I currently own a 2006 Ford F-350 6.0L Lariat. 112,000miles. I am the second owner and owned it for 4years and have had no problems with the truck (knock on wood). The mechanic that works on the truck for me is a Ford man and he worships the 7.3L. Everytime I take my truck in for an oil change he warns me that I should trade it in. He thinks I need to buy a newer '05-'10 Duramax or Cummins. Everything I read about the 6.0L says that I am headed for costly problems. I drive about 25,000 miles per year but I would like a truck that I know is going to last. I work in construction and occasionally haul stuff in the bed. Please advise on whether or not I should trade it in or if in fact I can either prevent the problem or may not be headed for problems in the first place.

 

With the 6.0 you either get a good one or a bad one. With a little work they be very strong and dependable. If you keep it I would install arp headstuds and delete the egr/cooler.

Luke

 

We are on our 2nd 2006 6.0. First one the egr and oil cooler went out causing us to replace them and a head. Never had another problem until someone crossed from eat bound lane to west bound on the interstate and totalled it out. Now we have a lariat and we replaced the egr and oil cooler before 130,000 miles. It has ran great until now. Trying to figure out what the problem is now. My husband loves it, and we do all the work on it.

 

Based on the risk and the known problems that I am going to face doesn't it make sense to sell now and buy a newer Duramax with less problems?

 

Your choice, but I think all engines have problems. As my husband says, "it depends on what day it is built. On a Monday, they are still trying to get over the weekend and on Friday, they are in a hurry for the week end to start." LOL

 

If you take care of these trucks and have common sense then these things will last forever, I have 245k on my 04 with no problems, I've spent $78 for one sensor and only cost put into truck has been maintnance. If you do have to invest in it later it will still be less than a down payment, those Izuzu engines in the Chevys tend to have catastrofic failures instead of easy fixes, Ive seen a few of the 6.6 with busted rods.

 

Good advice here!

hendu312 - why let fear cost you a lot of money?

IMO, for the 06's, you don't even have to do the headstuds or delete the EGR system (although this does improve the reliability).

Keep your coolant flushed and either delete the EGR system or install a bulletproof EGR cooler.

Almost all 05-07 engines are prone to leaks in the HPO system. Install the one-piece STC fitting upgrade and install the updated dummy plugs and standpipes. The stock fuel pressure regulator spring is weak, so upgrade that to the new part also (this is very cheap).

Be sure to keep the electrical system healthy. If you are really concerned about reliability, then be proactive in sending your FICM off to have it resoldered and a few components upgraded (about $200 at FICMrepair.com).

Is doing all this necessary? Maybe not, but by doing it you will almost certainly have a great truck/engine ..... and it is almost certainly better to go this route than ditch the truck and jump into another one.

As I said, headstuds are optional IMO - unless you are running a tuner. I am having no issues w/ head gasket leaks, but I am planning on studs - just because I can afford it. I know lots of people on stock head bolts that are having NO issues.

Oh - the Edge Insight gauge system (or Scangauge II) is also a very good idea! Two good parameters to watch are coolant temp and oil temp. The oil should not be more than 15 degrees hotter than the coolant at WOT after everything has gotten up to the normal operating temps (190 F coolant).

 

I found a great truck 2007 GMC Sierra 2500 LMM. with 35,000miles on it. The dealer wants $32,000. I am very tempted to sell my 2006 F-350 6.0L 113,000miles but want to know if it is time to swith to the Duramax or keep on trucking with my Ford. Dealer said he would give me $20k for my Ford.

 

I'd probably take that deal... no one else is going to give you $20k for a 100k + mile 6.0 these days. That should be a 2007.5 LMM then... 2007 was still LBZ. Got any pics of the chevy?

 

I've been driving my 06 f350 SuperDuty Lariat for two years and bought it at 70,000kms . Its stock and just turned over 103,000kms but my engine hours are pretty high at about just under 4000 on it. My work causes me to sit in the truck and idle quite a bit during the winter but I have a high idle kit in it that runs at about 1100 rpm. I just keep up the servicing and haven't had an issues with it yet other than a turbo servicing under warranty that the previous owner did and new higher amped alternator this year to accommodate all the extra radio equipment and such that I need to run. This truck was built in July 06 in the plant down in Kentucky.

Ive heard so many horror stories about the 6.0L that had me nervous about the head stud thing but so far other than the fuel mileage is not as good as I'd like it to be, this truck has been a great truck, lots of power. I'm getting a little nervous about the engine hours and just wondering what I should be watching and listening for so that I can keep on top of things before ending up stranded 100 miles out in the bush having to get a tow job worth more than the repair. Also I'd like to know what the average fuel mileage someone can expect on on these pickups, no one up here seems to know. Thanks guys!