I had a friend who worked at Valeo during the Ford/International break up caused by this engine. He stated that the engine was great when you fixed all the issues; turbo, headgasket, egr, etc.. etc..
But seriously, that engine caused a 20+ year partnership to end and it wasn't a pretty divorce.
Do you want a 2 or 4wd?
The reason I ask, if you buy a 4wd and keep it for a while means you probably will have to put ball joints in them, dodge ford or GM, it sucks on all of them.
Common issues Ive seen with the Big 3's early to mid 2000s trucks working in rural TX (Everyone drives a truck)
Dodge - Condensor fan motor, it will go out. A/C actuators in dash fail sometimes, and recirc door will fall off. I just pulled the blower out and pulled the recirc door out and havent had recirc for 8 years, saw a truck with less than 10K miles that had it fall off. Dash pad will crack. Hubs fail but not as commonly as GM hubs. Rack and Pinion will probably leak. P/S return hose leaks as it gets old and swells and people let fluid get low and people kill pump, fix is a new hose and some clamps. 20" truck tires can be expensive, but since the 275/55 size has become more common, the market has responded and there are some decent options for not too much. 275/60s can be a little more expensive.
4.7 - Exhaust manifold bolts break. All but one that ive seen had them break with parts exposed, where the manifold didnt even have to be pulled, just grab them with a pair of vice grips and spin them out and put a new one in. Im not talking about breaking when servicing, they just break sometimes. Cooling system, radiators go out alot, and sometimes W/Ps.
5.7 Hemi - Sometimes valve keepers come out and make then engine eat itself. Been told it is very common and most rebuilt heads fix them problem but with all the Hemis I work on Ive only seen it once, I dont believe it to be as common an issue as told. My truck has over 300k on factory heads. Cam and crack sensor fail, but not super common. It has 16 plugs so a tune up can get expensive. Wrong oil in MDS Hemis cause lifter failure.
Ford - 2WDs have expensive front brakes. Bearing built into rotor, very thin when new, so generally only get one use out of them. Even rock auto has the cheapest front rotors at 70 bucks each, plus add 20 for new spindle nuts since they arent reusable. 5.4s dont like to let go of plugs, not a big deal to fix if one breaks most of the time, just have to buy the lisle tool, plugs are also more expensive. Cam phasers like to die. They also like to misfire and not throw codes. Timing chain tensioners on 5.4s. Not sure if the newer ones do it but older 4.2s leak at the intake manifold and require new seals, bolts and everything. Also they use struts up front (okay technically its a coilover shock but whatever) which isnt a big deal but makes it more expensive to service than shocks. Ford also used some pretty goofy tire sizes for a while on some trucks (not all) that can be expensive with few options, like 255/70/17, 275/65/18, 275/60/17, 275/45/20, 235/75/17, 235/70/17, 255/65/17, 265/60/18. When these first came out finding tires in some of these sizes was a nightmare, may be more options now.
Chevy - If you buy an LS you will put a water pump on it and you will probably put some hub assemblies on it. May need an EVAP vent valve. Oil pumps die sometimes. 07 and up (IIRC) use struts. They leak oil, though not as bad as older SBCs, and replacing gaskets isnt bad, except for rear main, have to pull trans. Oil pressure sender, knock sensor and cam sensor fail sometimes. Truthfully an LS motor is pretty easy to work on.
As much as I love my Dodges, If I wanted a cheap work truck that only got drove every once in a while, Id by an early 2000s chevy with a 5.3 and 16s or 17s(245/75/16, 265/75/16 or 245/70/17 or 265/70/17), because its simple, capable, plentiful, and cheap to own and maintain.
Id also buy a 4wd, knowing full well Ill probably have to do all the ball joints, but thats me and I liek having 4WD.
Quote from GRM on any even numbered day of the month: "Aw man, why can't we get more diesels here? Europe is full of them and they are awesome! I would totally buy a Brand X Wondermobile if it came with the diesel here!"
Quote from GRM on any odd numbered day of the month: "Diesel engine pickups are overkill, expensive, and generally suck. Just buy a gasser!"
HAHAHAAA. Just found that funny. Back on topic, my friend has a 6.0 Powerjoke that sees mainly unloaded highway travel. It's been amazingly crappy and a complete money pit. All the usual suspects. Turbo, head gaskets, EGR/EGR cooler, injectors etc. He hates it but he's so far upside-down that he can't sell it.
Opti wrote: 5.7 Hemi - Sometimes valve keepers come out and make then engine eat itself. Been told it is very common and most rebuilt heads fix them problem but with all the Hemis I work on Ive only seen it once, I dont believe it to be as common an issue as told.
I am told that it's common on engines that idle a lot. Something to do with inadequate oil flow to the valvetrain when idling. I haven't seen it either, but then I have only seen maybe three individual Hemis since Mopar is not very popular here where a lot of people are employed by Ford and GM.
Ford - 2WDs have expensive front brakes. Bearing built into rotor, very thin when new, so generally only get one use out of them.
It's normal up here to throw away the rotors. Usually it is the rotors that are the reason you need to do brakes, the calipers sieze and then the rotors turn into balls of rust and you're replacing everything between the spindle (or hub) and flex hose. Ford 4wd usually require breaking the rotor in half to get it off of the hub.
Fuel pump control modules are a rapid-failure thing. They corrode. Horribly.
Chevy - (...) May need an EVAP vent valve. (...) Oil pressure sender, knock sensor and cam sensor fail sometimes. Truthfully an LS motor is pretty easy to work on.
Vent valves on GMs seem to be an every-other-year thing. They fill with dust/dirt/salt and stop working correctly. They tried to fix it by putting it on top of the tank, but this just means that it gets filled with dirt and crap that falls between the cab and bed instead of salt and dust that blows up over the spare tire.
I would not classify the oil pressure sender as "easy" on a non-van. I invented new swear words the first time I did one. It's possible to do without removing the intake manifold but it is not pleasant.
I love my truck.
1990 F-250 HD.
460 EFI with a Banks Powerpack system. Gobs of torque and I don't have the diesel maintenance costs, dirt and stink.
I'm a little worse on fuel mileage than the bosses Duramax when we're both loaded but the higher price of diesel helps to offset it.
Plus, I bought it with 180,000km on it two years ago from an old guy who used it to pull his retirement 5th wheel. He rebuilt the trans right before I bought it.
I added the Banks kit and a shift kit in the trans plus a huge transmission cooler.
I regularly go past loaded diesel pickups on hills and I've got a loaded car trailer on the back.
I also love that it's all paid for and if I grenade the engine, I can have another one built for around $2500.00
doc_speeder wrote: Quote from GRM on any even numbered day of the month: "Aw man, why can't we get more diesels here? Europe is full of them and they are awesome! I would totally buy a Brand X Wondermobile if it came with the diesel here!" Quote from GRM on any odd numbered day of the month: "Diesel engine pickups are overkill, expensive, and generally suck. Just buy a gasser!"
Europe is full of small displacement diesel engined CARS, not 8000lb tanks that cost more than a house to buy and more than a trophy wife to maintain, and are about as fast as the house and useful as the trophy wife.
He hates it but he's so far upside-down that he can't sell it.
That is never true. You're never so far upside-down that "you can't sell it". You will be paying for the thing either way, but the difference is that if you unload it, you WON'T be paying for its upkeep in addition to its purchase price.
And the moral of the story is that friends don't let friends pay $60,000 for a wheelbarrow.
Opti,
What do you think of the GM 8100 (496) in the 2500s?
Datsun1500 wrote: I'm pretty much off of the 6.0 after reading a lot about it. I'm really surprised how hard it is to find a long bed that's not a work truck.
People that buy these things as luxury vehicles, like most over the last 10-12 years, don't want the long bed.
chaparral wrote: Opti, What do you think of the GM 8100 (496) in the 2500s?
I borrowed a friends 8100 with the Allison, man that was an impressive truck. Towing power was excellent and it drove great. Gas mileage, well it is a Big Block so it got a little over 8 mpg pulling my 28ft enclosed trailer (about 8500+ lbs loaded). I believe it gets around 10 mpg without any trailer. Not in the Diesel mpg range but it is cheaper to buy than a Duramax.
In reply to Knurled:
Well my frame of reference is doing it on aVette which requires pulling the manifold. Doing it on a truck isnt necessarily easy, but after doing it the first time and figuring out how to get to it, they dont bother me too much now.
chaparral wrote: Opti, What do you think of the GM 8100 (496) in the 2500s?
I like them and really want one in a Blue 2500 4x4 suburban, but i really dont have any experience with them, so i do have any comments on reliability. I've only ever seen one in person, and the only reason I like them is they are a 496.
Check out Raylar for performance parts, may be worth shooting them an email and asking them about reliability.
As far as I know its a Huge big block with a few tricks learned from the Gen 3 SBC stuff.
Trans_Maro wrote: I love my truck. 1990 F-250 HD. 460 EFI with a Banks Powerpack system. Gobs of torque and I don't have the diesel maintenance costs, dirt and stink. I'm a little worse on fuel mileage than the bosses Duramax when we're both loaded but the higher price of diesel helps to offset it. Plus, I bought it with 180,000km on it two years ago from an old guy who used it to pull his retirement 5th wheel. He rebuilt the trans right before I bought it. I added the Banks kit and a shift kit in the trans plus a huge transmission cooler. I regularly go past loaded diesel pickups on hills and I've got a loaded car trailer on the back. I also love that it's all paid for and if I grenade the engine, I can have another one built for around $2500.00
Quoted for truth, though mine is a 350, less the Banks kit and the shift kit.
Toyman01 wrote: This is what I did. The $10K difference between a diesel engine and a gas will buy a lot of fuel.
All of which you will lose in resale and then some.
The 6.0L stroke is considered one of the worst modern diesels ever. It has problems. Yes they can be fixed by the aftermarket, but it requires about $8000 and you have to remove the cab from the frame. Just run.
06-later Duramax, 7.3L stroke, or Cummins 5.9 are the only diesels I would consider.
In reply to curtis73:
When I'm done with a vehicle, they are usually completely used up and headed to the junk yard, or given away to someone needy. For me, resale doesn't figure into the equation and as much as I use it, diesel pay off would take something like 20 years.
curtis73 wrote:Toyman01 wrote: This is what I did. The $10K difference between a diesel engine and a gas will buy a lot of fuel.All of which you will lose in resale and then some.
On a new truck, maybe. On something that's already well depreciated, I doubt it. I know the diesel will always be worth more, but the difference gets smaller (in absolute dollars) the older the truck.
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