6.0 are not as bad as people make them out to be..I had a 03 F250 with no problems, it just sucked at starting when the weather was cold, had to always plug it in when it got below 30 degrees. It had 90,000 when i sold it.
I have a 06 F250 now with 65,000 and have had no problems out of it.

The 03 was stock, the 06 has a turbo back exhaust on it and has a tuner on it(which I never use). I would buy another 6.0, if you can find one that hasn't had problems more than likely it will give you no problems.

 

Yup, there are some deals to be had because of the bad reputation. They are not bad trucks. Just run an OASIS report and pay a diesel mechanic to check it out before you buy it.

 

The OASIS does not mean a lot. It just tells you what warrant work has been done to the truck. I would get a good diesel tech to look at it and you will probably have to ask around to find one and it most likely will not be at a dealer.

 

There is not a week that goes by that I'm not knee deep into a 6.0... I have been doing this for a few months now... The 6.0 has grown on me, I know it like the back of my hand.

IF you really want advice, let me know, otherwise I wont waste my breathe.

 

You guys are not helping!!!

 

How are we not helping? What he said pretty much fits it... Some suck and some will run forever... They are very hit and miss... There are many things to check for when buying one. But the most important part, pulling the IPR valve, people cant do... thats how you really tell what condition the motor is in..

 

It all comes down to how the truck was maintained and treated. These engines love to work and the harder you work them the better they seem to run because it burns out all of soot the accumulates in the Turbo and EGR. If you go talk to the Cummins and Duramax guys I am sure that you will here some similar horror stories. I know the Cummins 6.7 has some EGR and Head bolt issues and some of these if not most of them are probably self inflicted just like some of the issuse with the 6.0.

 

even ford admits this motor has higher failure rates and higher maintenance costs than its predecessor and its competitors - the gm and dodge diesels. it got a bad reputation from people's experience with it. that doesn't mean it's a bad motor, that means it's the most expensive one and the least reliable one of that generation. in a three man race, somebody's got to be last; that doesn't mean bad, it just means there are two in the race that were better... it's a factor to consider that its operating costs will probably be higher. remember, these are averages. as you see here, some of these engines are just fine... most apparently aren't. the odds are against you with that generation of that engine. you can lower the odds by choosing a different one.

 

After doing a ton of reading, I picked up an 06' F250 this weekend. From what I've read the EGR and head bolts are the weak links. SOME dealers will replace the head bolts with head studs if you supply them. The EGR delete is a mod to consider once the warranty is up.

Keep in mind all trucks and engines have problems.