I bought my 05’ F250 back in December of 2017 for $7,500.  It’s taken me a while to come to terms with it…but I’m finally to the point where I feel I can trust it.
It had 216K miles when I bought it…it looked brand new, inside and out.  An older gentleman bought it brand new, and used it for pulling his camper cross country. I had it checked out by a shop (what a waste of money), and they said it was good to go. The leather interior looks like it rolled out of the showroom, and not a bit of rust on it.

Shortly after getting it home….I started noticing all of the classic 6.0 PSD issues.  High Oil/Coolant Delta Temps (clogged oil cooler), hot start issues (STC fitting leak), low boost issues (sticky turbo ring), pressure in the coolant system (head gasket leak), etc, etc, etc…….pretty typical 6.0 issues I had read about….and they all hit about the same time. Even though I had gotten it pretty cheap for what it was….I was just about ready to sell the darn thing.

So….it was time to “bullet proof” it.  I spent about a month going through the motor….pulled the heads (what a pain), had them surfaced and put them back on with better Felpro gaskets and ARP studs, rebuilt the oil cooler, cleaned the turbo, did an EGR delete, new HPFP fitting, new fuel rail seals, new dummy plugs & stand pipes, new intake gaskets, new injector seals, blue spring fuel pressure mod, coolant flush, coolant filter, replaced ICP and EBP sensors, 4” turbo back exhaust, transmission service,  etc, etc, etc……Wow, it was like a different truck.  I was actually shocked at the condition of the cylinder bores at 220K miles when I pulled the heads….still had the hone crosshatching in the bores.

After I put some miles on it…I flashed a mild Innovative Diesel Performance Towing Tune to it….that really woke it up.

So far, I’ve put about 40,000 miles on it after all the motor work I did…..just towing our camper cross country, towing the boat, and towing the stock trailer.  Honestly, it took me a long time before I could drive it and not be worried about it breaking down.  But I can now say that I can put some faith into it.  It pulls like a freight train, makes around 20mph unloaded, and 12mpg pulling the camper.  I probably have around $11-$12K in the truck right now…..but I still think that’s a great deal for what I have.  Towing with this thing is so much more enjoyable than my Hemi Ram 1500 I used to have.

Anyone else have a 6.0 powered truck? How do you like it?  

I did have one, a 2004 brand new.  I sold it after about 60,000 miles on it.  It was always having issues-always.  I was super happy I got the extended warranty all the work that was done to it was around 5K.  When I sold it there either wasn't the bulletproof method or I didn't know about it.  I was just happy to be rid of it.  

When it ran, it ran well.

Yeah.....they had lots of issues. And back when they came out, nobody really knew how to reliably fix those issues. Fast forward 15years.....there are lots of reliable fixes for the oem issues.

Your labor, or was it an $18K+trans day for you?

Mine’s been fine but it’s also still under 100,000 miles so I’m not sure it counts for much. It sits a lot obviously which I’m afraid will lead to its downfall. Needs injectors and a ficm at a minimum.

My labor.....did it all in my shop.  Nothing about it was hard....just like anything else.  Pull off the bad parts, replace with new parts. Done

Yeah....the VGT rings on the turbo will rust up if you let them sit for a long time and/or don't let them come up to temp when you start them before you shut them off.  

Mines creeping up on 250K miles.....doing just fine now.  I run that Hotshot Secret EDT fuel treatment......it really seems to help with the soot in the turbo. I also run their stiction additive....no more cold start issues in the winter from sticky injectors. That make good stuff! Use a good synthetic 5w-40 oil, change it every 5,000 miles, do your fuel filters ever 10,000 miles, and make sure you have a good alternator (so you don't have FICM issues).......and you should be good to go for a long time.

I’ve been told about the rings and was told to make sure it went through the whole rev range and open it up after it’s warm a few times. I do try and take it out a few times a month and make sure it gets up to temp.

I’ve never run additive and I know that’s bad. Lost an alternator years ago but that and a trans temp sensor is about all the troubles I’ve had that aren’t connected to my lift.

The fuel filter is another story. I need to change it out but I hate doing it.

I’m on my third 6.4. Had a 6.7 for a few years. It all started with a 1995 power stroke I bought at 17 and sold with 330,000 miles on it. Haven’t owned a 6.0 but have driven a few.

Have 2, '05s, since new.
Both had EGR issues, early on, and both  handled under warranty.
Fine since, both stone stock, maintained PROPERLY, with QUALITY parts.
Used hard.

Funny thing, have had more trouble with 2011 6.7.

I think that's the key right there.   I see all kinds of people having all kinds of issues because they cheap out and buy off brand filters, sensors, and other parts......buy the Motorcraft stuff.

I have a 2005 with only 90K on it.  It's been my best vehicle I've ever owned.  Hasn't had one single issue.  Never idled much and towed 15K regularly and far.  Now sits mostly and I've been considering selling my 2 vehicles and getting one - a F150

Glad you feel comfortable with it because you’d get hosed trying to sell it.

Buddy went to trade his in and once he said 6.0 they wouldn’t even go out and look at it and just offered him $1,000 trade in for it.

That’s my issue with my Excursion or at least I assume it is. That and the paint being hosed. There’s no way I could sell it and get into a truck so I’ll just hang onto it for now.

Sounds like your buddy was getting screwed. All of the "Bullet Proofed" and deleted 6.0 trucks in my area are demanding a very good price.

About 3 years ago, I took a chance on getting an '06 F250 Lariat 4wd.  It had already been head studded. I had it checked out by a local mechanic and all seemed good and studding was confirmed.

Understand, I am not a mechanic and don't have a lot of the necessary tools to DIY.

Over the two years that I had it, I had the following issues:

Replace alternator.
Replace FICM twice.
Replace clutch fan.
Replace injectors.
Replace thermostat.
Replace HPOP.

I had issues with vacuum hoses when 4WD stopped working.  Corrected.

THEN, I started running hot.  I had it checked for blown head gasket, but was told that wasn't it.  I am not sure if I really believe that.  It went in a few times trying to figure this out, and I never got it fixed to the point that I believed it was resolved.

Also, I would lose heat intermediately. It would blow hot for a while, then wouldn't.  

Before all of this resolved, I lost the power steering pump.

After realizing that I had sunk over $5K into this truck, I realized it was a money pit and needed to bail on it.

Last year, I dumped it for a laughable amount of money and got a 2016 Ram 1500 Longhorn and have never looked back.

I rarely need the capabilities of a 3/4 ton.  I got it because of planning on getting an RV.  However, the last trip to Fort Wilderness with my parents in their RV showed me that 90% of the RVs there were being pulled by 1/2 tons with no issues.

I am sure that a 6.0 PS can be a good truck for someone with the skills, tools, and patience to keep one going.  I am not that person.  I realized that if I ever DID get that truck running good, I would never have confidence in it to believe that it wouldn't leave my family stranded on the side of the road 3 states away and ruin our vacation.

Yeah....if you can't diagnose, troubleshoot, and repair them on your own....don't get one. Taking one to a shop will kill you.  Having a way to monitor what's going on (SCT tuner?) is also damn near essential in keeping an eye on how things are running. Alternator output voltage too long? Yep...going to cook the FICM.  Delta temps too high?  Yep...oil cooler clogged.  Etc, etc,......

Of course they did. I had a dealership try that with me in 2008. I walked out, and drove that truck for eleven more years. It was finally totalled in a collision last year with 377K on it.

Anyone know where to get an EGR delete kit from, seems they have dried up.

Just picked up a truck with a studded 6.0 that will be swapped into another vehicle.... (build thread coming soon!)

Currently it has a slow start issue, diag starts tomorrow.

Delete and ‘tuner’ kits have dried up big time because of the EPA really started enforcing the law. Especially the fines that can be thousands of dollars for each one sold, even if it says for off-road only.

I bought my 04 new. I have about 135,000 on it. I love the truck. I had a few minor issues like the FICM, and an EGR issue once. I tow my goose neck, travel trailer, and use it for hunting. I can't bitch about it.

I did have it repainted about two years ago as the hood and roof started peeling.

I hope to keep for another 16 years.

I made alot of money fixing them.

They were my favorite.

The whole...joke of a solder job of a critical electronic component mounted on top of a hot shakey diesel...

I used to look for wrecked E350s and 450s and chop the ficm harness off and I'd mount them on the drivers side fender.
Also didn't recommend FoMoCo ficm. Swamps FTW.
LOL at delta... you guys still use "delta" to describe ECT/EOT split...

Coolant filtration kit.
If you ever opened a failed egr cooler, you'd see the casting sand caked up in there. Same with oil cooler. Passages are tiny, and there's alot of junk circulating around in them.
But Muh Cat ELC! that doesn't get rid of the shit that clogs your coolers up...

My cousin ran a few around the farm.  

Absolute nightmares in every respect.