I have been a half ton F150 guy for many years and was very happy with all my trucks. They did everything I asked them to do and at times a little more than what I asked with no problems.Due to growing teenage boys (they are bigger than me now) and having an extended cab it I found myself looking for a new truck. Initially I set out to buy a supercrew but I stumbled upon a 2005 F250 6.0L and the price was right. SO I crossed to the diesel side and I am a believer now. Last weekend I bought 2000lbs of wood pellets. When the forklift operator put them in the truck it only drpopped the rear end a few inches. In my old F150 that same load sat the old girl almost to the bump stops. As for handling the F250 felt rock solid with the load while driving home and it really smoothed out the ride.The next task I threw at the new to me F250 was pulling a 14ft dump trailer full of fill dirt the heaviest load scaled at 10,440lbs. The 6.0l handles the load like a dream and the truck again was rock solid on the road with the load.Empty she drives great actually surprisingly well for a truck that is just under 8k lbs empty. And that 6.0l pulls pretty hard when merging onto the freeway. All in all I am very impressed with the truck. While my old half ton did the job I needed it to with no fuss I now appreciate the extra capability I have and I love the fact that the new truck feels as solid loaded as it does when empty. 2005 F250 Lariat Crew Cab4x4

I wish you the very best luck with your new truck.

know the feeling, I went from 1/2 ton to 3/4 ton and it was like night and day.

The 6.0 does have a few flaws with it, but it seems to get a worse rap than what it really is. Just keep an eye on your oil temperature versus your coolant temperature. The oil should never be more than 10 degrees hotter than your coolant. If that's happening, you may have a failed oil cooler. This causes a chain reaction that can cause failure on your EGR cooler and then cause a hydro-locking issue. So it's just something to keep an eye on. There are fixes for it, but if your truck is functioning fine, then they wouldn't be all that necessary. Diesels are nice though, lots of torque and power very low on the RPM curve. I crossed over myself only a couple months ago :), from a 2010 F-150 to my current rig.

The fix for the 6 liter diesel is pretty simple. Get a coolant water filter. Put it inline with the heater core (5/8" heater hose) and when the coolant filter is plugged, change it. Then the heater will run again. Once the debris is out of the coolant, then the oil cooler will not overheat, and it is the clogged oil cooler that prevents the EGR cooler from cooling and this will crack it, causing water to enter the engine.Your first coolant filter will only last about 300 miles, and the second one about 1,200 miles, the third will last about 4,000, while a yearly change is needed after those three filters.I have a coolant filter on my Ford gas motorhome. I bought it new in 1996, and changed the first filter at about 10 months old in September, because the heater was not working. Then changed it yearly for 10 years, only adding distilled water to the coolant system all those years. At 10 years old, I drained the coolant and replaced the 2" diameter hoses, and refilled with new coolant. Still have that coolant 7 years later. THe coolant filter helps clean up even gas motors, and helps the coolant run cooler. By keeping the debris out of the radiator, the coolant transfers heat to the air better, the water pump will last longer, and hoses will last longer too.At year 3, I put on a filter with built in SCA's. Supplimental Coolant Additives.Napa coolant filter #4070 and #FIL4019 to install it on your 5/8" heater hose. (the filter holder). My local Napa store stocked all the parts. I was able to get a new water filter while in Albuquarque NM on vacation in September 1997. I cut apart the old filter to find a lot of sand looking debris. I did not cut apart any other filters though. Fred.

I have a 2005 F250 6.0 as well, and have become expert on these beasts. There is an issue with the stock fuel pressure regulator spring and Ford put out an update in 2009 or so. It's mandatory that you get the fuel pressure tested at a dealer, and have the kit installed - it's under $50 for the kit and takes about a half hour. The fuel pressure will be around 60 psi at idle with the updated spring. Other than that, monitor the oil and water temps with a Scangauge II or equivalent OBDII data reader, change the oil every 5K miles and the fuel filters (two of them) every 15K miles and don't tune it. Last thing - use the Scangauge to monitor the FICM voltage - if it drops below 46 volts at any time, it is failing and will take out injectors. The good thing about this engine is that these little issues are well know and well documented, and have proven fixes readily available. Brian

Crossed over to Diesel | Good Sam Community

jus2shy
Explorer
Oct 22, 2013
Dan50 wrote:
jus2shy wrote:
The 6.0 does have a few flaws with it, but it seems to get a worse rap than what it really is. Just keep an eye on your oil temperature versus your coolant temperature. The oil should never be more than 10 degrees hotter than your coolant. If that's happening, you may have a failed oil cooler. This causes a chain reaction that can cause failure on your EGR cooler and then cause a hydro-locking issue. So it's just something to keep an eye on. There are fixes for it, but if your truck is functioning fine, then they wouldn't be all that necessary.

Diesels are nice though, lots of torque and power very low on the RPM curve. I crossed over myself only a couple months ago :), from a 2010 F-150 to my current rig.

It's 15 degrees different not 10.

We run tighter in the transit duty cycle for our Accessible Transit vehicles. So the moment we see 11*, oil cooler is looked at and typically changed and EGR is inspected. As with all things in life, YMMV :).
Dan50
Explorer
Oct 21, 2013
jus2shy wrote:
The 6.0 does have a few flaws with it, but it seems to get a worse rap than what it really is. Just keep an eye on your oil temperature versus your coolant temperature. The oil should never be more than 10 degrees hotter than your coolant. If that's happening, you may have a failed oil cooler. This causes a chain reaction that can cause failure on your EGR cooler and then cause a hydro-locking issue. So it's just something to keep an eye on. There are fixes for it, but if your truck is functioning fine, then they wouldn't be all that necessary.

Diesels are nice though, lots of torque and power very low on the RPM curve. I crossed over myself only a couple months ago :), from a 2010 F-150 to my current rig.

It's 15 degrees different not 10.
Dog_Folks
Explorer
Oct 19, 2013
Now you did it.

You do know that once you get diesel fuel in your blood, there is no going back to gas?
45Ricochet
Explorer
Oct 19, 2013
ScottG wrote:
I wish you the very best luck with your new truck.
mtofell1
Explorer
Oct 19, 2013
Same here.... I went from 1/2 ton to 3/4 diesel a few years ago and could never imagine going back. I also have a pellet stove and have had the exact same experience. It's amazing to just throw 2000 lbs in the bed and the truck only moves a few inches as opposed to the bumper just about hitting the ground. Also, just bigger brakes, stiffer suspension and all the other goodies. It's like driving a truck as opposed to an SUV with a big open trunk.
goducks10
Explorer
Oct 19, 2013
3/4-1 ton trucks just feel like trucks, whether diesel or gas. 1/2 tons just feel like large SUV's with a bed. I put 17-1800lbs of 5'er pin weight in my 12 Ram 2500 routinely and it only drops 2". The rear is 3" higher to begin with so it sits pretty level all loaded up. You're going to love the diesel power. It's very addicting.
Ivylog
Explorer III
Oct 19, 2013
OP you do not say how many miles on the truck. In addition to the water filter and fuel pressure spring I'd add a news radiator cap. You really need to do these three things ASAP and not that expensive.
TomG2
Explorer
Oct 19, 2013
Nice to not have to worry about an extra five hundred pounds, isn't it?
tankgod82
Explorer
Oct 19, 2013
Another satisfied Ford customer. Congrats.
rhagfo
Explorer III
Oct 19, 2013
Congratulations on the new TV, the 6.0 does not have the greatest record for reliability. That said if treated correctly and monitored and maintained as the previous post have stated they can be towing beast. I wish you the best and many good years of towing pleasure.

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