Anybody here have any experience w/ Ford SD 6.0 PSD?

[Diamondpilot]

I think all in all you will find the 6.0L to be a good engine. They got a bad rap at first and it stuck. At the end of the day Ford still holds the largest truck sales numbers so something is right about them. They sell more diesels than Dodge and GM combined.

Chris

 

[GreatWhitehunter]

I'll add my 6.0 experiences, I've got and 04 PSD. It's never left me stranded. The turbo went at about 35k and a few minor oil leaks all fixed under warranty. The 6.0 is a powerful engine and pulls 14k effortlessly. I was hesitant to buy as I was aware of the reputation it has. While it is true there were problems early. The engine has had minor issues later in life. Much like the dodge and gm diesels. I think the bad rap gets blown out of context by folks who've never owned one ranting like expert about how great thier diesel is and how bad the psd is. Not folks who own them. One thing for sure is this engine is hard on oil. I run full syn and have had good results. Dargo one piece of advice I found to be true is make sure the tech working on your truck is a diesel tech. My dealer had now diesel guys working on it and the leaks weren't being fixed since the techs weren't familiar with the engine. So I only let the diesel tech work on the truck.

Matt T.

 

[Dargo]

Dargo one piece of advice I found to be true is make sure the tech working on your truck is a diesel tech. My dealer had now diesel guys working on it and the leaks weren't being fixed since the techs weren't familiar with the engine. So I only let the diesel tech work on the truck.

Matt T.

Thanks for the encouraging words. I did actually take my truck to the next state for work where they have a well respected diesel mechanic. As I've mentioned, I'm positively no expert on the PSD but I do really like the truck. My honest hope is that they can get all of the bugs worked out of the engine and it can be a reasonably reliable truck for me and last me ten years like my old Dodge has. Obviously I have no real preference for any of the three manufacturers; I had a 6.2 Chevy, a 6.5 Chevy, a 5.9 Dodge, a 7.3 Ford and now a 6.0 Ford. Of the bunch, the 5.9 Cummins has been the best engine but I don't just strap myself to the engine and ride off into the sunset. Not that the Dodge has been bad, it really hasn't, I just prefer the current Ford truck itself over the GM and Dodge offerings. Heck, oddly enough, I had better service out of the 6.2 Chevy and the 6.5 Chevy (which aren't really well respected overall) than I did the 7.3 Ford that most people seem to really like.

Oh well, no manufacture is immune to having some issues. I just hope I'm not left out to dry by Ford and that they now have the issues of the 6.0 mostly ironed out. That's actually what I'd read; the later 6.0 engines really weren't that bad and had more power and torque than the 7.3 while delivering better fuel economy. Again, I make no claim to having certified verifiable indisputable facts on the issue and I didn't even stay in a Holiday Inn Express last night.

 

[Builder]

I think all in all you will find the 6.0L to be a good engine. They got a bad rap at first and it stuck. At the end of the day Ford still holds the largest truck sales numbers so something is right about them. They sell more diesels than Dodge and GM combined.

Chris

Sales numbers don't mean jack to most people. McDonalds sells more burgers than everyone else in the world combined, too, but I can get a better burger at the local burger joint.

Unfortunately, the 6L will go down in history as the worst modern pickup diesel. I can back up that claim because I've read numerous times that Ford spent more money in warranty claims on the 6L than any other product in their history.

 

[Builder]

I'll add my 6.0 experiences, I've got and 04 PSD. It's never left me stranded. The turbo went at about 35k and a few minor oil leaks all fixed under warranty. The 6.0 is a powerful engine and pulls 14k effortlessly. I was hesitant to buy as I was aware of the reputation it has. While it is true there were problems early. The engine has had minor issues later in life. Much like the dodge and gm diesels. I think the bad rap gets blown out of context by folks who've never owned one ranting like expert about how great thier diesel is and how bad the psd is. Not folks who own them. Matt T.

I don't think you need to own something to have a valid opinion about it. A car mechanic can tell you more about a car than its' owner probably can.

Actually, I think owning something as expensive as a diesel truck tends to make you overly protective of it and unable to absorb constructive criticism of it.

The 6L is a powerful engine, but I would dispute that it's as powerful as the competition. In fact, it makes less HP and Torque than its' competitiors in most model years and it has to rev higher to achieve the same torque numbers.

I don't have to own one to know that.

 

[Diamondpilot]

Sales numbers don't mean jack to most people. McDonalds sells more burgers than everyone else in the world combined, too, but I can get a better burger at the local burger joint.

The 6L will go down in history as the worst modern pickup diesel. I can back up that claim because I've read numerous times that Ford spent more money in warranty claims on the 6L than any other product in their history.

I do not doubt they have spent more money on them. They are a expensive engine. Of every vehicle I have owned my 05 D-Max cost the dealer more to get right than any other. I was plagued with injector and glow plug problems along with some early electrical problems. The only vehicle I have had worse luck with is the 2500 Dodge Hemi. It was in the shop over 20 times in 2 years but my guess is it cost less than half to fix versus my D-Max. Plain and simple, diesels are expensive in all aspects that includes maintenance.

My personal experience with my two 6.0L Fords has been great except for a instrument cluster that had to be replaced on the 2006 F-350.

Builder, we have went round and round on brand loyalty. I have owned them all and truly feel Ford makes the best trucks period. I swore to never own another GM period but I ate crow and bought a Saturn in May because I felt it was the most bang for the buck in this class of vehicle. I love the 38 mpg highway and 32 mixed of which 75% is in town. I have less than 2500 miles and yesterday the passengers power window went out 3/4 up with rain coming. I made it home and put it in the garage before the rain hit and later took it to the dealer. They got out the volt meter and its a bad motor that should be hear in 2 days for them to replace. I hope this is not a sign to come for me going back on my word to never own another GM.

Chris

 

[Builder]

My take on it is that I buy the best equipment available for my business. Ford has been a major disappointment from 2003-2007 with the 6L. 4+ years is a long time to be 3rd in power under the hood and a distant 3rd in reliability.
I can't stand downtime.

For me to reward Ford with my hard earned money after offering a less reliable & less powerful engine, inferior transmission & smaller rear for 5 years was more than I could pinch my nose and bear to do.

I hope I made the right decision and won't hesitate to buy a different brand next time around. I refuse to be a brand-loyal person anymore. For me it's who makes the best truck at the time of purchase. Why live life any other way? Just to be brand loyal? How foolish.

 

[PBinWA]

For me to reward Ford with my hard earned money after offering a less reliable & less powerful engine, inferior transmission & smaller rear for 5 years was more than I could pinch my nose and bear to do.

Well said Builder, I felt the same way. Ford also raised the prices on these trucks by around $10K over that same period. I remember looking at new Ford Diesel pickups for $28-32K around 2000 and now they want $40-60K for something that is less reliable and gets worse fuel economy.

 

[Egon]

With my old 96 Dodge with the Cumins I can find lots of people to work on it if I ever need someone to work one it.

 

[Dargo]

Of every vehicle I have owned my 05 D-Max cost the dealer more to get right than any other. I was plagued with injector and glow plug problems along with some early electrical problems.

I'd never owned a Dmax, and didn't want to start any feud, but I'd actually heard that as well from a good friend who is over about once a week who "was" a die hard Chevy fan. I mean he is the type who has a #3 and #8 on all of his Chevy vehicles and each of his 6 vehicles were Chevrolets. He works as an elevator repair man and uses his truck every day for work. The company he works for bought them all Chevy Dmax 1 tons and they all ended up hating them. He now absolutely despises the Dmax and, after only owning Chevrolets all his adult life, bought another brand because of all the troubles he had. That, along with the fact that I just plain don't like the way the GM trucks look, ride or drive is what prevented me from considering a late model GM diesel. He has borrowed my old Dodge about a dozen times while his Dmax was in the shop; before he got rid of it.

Again, I'm hoping I didn't make a mistake by not going back with a Dodge. I suppose only time will tell.