhoe on it. I bought the truck without a bed on it, so I found a used Knapheide utility bed to put on it. The previous owner is a friend of mine, and told me everything there was to know about the truck, any problems he ever had with it, and gave me copies of all maintenance records. Mechanically the truck appears to be in good condition and the body/paint is fair, but the interior is a little rough from the dirty and oily crew riding in it 5-7 days a week.
However, it wasn't long before I started to learn the hard facts of powerstroke diesel ownership. Within the first 5,000 miles I have learned about "Reduced Engine Power", regen, EGR and EGT sensors, and diesel fuel in the oil.
The first event was within my first 2,000-3,000 miles when without warning I was experiencing "Reduced Engine Power" and struggling to get 20 MPH out of it with the loaded trailer behind me. A few days and a few hundred dollars later I was being told by the stealership that my problems were due to the engine oil being "over filled", and that they had drained it and refilled it to the proper level. They couldn't understand why someone would put that much oil in a truck. It wasn't until later that I learned that this was likely actually because the oil was contaminated with diesel fuel.
Second event was less than 100 miles later when I'm sitting on the side of this highway with the engine compartment billowing oily smelling smoke. Dealership towed it in and determined that they failed to properly replace the oil filter gasket. It still stinks to this day...
Third event was less than 1,000 miles after having gone up in smoke, when it started idling rough and clattering, and then started displaying the "Drive to Clean Exhaust" and "Cleaning Exhaust Filter" messages. 10 miles after the cleaning process started I find myself again experiencing "Reduced Engine Power" and struggling to get 20 MPH out of it with the loaded trailer behind me. I am a few miles from the Ford place, so I limp it in to their lot and have my wife come pick me up. This time the stealership says that the EGT and EGRT sensors are both bad and need to be replaced. 10 days and a few hundred dollars later I'm on the road again... Walking bow-legged, but back on the road nonetheless.
On to number four... Roughly 150 miles after picking it up from having the sensors replaced, the truck starts idling rough and making a very loud clattering when idling and when accelerating. Immediately called and took it back in assuming issues associated with the EGT/EGRT sensor repairs. This time they tell me that I have an 8% loss in compression on the #2 cylinder, and suggest trying a few doses of Ford's recommended fuel additive.
Today I experienced another regen cycle on my way home from a job. Because of what I have read here, I went ahead and drove an unnecessary additional 15 miles in a circle until the regen completed.
My question to you is, what does all of this mean? I have read through countless forums, but I just can't seem to put it all together for my specific situation and how I am using this truck. I am not a mechanic, especially not a diesel mechanic, and I don't have any friends who are diesel mechanics, so I need some advice from my internet friends. Did I buy a lemon? Did my friend screw me? Should I polish it up and try to get my money back out of it? What can I do to prevent any future issues with this truck? I know that I should change the oil, oil filter, and fuel filters often, but what else can I do. Specifically which fuel additive should I use and why? What brand and weight oil is right and why? Oil Filter? Fuel filter? I am pretty mechanically inclined, so can I do the deletes and tunes myself? How should it be tuned for frequent towing? What else do I need to know that I don't know to ask? I would think that I should be able to get 200,000+ miles out of this truck.
Please take it easy on me, and thank you in advance. I'm looking forward to hearing from you.
However, it wasn't long before I started to learn the hard facts of powerstroke diesel ownership. Within the first 5,000 miles I have learned about "Reduced Engine Power", regen, EGR and EGT sensors, and diesel fuel in the oil.
The first event was within my first 2,000-3,000 miles when without warning I was experiencing "Reduced Engine Power" and struggling to get 20 MPH out of it with the loaded trailer behind me. A few days and a few hundred dollars later I was being told by the stealership that my problems were due to the engine oil being "over filled", and that they had drained it and refilled it to the proper level. They couldn't understand why someone would put that much oil in a truck. It wasn't until later that I learned that this was likely actually because the oil was contaminated with diesel fuel.
Second event was less than 100 miles later when I'm sitting on the side of this highway with the engine compartment billowing oily smelling smoke. Dealership towed it in and determined that they failed to properly replace the oil filter gasket. It still stinks to this day...
Third event was less than 1,000 miles after having gone up in smoke, when it started idling rough and clattering, and then started displaying the "Drive to Clean Exhaust" and "Cleaning Exhaust Filter" messages. 10 miles after the cleaning process started I find myself again experiencing "Reduced Engine Power" and struggling to get 20 MPH out of it with the loaded trailer behind me. I am a few miles from the Ford place, so I limp it in to their lot and have my wife come pick me up. This time the stealership says that the EGT and EGRT sensors are both bad and need to be replaced. 10 days and a few hundred dollars later I'm on the road again... Walking bow-legged, but back on the road nonetheless.
On to number four... Roughly 150 miles after picking it up from having the sensors replaced, the truck starts idling rough and making a very loud clattering when idling and when accelerating. Immediately called and took it back in assuming issues associated with the EGT/EGRT sensor repairs. This time they tell me that I have an 8% loss in compression on the #2 cylinder, and suggest trying a few doses of Ford's recommended fuel additive.
Today I experienced another regen cycle on my way home from a job. Because of what I have read here, I went ahead and drove an unnecessary additional 15 miles in a circle until the regen completed.
My question to you is, what does all of this mean? I have read through countless forums, but I just can't seem to put it all together for my specific situation and how I am using this truck. I am not a mechanic, especially not a diesel mechanic, and I don't have any friends who are diesel mechanics, so I need some advice from my internet friends. Did I buy a lemon? Did my friend screw me? Should I polish it up and try to get my money back out of it? What can I do to prevent any future issues with this truck? I know that I should change the oil, oil filter, and fuel filters often, but what else can I do. Specifically which fuel additive should I use and why? What brand and weight oil is right and why? Oil Filter? Fuel filter? I am pretty mechanically inclined, so can I do the deletes and tunes myself? How should it be tuned for frequent towing? What else do I need to know that I don't know to ask? I would think that I should be able to get 200,000+ miles out of this truck.
Please take it easy on me, and thank you in advance. I'm looking forward to hearing from you.