head gasket
Asked by vacarunner Mar 30, 2010 at 11:34 AM about the 2004 Ford F-350 Super Duty XL Crew Cab SB 4WD
Question type: Maintenance & Repair
i have the v8 6.0l powerstroke (powerbroke) engine and im learning that there is a major problem with the head gaskets blowing i would like to do some preventitive maintance and change those out before it kills my engine what kind of upgrades are out there to fix the problem
7 Answers
There are a couple of things you can do to prevent this from happening. There are a couple of reasons the gaskets blow so there is no single fix for it. Head studs, fire ringing and machined heads are advisable if you are going to be putting down some serious hp. another reason they blow is b/c coolant gets into the cumbustion chamber from the egr, and/or oil-to-water cooler. there are egr delete kits that fix the problem but may put up a code in the computer or you can buy an upgraded unit from http://www.bulletproofdiesel.com/. They got what seems to be a good product as semi trucks have similar coolers.
i would just get some head studs and see how it goes
this is a common problem with the powerstroke engine,best fix i have seen is a thicker metal gasket,i know of some that put 2 gaskets on the 6.0,2 on each head,solved their problem.
Yes, there are upgrades starting with the EGR cooler. You need to replace it with an after market welded tubes instead of the fins (Dorman). The hot turbo exhaust has caused catastrophic failure in many of these 6.0L's because of the leaks created when it expands and contracts. Also replace the head bolts with ARP studs or equivalent. Check the coolant strainer for the oil cooler on top of the engine as they have been known to have material from the casting process impeding the flow of coolant. This oil cooler coolant and EGR Cooler coolant are in series. If the flow is to slow, the coolant will flash into steam from 900 degree F turbo exhaust .
i had a 2006 f350 super duty dually. head gaskets went. ford knows all about this problem and wouldn't do anything about it. they said 20+ hrs labor because the cab has to come off and they would replace studs with the same junk as the original. I WILL NEVER BUY ANOTHER FORD PRODUCT AGAIN. cost me close to $7500 to have it fixed, and then i sold the vehicle.
I changed the head gaskets on my F450 2009 Diesel shuttle bus, dose it need to be programmed again. The reason i am asking is because my bus won’t start. It cranks but wont turn on. Any information will help. Thank you.
