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6.0 Problems... Questions....etc.

4K views 11 replies 6 participants last post by  mwoolard1912 
#1 ·
I have a 2007 F250 with the 6.0 Powerstroke. I really like this truck but I am starting to have some issues. I am sure most of this is just a rehash of a bunch of other threads. But rather than spend half my life sifting through them all I figure I will just throw out what I have going on to see if I can get some advice.

First up cold starts. I have issues with the truck running really rough for the first 5 minutes or so. Outside temperature doesn't make a whole lot of difference. At first it did but now its pretty much anytime after the truck has sat for more than 5 or 6 hours. I assume this is due to injector problems. I plan to get a scan gauge of some sort to diagnose this issue. But before I go with that I want to run through other issues that i suppose could be contributing.

Coolant loss. A few months ago I noticed that I had lost some coolant. Not a lot all at once but over a period of time. I check it regularly and refill as needed. It doesn't use a lot but it does use some. It does use more when I am towing. And when under a fair amount of stress like pulling a camper over a mountain, I can smell a bit of coolant in the cab. Once out of the stress it goes away. Now I have started noticing a whistling noise sometimes while driving. I started noticing it the other day when pulling my camper but even after pulling it it continued. It does it mostly when say climbing a hill and not giving it extra throttle which causes the engine to bog a little. Also it does it almost every time you let off the throttle. But I checked the coolant yesterday and it was a bit low. I added some and since I have only heard the whistle one or two times. I can see where the cap has been leaking a little which I understand is a problem with these engines sometimes even when there is no other real problem. Another thing along this line is, I posted a few weeks ago about losing power while driving. I was instructed to check the EGR valve to see if it was clogged up. It had quite a bit of wet soot on it so I cleaned it really good. I haven't had the power loss since. But this got me to thinking about a EGR cooler leak. Then after reading more about coolant blowing out the cap I am getting concerned about possible head gasket issues. I have never had any white smoke in the exhaust that I have been able to see.

If I am going to tear into this thing I would like to fix everything I can while I am in there. I understand that some of my problems don't really overlap as far as the repairs go but If I am gonna have a bunch of stuff pulled out in the engine compartment I wanna do it all while I am there. I have looked at several parts kits and such that cover things like new head studs, gaskets, EGR delete etc. Would it be wise to go that route since I figure I am going to be fixing most of it anyway? What scan tool do you recommend? I want something for the long haul as I have no plans on getting rid of this rig as long as I can keep her healthy.

One more thing. If, and I hope I don't but if, I have to replace head gaskets, is this possible without removing the cab? Or would it just be wise to remove it since it would make all of the repairs much easier. Its been a long time since I pulled a cab off a truck but if its worth it I would definitely do it.

Any and all help is appreciated. Also I will post back if you all have questions for me to answer.
 
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#2 ·
Hard cold starts can be a sign of FICM voltage being too low. Just need to plug into the truck and see where the FICM voltage is when you start it up. My bet is its low.

The coolant loss can be a faulty EGR cooler and/or head gaskets. With the wet soot, I would lean toward the EGR cooler leaking.

If you have the ability to pull the cab, its easier on the body and lets you have full view of everything. However, if you need to do it in the truck, all you need to do is take apart the AC/Heater box on the passenger side. There is enough room after you remove it to get the heads out and back on.

For a scan tool, I use Autoenginuity for ALL of my diagnostics (I have the ford/dodge/chevy package)
 
#3 ·
On the starting, it could be FICM, stiction, or injectors. Check the FICM first, then move forward. It is imperative to have some sort of gauges when owning a 6.0.

Coolant loss, sounds like time for an EGR cooler. If it's wet in there it's leaking. Also replace that degas cap. I doubt you need to worry about head gaskets at this point. That is something that is very over-hyped.

Having an 07 a lot of the updates are done. But the blue spring kit is a good one to do, as is adding a coolant filter kit.

As for the cab part, I never pull the cab when I do studs. It's just my preference.
 
#4 ·
I agree with the boys above.
First off you gotta get that monitor. Until then we are all just kinda guessin. Trust me for the first thousand miles you get the thing youll spend more time goin down the road reading the monitor than looking out the road!
Bad start could very well be the ficm. But that's not a terrible thing,unless you don't get it fixed and you tear up your injectors. My suggestion would be, look into Ed @ ficmrepair.com. This guy does a great job for a very reasonable price. He worked mine over and he also threw in the Atlas 40 tune for a bit of fun. If you got the cash you wont go wrong with just getting a all new ficm through Bullet Proof Diesel. They are a bit spendy but I have yet to read of one failing.
Something else to look into that helps with cold start up is the oil your running. Old dino oil is not the way to go with the 6.0. If you can go with something like Rotella t6 or t5. And your gonna also want to look into something like Archoil or Rev-x or even Hotshot's oil additive. I personally run the Archoil with T6 and man it makes a HUGE difference on start ups.
EGR_ If you live in a area that dosnt do testing on the trucks Id suggest that you just delet the thing. Not hard to do at all. And delete kits are a dime a dozen. If you want to fix it, Id suggest the BPD upgraded egr system. Big difference when you hold them next to eachother.
As far as the head gaskets, they have the kit at the parts store that will test for exhaust in your coolant. ( I may be getting that wrong) but Id start their. And also if you go to the search feature up above and type in head gasket testing their is all sorts of threads about making up a simple pressure gauge set up that will tell you whats going on in your system.
But yes you can do a cab on repair job.
Grab a monitor and find out what s goin on and then you can start to knock out the problems. Great thing about the 6.0, its very DIY,shade tree mechanic friendly.
 
#5 ·
I'm currently looking into getting a gauge. When I get one I will let you guys all know what kind of info I am getting. In the meantime......

I use T6 oil. Ever since I bought a 4 stroke racing dirtbike 12 years ago I have been using synthetic oil. I have way more hours on that bike than you are supposed to get between rebuilds... and have yet to have a problem. Same goes with my F150... 235,000 miles and no engine issues other than a couple of minor sensor problems. I was running Rev-X in my oil until even it wasn't helping hardly any at all.

On the FICM , When I initially starting having the rough starts I did some testing on it. I honestly cannot remember exactly what the method I used was. Something I found on here I believe using a voltmeter. At that point everything checked out fine. Of course thats not to say it hasn't changed by now.

The County I live in does not test trucks so I am go for a delete. I feel like it would be better to just have it gone than to put another in and chance ever having it fail again, even though I know the ones you can get are a lot better than stock. I plan to have this truck for a long time and I don't want to spend money on something that I am gonna have to fix again.

Depending on what I find I am going to do what I can within a reasonable budget. A coolant filter is on my list of possibilities. But it all depends on what I absolutely must fix. Then if if I can swing some more goodies that will increase the life of the truck right now I will. I may have to put some things on a wish list and get them when I can.

Thank you all for the help so far and please keep suggesting things and I will keep you updated on what I find out.
 
#6 ·
You might try putting it out on here that you are looking for a coolant filter and a monitor. . I see them for sale alot on here and you never know who has one laying around that you could get for a deal. And with the holidays comin up you might get real lucky!
I did that when I was looking for my 03 turbo. Worked out very nice.
 
#7 ·
scangauge 2 from bulletproof diesel like 170$ and a member has one listed for 100$ shipped in classifieds here.

edge insight cs like mine 299 just about everywhere..

the ficm is being mentioned but there are couple other things to check while your looking...

battery volts, alt volts, ICP readings, IPR reading, fuel pressure... you could have a small leak in your high pressure oil system, if you icp is getting low voltage it will run rough etc...

once you get a monitor or pull some codes post them up and some more experienced guys chime in. you'll find lots help here. I was very new to the 6.0's and became very educated thanks to everyone here.
 
#8 ·
I haven't got a gauge yet.. but I decided to check a few things.

I got a new degas cap. Made sure to clean up everything around it so it would be easier to see if anything was running over.

I found a pressure gauge in my shop and decided to make a test gauge for the cooling system pressure. Now before I post this info. Please understand that I cannot guarantee the pressures to be accurate. In fact being what they were I don't believe they were. The degas cap pressure is 16psi and I never lost anything out of the cap. Here is what I checked and what my measurements were. Again I don't believe the actual numbers but I think the changes in pressure are telling me more than the actual number.

I warmed the truck up . Drove around a little then stopped and idled for a few minutes. I was showing about 17psi on my gauge. I reved up the engine a couple times and saw no change.

Next I positioned myself going up a hill. From a dead stop I accelerated up the hill at full throttle. I didn't see the boost pressure on the turbo but the my cooling pressure went up 2 psi to 19psi. at its max. I stopped the truck and popped the hood to see if i was blowing coolant.. It was not. ( one reason I dont think the actual pressures were wrong)

Next I put the truck in 4wd. I locked the e-brake. Held the brakes tight and throttled up. I got up to 20psi boost with a coolant pressure rise of 1 psi to 18psi.

Next I just did a run on a flat road from idle. Boost up to about 25psi and coolant pressure rise of about 1psi.

After I got home with the truck I let it idle for a minute the pressure was sitting at 17psi like it had been to start with. After shutting down I checked pressure periodically to see how it was going down after the truck was off.
10min later... 15psi
20min later... 14psi
30min later... 13psi
1 hour later... 10psi

From what I have read and seen on the internet about leaking head gaskets I would have gotten a significant boost in pressure when under load. And many of the things I have watched show a normal 10 - 12 psi at idle even on trucks with leaking gaskets. From that I really don't think I have that issue.

Just thought I would throw out there what I found so far.
 
#9 ·
Finally Got My Gauge.. here are the results so far.

Ok. So I got my scan tool. I have ran some tests and monitored things a bit. Here is some of the info I am getting.

FICM:
Cold started and Warm Started the truck several times. Drove and motored it for a total of about 60 miles or so. Pretty much the entire time the voltage was 47.5 to 48.5. There was one time it dipped to 46 for about 3 seconds.

Engine Coolant Temp: 189 was highest it ever got.
Engine Oil Temp: At same time as above 196

Codes that show up:

P0266 Cylinder 2 Injector Circuit
Contribution / Balance Fault

P0487 Exhaust Gas Recirculation Throttle Position
Control Range / Performance

If you read my first post in this you will see what I am having issues with.

Another thing I have done just to see what happens is I plugged in the block heater to see if that would help starting. When I did it started up with hardly a sputter. I have ran RevX. I don't have any in it now. I quit a couple oil changes ago because it had stopped helping my cold starts. The truck would run just as rough with it as it does without it. Also I did a test that I saw on BulletProof's website to try to diagnose a leaking EGR cooler vs. Head Gasket. From the results I have from that its pointing toward just a EGR cooler.

What other tests and such should I do with the scan tool. It is a Autoenginuity with the Ford bundle. I am ready to start fixing some of my issues and I would really like to knock at least the biggest part of them out all at one time.
 
#12 ·
OK just tried a couple other things.

Did a buzz test.... came up that system passed.

Cleared my codes and started the truck.

It was missing like normal so I tried disabling the injectors one at a time.
All of them would increase the miss except Cylinder 2. You couldn't even tell I had shut it off.

After shutting down I did another code check. This time I got a P0275 cylinder 5 injector circuit contribution / balance fault.

I don't know if it has anything to do with one another but when I was shutting down cylinder 5 injector it did create a miss. So maybe that code was just a result of me playing around with things?

This was also the coldest start i have done recently and FICM voltage stayed at 48. So I am thinking the FICM is ok.
 
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