I'm going to look at a low mile 6.0 F350 today and I would like to know if it can be bullet proofed to be a more user friendly truck. I am looking for a 7.3 but this truck is a real cream puff. I'm not sure what has to be done to the 6.0 and was wondering what bullet proofing is required. I'm sure there is a shop in the Phoenix area that can make it happen.

 

Do some internet searches. Lots of information on the weaknesses of the 6.0 diesel. I would worry that the overheating has ruined the engine on an old model. Maybe all the corrections have been performed and it is a great engine. Who knows?

 

2003 was the first year of the 6.0, and it had nothing but problems. Be prepared for an expensive rework.

 

The truck is an 03 and really looked good but the guy was trying too hard to sell it. I did the research and figured if I could get him to come down on the price it would be worth the cost of bullet proofing it. He kept saying that the 03 didn't have any issues and all the bugs had been worked out and his best friend made his living working on these trucks blah blah blah. I walked away. The "power stroke help" youtube site is outstanding. There's no telling what I could have walked into. I'll spend a little more time watching the videos.

 

The 03 with the 7.3 had no chronic issues - but the 6.0 was a whole other story. The 6.0 was originally a real good engine in heavy duty trucks, but it didn't take to medium duty emission controls well at all. Do the head studs and delete all the emission controls and some other stuff and it's solid.

 

Truth be told, 2003 was hands down the absolute worst year for the 6.0 liter Powerstroke motor. It was also the first year of that motor - which explains why it was also the worst. You did the right thing by walking away.

We've actually got both a 2003 6.0 liter F-350 and a 2003 7.3 liter F-350 in our fleet. The 6.0 has been a nightmare. When it runs, it runs great. When it doesn't - which is often - it's a total POS. The 7.3 on the other hand is like the Energizer Bunny. And that's with almost 200,000 on the clock.

 

That and keep up on maintenance. Running OE oil & fuel filters is a MUST on these engines. The injectors will also thank you if you run Amsoil. People think they can neglect a 6.0 like they did with their old 7.3 and expect it to keep chugging along.

I'm here to tell ya, it's a lot easier & cheaper replacing fuel filters and doing routine oil changes than it is replacing injectors.