tuner questions

[clintusaf]

Hey guys,

I'm posting on here for a buddy that has a bone stock 6.0.



He wants to get a tuner. here are some questions that I have about it.



What tuners are recommended for the 6.0?



Do they have a shift on the fly tuner for the 6.0?



Should he get a digital gauge readout or go with mechanical gauges?



Does he need to upgrade his air filter? i've heard that there is no need to on the 6.0's up to 500 hp. is that true?



I have already recommended exhaust. what other recommendations do you guys have that should be done before adding a tuner?

 

[groundhawg]

What tuners are recommended for the 6.0?

Personal opinion mostly, but I think you will find that most people will recommend a custom tuned SCT. That is what I run...I'm happy with it.



Do they have a shift on the fly tuner for the 6.0?

Yes, there are. I think Edge has one...not sure about any others though. My SCT is not, but it only takes a few minutes to reprogram...it's really never been an issue for me.



Should he get a digital gauge readout or go with mechanical gauges?

Personal opinion...I like analog gauges myself. A guy I work with has a 7.3 truck with Edge and the digital control and readout...I think it is Attitude...It is nice too.



Does he need to upgrade his air filter? i've heard that there is no need to on the 6.0's up to 500 hp. is that true?

That is the common consensus you will read most everywhere.


I have already recommended exhaust. what other recommendations do you guys have that should be done before adding a tuner?


Exhaust and guages for sure. Otherwise, the head studs and an EGR delete...but that goes for stockers too.

 

[rammertide07]

x2 on the head studs. I would put those #1 on my list if I had a 6.0.

 

[Yooper75]

x2 on the head studs. I would put those #1 on my list if I had a 6.0.

I have heard conflicting reports on this from many people. The dealer that I take my truck to has a bunch customers with tuned 6.0's and they said most of them are running stock head bolts. I have also heard the same thing over on CompD that there are some guys running high HP tunes on stock head bolts and I will be one of them after I get some good guages in the truck.

I have also heard the dont do it until you get head studs but the more I research and talk to people about this it all depends on how you drive the truck and who writes the tunes. If you are just going to put a mild/moderate tow tune in it I would say that you are more than likley going to be ok. But if you are going to run the quarter mile on sundays or put a hot and wild performance tune it in it and keep you right foot buried in the injection pump all the time I would say do head studs.

I will say this though. Since I have had the EGR deleted and put the off road exhaust on my truck it has run the best its ever run in the two years since I bought it. Here are my asnwers to your friends questions.

1. Custom tuned SCT is the only way to go. (my humble opinion)

2.Yes SCT, Edge, Bully Dog, and PHP have them. I know for sure two out of those four can be customed tuned.

3.Depends on if you go with an X-CalIII or a touch screen tuner from SCT or PHP.

4. Nope leave the air filter alone until you break the 500HP mark.

 

[jagular7]

I would also recommend a micro-oil filter system.
The trouble areas of the 6.0l relate to the power generation, exhaust flow, and filtrations. Its a hit/miss on the head bolts as others have stated. EGR delete would be best along with a cat removal and larger diameter exhaust throughout. With EGR delete, upgrade the stock oil cooler to the newest design from Ford or go with an aftermarket system. Last is the filters: fuel, oil, trans, and water. Water as there is sand residue in the cooling system and this can ruin water pumps and clog internal cooling systems. Its considered a by-pass filter. Trans is self-explanatory. Its cheap insurance to change the fuel filters at oil intervals. Dirty fuel hurts injectors. The micro-oil filter is a by-pass filter and it can pro-long oil changes as well as provide diagnosis through the samples.

 

[ckamp52]

Definitely go with sct best results on the 6.0, air filter is fine, i would put a coolant filter from dieselsite, egr delete, and when ya can stud it ..mine was chipped from about 8k to 90k and never any problems but it was a mild tow chip, @ 90k stepped up to the sct for better towing power and some fun tunes i deleted the egr andsince i had stuff apart i studded itt just for peace of mind

 

[rcfox3]

Ok I am new here and will be buying a 2005 or 2006 F250 in the next month. I am buying it for driving to work and also towing a 30ft 5th wheel trailer. As I read this post it makes me reconsider my plan to program it for more performance when i get it. It may be just because I don't know anything about the trucks and engines yet.

How hard and how much does it typically cost to change the studs and what exactly is a EGR delete?

The other thing is mileage will a performance upgrade make the truck run more efficient giving it better mileage. I have talked to a few people that say they get great mileage with these trucks but everything I read about them says it is terrible.

Thanks,
Charles

 

[Zmann ARGH]

we could type a days worth of answers but it is all easy to find using the search engines ,, give yourself about 2 weeks to get to know your motor and it's fixes by doing research

 

[jagular7]

Check out the diesel forums and review the forum site's business sponsors. Many have the information on their business site to reflect the condition and reason for design of their systems. Biggest issue, as I've found, is locating the correct SCT tuner and custom tunes for a reasonable cost. I've been through roughly 15 sites and made several calls to the sellers of the SCT tuner for the past several weeks. Many custom tune the tuner to meet the driver's needs.
But several provided the tuner as a whole with standard higher output tunes. Several talked to me about how the tuner and custom tunes get installed.
The SCT is a basic tuner. Its shipped to you from a seller. The seller can load their own custom tunes to 'upgrade' the power, street, towing, etc. without feedback 'strategy' from your stock computer. The proper way is to download your stock 'strategy' from your truck's computer and email that back to the seller through the SCT tuner. The seller takes input in how you use your truck, for what, how much use, etc and provides custom tunes back through email. You download the tunes into the SCT and load them into the truck. You will then need to perform several operational tests so that the computer relearns the computer settings.
Basic SCT prices start ~$375 for the tuner and the preset higher output tunes. The custom setup is between $30-100 more depending on the seller.

I finally settled on Innovative Diesel Performance SCT setup. I plan to add the cat delete test pipe and a flow-through muffler to the otherwise stock truck. I do have a RiverCity Diesel egr delete kit installed along with (previously mentioned) FS2500 micro-oil filter system. Like other tuner setups, the SCT can be upgraded further for a small additional cost when other high-performance items are added over time.