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Old 03-01-2010, 07:49 PM   #1
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V10 Longevity??

Hey all,

Who has put some serious miles on the Ford V10 engine? Any complaints? Any good comments? I was looking at a 7-8 year old 350 van that has almost 150k on it.

Assuming a unit has been well taken care of with regular attention, is there any reason a V10 couldn't rack up 1/4 million?

I know I've seen contractor vans out ther with 200-300k but that's not to say anything of the past mechanical work, and I guess I don't know which engines would have been in the ones that I've seen with those high miles.

THANKS

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Old 03-01-2010, 08:16 PM   #2
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Re: V10 Longevity??

The V10 has a great rep from what I've heard, though I have no firsthand experience.


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Old 03-01-2010, 09:51 PM   #3
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Re: V10 Longevity??

My V10 has 270,000 miles on it, and runs great.

Only repairs have been the starter relay and both forward oxygen sensors (which I think were a casualty of silicone contamination since they went out at the same time shortly after the Banks PowerPack install.)

For the past few years, 90%+ of my miles have been towing. I tow up to 18,000 pounds with it, which is over the OEM GCWR but I have upped the power with the Banks PowerPack and Diablo Predator tuner, changed it to a dually, changed differential to 4.56 Dana 70 gears, and upgraded the brakes accordingly.


Part of my tuning has involved raising the shift points and electronic rev limiter. It will sing along at 5500 for 15-20 minutes at a time without complaint. This allows me to maintain 65 on any mountain Interstate pass with a 12,000+ pound load.

The only negative side effect of the Predator tuner has been shorter spark plug life. Double Platinum plugs only last about 70,000 miles before the electrode is worn away. I put in iridium plugs this last time so hopefully they will last longer.

Some Triton motors have gone 1 million+ miles without major repairs.
http://millionmilevan.com/
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Old 03-02-2010, 12:25 AM   #4
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Re: V10 Longevity??

Makes me love my SMB with a V10 even more.

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Old 03-02-2010, 05:35 AM   #5
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Re: V10 Longevity??

Angel
amen to that!
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Old 03-02-2010, 07:27 AM   #6
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Re: V10 Longevity??

We have a 2001 V-10 with about 88,000 on it and haven't had any problems with it (although I have had problems with the differential and the automatic transmission). One potential problem I heard about is the "blown out" spark plug issue. (Google it if you haven't heard about it.) I asked the Service Manager at the Ford dealer about it since I'll need to get them changed sometime this year and he said that they now know how to take the time to remove the old plugs without damaging the existing threads and install the replacement ones so that they won't cause problems. That was good to hear...
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Old 03-02-2010, 07:40 AM   #7
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Re: V10 Longevity??

Quote:
Originally Posted by yvrr
... One potential problem I heard about is the "blown out" spark plug issue. (Google it if you haven't heard about it.) I asked the Service Manager at the Ford dealer about it since I'll need to get them changed sometime this year and he said that they now know how to take the time to remove the old plugs without damaging the existing threads and install the replacement ones so that they won't cause problems. That was good to hear...
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Old 03-02-2010, 08:25 AM   #8
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Re: V10 Longevity??

Got a friend with 320k+ on his and he's had to replace the tranny but the engine has been strong with no major problems. He knows his vans and was pretty confident when I was looking at one with 210k on it.
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Old 03-02-2010, 10:02 AM   #9
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Re: V10 Longevity??

Quote:
Originally Posted by BroncoHauler
Quote:
Originally Posted by yvrr
... One potential problem I heard about is the "blown out" spark plug issue. (Google it if you haven't heard about it.) I asked the Service Manager at the Ford dealer about it since I'll need to get them changed sometime this year and he said that they now know how to take the time to remove the old plugs without damaging the existing threads and install the replacement ones so that they won't cause problems. That was good to hear...
lefty-loosey, righty-tighty
The spark plug issue is very rare. Mostly it just gets passed around over and over again by the diesel guys on other forums because it's the only thing they can knock the V10 for.

In 2000, Ford the threads in the cylinder heads from 4 to 8.

I did have a couple plugs work loose on me last summer. Prior to that, I changed them without a torque wrench, and was a little conservative on torque. The plugs loosened up almost immediately after making some programming changes (~250 miles), and pulling grades at a higher RPM. I don't think it's coincidence, I think the harmonics at 5500+ RPM made the under-tightenned pugs vibrate loose. The loose plugs made a tapping noise, like many pushrod motors make with tired valve lifters. I simply tightened them back down when I got home.
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Old 03-02-2010, 10:06 AM   #10
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Re: V10 Longevity??

Do verify the oil grade used when looking at high mileage V10s. 5w20 is recommended, and 5w30 is acceptable (but it should still be at least a synthetic bland). Some folks who think motor oil and engines haven't changed in 40 years like to put heavier oil in the V10. This can result in a shortened life-pan, as both the bottom and top ends of the motor have some small passages, and running heavier oil can result in parts getting under-lubricated. If you even hear a V10 with valve noise, it's most likely from running the wrong oil.
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