I got a 6.0 for my 16th birthday. What can I do to it to make it reliable.

 

Get a GOOD job as a diesel tech. It will save you a ton of money on the labor. Otherwise read all you can and be smart. If you want to "roll coal" better find another forum board to ask your questions.

Studs are the first step. Check to see if the studs are already installed. If not get that done and ask more questions.

 

I'll go along with Heavy Assault, But you might want to think about what your going to do with your truck. Longevity>> Get rid of the factory Oil Cooler>>> BP Oil Cooler Kit.
Oh and be prepared for

you know wht they say Heavy(No Slack In Light Attack)

 

I'll go along with Heavy Assault, But you might want to think about what your going to do with your truck. Longevity>> Get rid of the factory Oil Cooler>>> BP Oil Cooler Kit.
Oh and be prepared for

you know wht they say Heavy(No Slack In Light Attack)

 

It can get very expensive and very frustrating unless you do your research. I can give you a shopping list that will run a pretty penny, but unless you know how to wrench on your rig or have a friend that knows what he's doing, the labor itself will put you the poor house. Stealerships will charge $5-6k to do what will cost $2500-3k in parts to do yourself. Biggest advice right now is install a coolant filtration system, they're less than $150 and it's a good insurance policy that'll give you some time to save up the big bucks needed to tear down the top end. Nothing says you can't do the EGR and oil coolers now, then save up and do the head studs and gaskets later, but I suggest having the engine apart and doing it all at once. Why replace all the O-rings and gaskets needed to get down to the coolers once just to possibly have to replace them again in case they get damaged pulling everything off to pull the heads. Which brings me to another point, never EVER install head studs one at a time, some have gotten away with it without incident but why risk it? Pull the heads off, have them checked at a machine shop, put your studs in the block, put a new OEM head gasket on, then put your heads on and torque them to spec.

People never seem to have the time/money to do the job right, but they always find the time/money to do it twice