I found a 6.4L Powerstroke F350 extended cab 4x4 with around 250k km for $23k CAD. The truck looks clean, but I haven’t gone to check it out in person yet.
Is it worth considering? I know the 6.0L Powerstroke had its issues, but I thought the 6.4L fixed most of them. What’s the deal with these engines?
After reading through all the feedback here, I’ve decided to pass on the truck. Thanks for all the info!
@Hayes
Wow, that’s saying something. I had shops telling me the 6.0L was the worst thing ever when the 6.7L first came out. One mechanic joked, ‘I’m putting my kids through college fixing 6.0s.’
Hayes said:
Not worth it. The 6.4L is considered one of the worst diesel engines made in the last 30 years.
The 6.0L is way worse, though.
Not really. Once you ‘bulletproof’ a 6.0L with head studs and an EGR delete, it can be a solid engine. There’s not much you can do to make the 6.4L reliable.
Darcy said: @Hayes
Maybe so. I’m more of a 5.9 Cummins guy, but both the 6.0L and 6.4L always make it onto the ‘worst diesel engines’ lists.
The 6.2L and 6.5L GM diesels also get hate. They were underpowered and cracked heads, but they were simple and easy to work on. I’ve got a 6.0 Powerstroke and a 5.9 Cummins 24v, and I love both. You just have to know their quirks.
@Phoenix
The military used the 6.2L and 6.5L because they were cheap, not because they were reliable. They had an endless supply of remanufactured engines to throw into vehicles.
Tristan said: @Phoenix
The military used the 6.2L and 6.5L because they were cheap, not because they were reliable. They had an endless supply of remanufactured engines to throw into vehicles.
True, but they were good enough to meet their needs. No sense in overbuilding something if it’s not necessary.
Darcy said: @Hayes
Maybe so. I’m more of a 5.9 Cummins guy, but both the 6.0L and 6.4L always make it onto the ‘worst diesel engines’ lists.
Don’t forget GM also made a 5.7L diesel back in the day. People thought it was based on the 350 small-block, but it wasn’t. They used it in cars and light trucks.
We had a 6.4L that lasted only 70k miles before it started mixing fluids—fuel and oil or coolant, I can’t remember exactly. It was grandpa-owned and completely stock, so it wasn’t abused. Still a nightmare.
The 6.4L is a trainwreck. Even if you delete all the emissions crap, keep it stock, and baby it, it’ll still find a way to fail. Skip it and look for a 6.7L instead.
Nico said:
The 6.4L is a trainwreck. Even if you delete all the emissions crap, keep it stock, and baby it, it’ll still find a way to fail. Skip it and look for a 6.7L instead.
It’s a shame because by 2005, the 6.0L issues were mostly fixed. If Ford had stuck with it, maybe they wouldn’t have needed the 6.4L at all.