Normal EOT & ECT on Ford 6.0?

coolfeet · 03-28-2016, 02:23 PM

I bought a used E350 extended 6.0 PSD back in August and am getting familiar with the quirks of the 6.0. I think the EOT-ECT spread of 9-11 degrees for a van seems normal for an aging van.

I woke up a few days ago and had an epiphany-"Am I the only guy driving a 6.0 with EOT spreads of 11 degree?" Hardly!

After putting over 4k miles on the van, I have come to conclusion that the E series runs a little hotter than F series truck when loaded or driving a grade. Guys in the truck forums always run hotter than 225 EOT when towing a heavy trailer or climbing a grade.

My EOT has climbed up to 235 a few times when powering up a steep grade in the Sierras or driving to Santa Cruz on a warm day. Slowing down solves the high temp problem.

During the day when the temperature is in the 70's, I consistently see ECT 191 and EOT 201. When climbing a mountain grade, the ECT-EOT spread gets smaller. When driving down the mountain, the ECT drops much faster. Seems normal to me. When it's hotter than 85, I have seen EOT 210 and ECT 200. Again, seems normal to me. This is my first diesel. On all my gas vehicles, I freak out when the thermometer hit 200!

Any thoughts?

I am driving my van on a 6,000 mile cross country trip from California to Kentucky and back. I was seriously considering replacing the oil and EGR coolers after reading countless threads.

All my temperatures have stayed consistent for 4,000 miles. I flushed and cleaned the entire cooling system. Changed over to CAT EC1 ELC, and installed a coolant bypass filter.

The van throws the P299 code when I climb a grade. Turbo is probably sticking. I plan on cleaning it and installing a new unison ring. It was making noises last night when stomping on it up a grade. I was hoping to un-stick the turbo.

May as well clean the EGR when I have all this junk off.

Just ordered the IPR inline coolant filter. The hoses are larger diameter. The filter can be removed and cleaned.

JoeH · 03-28-2016, 04:46 PM

Those temps seem normal to me. I too get nervous when I see EOT hit 230F but when the fan kicks on at a ECT of 220F or so it comes back down. I would be more worried about your EGTs. Do you have a pyrometer? Taking it out of overdrive using the tow-haul switch will help with the torque converter and the higher rpm will help cool the engine and bring down EGTs.

Based on your spread it appears your oil cooler and EGR cooler are functioning normally. But if you've got the turbo off it's not that much further to get to both. Since you've been researching it you're probably up on what cooler to get but maybe reconsider if you have an 03 or 04. The early EGR coolers were not known to rupture until Ford inexplicably went to the square sided version. Make sure you stay OEM on the oil cooler if your not going with one of the aftermarket air cooled systems. Changing to an ELC and installing the coolant filter solve the problem unless your oil cooler was already plugged (ie., 15* spread or greater).

There's a couple of other threads in this forum on what folks have done to manage heat. Hood louvers, pipe wraps, all aluminum radiators, transmission coolers, etc.

Heat also kills the FICM, alternator, and batteries so those are good things to check as well before your trip.

Bellpilot · 03-28-2016, 04:58 PM

I run about the same temps but my fan kicks on @ 215. Typically my spread is about 5 degrees on flat and as high as 15 on long grades. The highest temp I have encountered is 230. My van threw the 299 code last year going up a long grade so I took it to Ford and decided to go ahead and replaced the turbo for $1100.00. The Dealer said that they have had little success with cleaning the turbos and they maybe get two years out of the clean. I did not want to pay the labor twice that quickly.

JoeH · 03-28-2016, 05:08 PM

P0299 is a turbo underboost code. It can be caused by a few different things besides sticking vanes such as loose-fitting boots. A pin hole can do it. And heat kills the boots as well so not a bad idea to replace all of them as preventative maintenance.

I have all the part numbers if you need them and you're into the engine that far.

coolfeet · 03-28-2016, 05:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JoeH

P0299 is a turbo underboost code. It can be caused by a few different things besides sticking vans such as loose-fitting boots. A pin hole can do it. And heat kills the boots as well so not a bad idea to replace all of them as preventative maintenance.

I have all the part numbers if you need them and you're into the engine that far.

the turbo throws a code when VGT is at 15.

Sure, I will take the part numbers. Even before I read anything about sticking turbos, I suspected that it could be a leak.

I am preventive maintenance type of guy as I dislike doing something twice. I replace before catastrophe happens.

Bellpilot · 03-28-2016, 05:21 PM

It was determined prior to replacement that is was indeed sticky viens on my turbo before I laid down the cash. Sorry I left that part out, thanks for catching JoeH!

coolfeet · 03-28-2016, 05:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JoeH

Those temps seem normal to me. I too get nervous when I see EOT hit 230F but when the fan kicks on at a ECT of 220F or so it comes back down. I would be more worried about your EGTs. Do you have a pyrometer? Taking it out of overdrive using the tow-haul switch will help with the torque converter and the higher rpm will help cool the engine and bring down EGTs.

What is the Tow Haul Switch? I have the O/D switch on the steering column.

I never knew that higher RPMs will cool the engine faster.

I go back and forth about replacing the OIL and EGR coolers. Money is not the issue. I worked enough over time in 2 weeks at work to pay for all the parts and labor. I have a problem replacing something when it's running okay according to manufacture specifications.

If I replaced everything that I hear about on the forums, it will cost a fortune...tuners, high amp alternator, cat back exhaust, transmission solenoids, etc.

At the end of the day, my old 6.0 is running well and I plan to keep the maintenance up to date. I would rather spend a few dollars today than thousands on the road.

Nick · 03-28-2016, 05:31 PM

Same here and ~ 5 degrees on low grade at temp of 70's too. I do change the coolant every year under vaccumm and have a coolant filter that I replace with every oil change. I just did a mayor preventative work a few months ago and my Pyros are now always under 1100F (pedal to the metal while climbing). Check my write out under my name because once you are in there you can do quite a bit for not much more cost. And fortunately a more experience member help me out and the van is running great!

WhitH · 03-28-2016, 05:42 PM

Those temps seem normal to me, or at least well within what I experience under the conditions you described. An upgraded EGR cooler is still worth considering and fairly inexpensive to do vans. Worth the relatively small investment for the peace of mind I think considering that it reported to be the source of so many high dollar type failures in the 6.0.

coolfeet · 03-28-2016, 05:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JoeH

Those temps seem normal to me. I too get nervous when I see EOT hit 230F but when the fan kicks on at a ECT of 220F or so it comes back down. I would be more worried about your EGTs. Do you have a pyrometer? Taking it out of overdrive using the tow-haul switch will help with the torque converter and the higher rpm will help cool the engine and bring down EGTs.

Based on your spread it appears your oil cooler and EGR cooler are functioning normally. But if you've got the turbo off it's not that much further to get to both.

I don't have a pyrometer. Probably a good idea. I never tow and since it's a passenger van, it's never fully loaded. What pyrometer Are you using?