Question Friend's 04 250

[250SOL]

My friend just bought an 04 250 w/6.0. His truck has no power till it gets warm. He bought it from a car lot that said the dealer had put in three injectors but still couldn't tell them why it lacks power till it warms up. There are no codes in the computer and it has 84k miles and the car fax came back clean. Any help or thoughts would be greatful.

THX,
Scott

 

[DaveBen]

Diesel engines are heat engines. That is they won't develop a lot of power until they are close to operating temperature. When they are cold they lack some power. My 6.0 is a dog until it warms up. This is especially true in the colder areas of the States

If your friend wants to know what Ford did to his truck in the past, have him get an
Oasis Report from the dealer. This will show all of the work done by Ford to his truck.

Dave

 

[kingkevindavid]

X2 on what Dave said. My '04 is a dog until it warms up as well. Give it about 5 minutes to get the fluids a little warm and take it easy for a mile or two. no need to idle it for 20 minutes (bad for EGR).

 

[250SOL]

Thanks for the replies. My 06 has alot more responce than his when cold. I got a friend at the dealer to run the vin for me and nothing showed up but normal maintance and the three injectors. His truck wont even hardly move till it has warmed up for about 2min then after driving for about 10 min it will have power.

 

[fordoor]

What has been responded to about the need to warm up may be true, but I believe your friend has issues. The way I look at it is this; did it run like that or need that long to warm up when it was new? No, it didn't. I would guess Turbo or I.C.P. related issue. You guys live in Alabama, not Canada. Warm up is never as extreme. Have all the fluids/filters been changed/maintained? The hardest thing a lot of us have had to deal with is finding a competent 6.0 Tech/Dealer that really knows what they're doing and how to diagnose the beast.

 

[BamaSixGun]

Could glow plugs be a problem? Even in warm weather?

If they are bad, would it take longer to warm up so to speak?

 

[250SOL]

I agree fordoor. It is like the APPS isn't reading right when cold. It cranks up fine and runs a little rough but no throttle responce. I've ohm'd the APP and the TPM and both check good. The only bad thing while we are checking everything is we have to wait about 3hrs to get it cold again to act up. It not a hard start issue but a no throttle responce till warm. It has been recently serviced and it was done at ford every 4000 mile by the previous owner by what the records showed.

 

[DaveBen]

Do you have access to a good scanner? Read the codes in there, even if the CEL light is not on. If you can get an Autoenginuity scanner it will let you look at various things real time, like the MAP sensor which could be a problem. AutoEnginuity® - OBD2 Scan Tool - Professional PC and PDA Diagnostics

AE Scanners work with a laptop computer, so you can take them out for a drive.

Dave

 

[fordoor]

May also be a sticking injector spool valve. There is a revised program for the FICM. It uses the injector spool valve solenoids to preheat the oil at the injectors. This program flash from Ford replaced (is better than)the one that buzzed (actuated)the injectors for 30 seconds after the engine is shut off. It's also advisable,if he isn't already, to use a fuel additive. I like Stanadyne Performance Formula. It cleans,lubricates,and adds a few cetane points as well.

 

[Jetpilot1]

no power at cold start

You say it starts fine, but when it idles after the start until it has power - does it have a lopey idle? If the idle is lopey you still have an injector issue, probably spool valve stiction. If it has an even idle after start, then there could be other problems. Bad oil can be a big problem with the 6.0, make sure you are running fresh oil - synthetic if you can afford. If the past owner ran dirty oil, and the dealer just changed it before you bought it, you could have a bunch of sticky injectors. It doesnt take but one or two misbehaving, and you got lots of trouble. It would be good to get it on a scantool and see if any codes.