The 24 Hours of Lemons Forums → Other Random Car Stuff → Ford v10 tow rig opinions
Wondering if anyone's had a ford with the v10 and wondering what there opinion is of it? I'm looking at a 02 f-250 with that engine and just can't really find anything about them, like issues or anything, Stuff I did see in reviews is people generally like them, thanks for the help
I have a ford v10 in the Lemons pedo-van. Early v10s had an issue with blowing out spark plugs but they fixed that by 2002. Had a miss on mine but a cheap OBD reader told me which cylinder it was, replaced the coil and have been good to go. Tows just fine.
I had an 03 F350 with the 6.8 V10. I'd still have it if it hadn't rusted into the ground, it was a plow rig in Mass before I had it. The 02 will be a 2v with the PI heads/intake. #1 issue with the early 2v V10s is spitting spark plugs. 2002 was a change over year as Ford added threads the spark plug holes to prevent this issue. Early 02s will have shorter threads. Count how many times the plug screws out, if its 7 or 8, you have the later long thread heads.
All late 4.6/5.4/6.8 use coil-on-plug. Since their inception, plenty of complaints of coils going bad, but in my experience all are misdiagnosed. The rubber boots on the coil can fall apart from heat/exposure/dirt and allow the plug to short, causing a misfire. The boots themselves can be changed quickly and cheaply without replacing the whole coil, though the back-most 4 plugs are well under the cowl, kinda un-fun.
Otherwise, Ford modulars are absolutely bulletproof and the pulling power of the 10 is awesome. They are not 460s. Spin them up and listen to the split-crank V10 song. Fuel mileage sucks but compared to diesel, cost a fraction to purchase and operate. I got 11.4mpg on a 2000mi road trip pulling a trailer. Uses the same Motorcraft semi-synth oil and filters as all my other Fords.
I'll admit I'm a Ford Modular nut-swinger, but its (early) drawbacks are avoidable, the rest easily eliminated. I'd buy another 6.8 in a heartbeat, but I'm holding out for the later 3v (457ftlb) version.
-Pat
We opted for the V10/5sp/4wd in our F350 quick attack fire truck. We bought it new in '06 but it still only has 1700 miles. What I can say is the low end torque is phenomenal even with the slip-in, utility bed and 200 gallons of water. Since I'm centrally located, it lives at my house. We did have a problem with the battery bleeding down after long periods of non-use. A scissor switch on the battery cured that problem.
I had an 03 F350 with the 6.8 V10. I'd still have it if it hadn't rusted into the ground, it was a plow rig in Mass before I had it. The 02 will be a 2v with the PI heads/intake. #1 issue with the early 2v V10s is spitting spark plugs. 2002 was a change over year as Ford added threads the spark plug holes to prevent this issue. Early 02s will have shorter threads. Count how many times the plug screws out, if its 7 or 8, you have the later long thread heads.
All late 4.6/5.4/6.8 use coil-on-plug. Since their inception, plenty of complaints of coils going bad, but in my experience all are misdiagnosed. The rubber boots on the coil can fall apart from heat/exposure/dirt and allow the plug to short, causing a misfire. The boots themselves can be changed quickly and cheaply without replacing the whole coil, though the back-most 4 plugs are well under the cowl, kinda un-fun.
Otherwise, Ford modulars are absolutely bulletproof and the pulling power of the 10 is awesome. They are not 460s. Spin them up and listen to the split-crank V10 song. Fuel mileage sucks but compared to diesel, cost a fraction to purchase and operate. I got 11.4mpg on a 2000mi road trip pulling a trailer. Uses the same Motorcraft semi-synth oil and filters as all my other Fords.
I'll admit I'm a Ford Modular nut-swinger, but its (early) drawbacks are avoidable, the rest easily eliminated. I'd buy another 6.8 in a heartbeat, but I'm holding out for the later 3v (457ftlb) version.
-Pat
Any way to fix the plug problem on one? O I knew economy was crap. Yeah being in MN I don't want to deal with a diesel in winter...
Any way to fix the plug problem on one? O I knew economy was crap. Yeah being in MN I don't want to deal with a diesel in winter...
The official Ford repair for blown out threads was a "Time-Sert" which is like a more permanent helicoil. They claim it could be done with the head still on. Statistically, plug blow-out was a non-issue, but with so many trucks running around with 5.4s and 6.8s, a very small percentage added up. Most of the issues can be avoided by taking care when changing the plugs.
Make sure the plug wells are clean before removing the plug. They're on top of the engine and, especially with failing boots, they tend to fill with crap. Go nuts with carb cleaner and a vacuum to keep shit from gumming up the threads. Don't just slam the plugs in and out. Get a good torque wrench and put them in to spec.
My V10 SD got the same MPG if it was loaded or unloaded, on the highway or around town, pulling a trailer or not. It was awful, but it it was consistent.
I figured about 10, idk if an e con tuner would help, got 2mpg on my parents titan, kinda waiting and seeing what works going to do, getting slow...
V10 is a great motor! You will go through a few coils. They are cheap and easy to replace. You probably won't have an issue with the plugs spitting out if you put a wrench on them every 30 k or so. The updated plugs have alot more threads on them and alot less likely to come out.
In the unfortunate event you do spit a plug it's an easy fix. I have done 20 or so repairs in the last 10 years all in car. For what ever reason half of those were the #3 plug. When I was at Ford they made us replace the head. I think only one of those repairs was to a V10. The rest were 5.4
Ford V10 + 924 would be like some kind of magical terrifying dream-build. (No, I don't care about the budget. Someone do this, and kill tires.)
FWIW, the van gets about 11mpg towing and 14 unloaded. Blows over the Grapevine (6-7% grade) towing a loaded 20' tag trailer at 60mph without much of a problem.
Get a diesel.
I have a 1999 F-350 with only 126K miles. Blew a plug out after paying the dealer $600 to change the plugs. Always had a misfire, which got worse and worse over time. Had the heads pulled and Lock&Stitch inserts (the Ford recommended fix) installed in all the plug holes. that was $4K, dealer wanted $5-6K
Bought a whole set of Accel coil packs for about $350 compared with the $1K price for 10 from Ford. Truck runs great, has lots of power. Will pull my 7K loaded trailer just fine. Just ran from the SF Bay area up to the Ridge in Shelton Washington. Maybe got 10 mpg. Slow but steady up the step grades in Oregon on I-5. And it will run fast on the flats if you want to, the engine does make Hp!!
As noted the coil boots can be a problem, but the bigger problem is water dripping onto the engine. Seems like the #3&4 cylinders are the major culprits and those are right near where the rear hood seam is . So a good hood seal is important. I had plenty of nasty oily water crap in the forward plug holes.
The coil boots will tend to pull off the coil packs when you removed them to change the plugs. I just put some anti-seize on the outer seal area to help lessen the stick. I also Anti-seize the plug threads (all my cars) and torque to spec. Never had a plug loosen.
Never, NEVER, never change the plugs when the engine is hot. The expanded metal will tighten the plugs in the holes and increase the potential for stripping out the holes, or pulling out the inserts if its been fixed. Again correctly torque the plugs.
The Alternator is an easy swap.
Bed the brakes well, I've had two sets of front rotors get pad material embedded (warped rotor syndrome). i almost need to bed the pads with a loaded trailer and the trailer brake controller set to 0.
I've been driven in and have driven cheseroo's V10 van. It's a very powerful tow vehicle as compared to my '93 F350 7.3 idi na diesel. On the occasion that my truck was down I've been able to use his van and t's a much smoother, quieter, capable ride as my diesel and it gets the same fuel economy (within 1mpg) as my truck. Great stopping power too. Towing the same load, in my truck I'm between 35-40mph (or less) uphill whereas his van is seemingly comfortable at 50-60
And the price he paid for it as compared to its performance and functionality is outstanding. I would probably be looking at both his style van with the v10 and older diesel pickups and let price and condition determine which I choose.
My ONE complaint has nothing to do with the drivetrain-- it's that his is a long commuter van. The extra interior space is AWESOME. The issue I have is that it seems a little more sensitive to trailer wag. I've never actually done any measuring, but the distance between the rear axle and the hitch seems larger than what I'm used to with my truck, and his steering is more sensitive than what I'm used to, so minor steering corrections make the trailers I've used do things that catch me off guard or I find myself thinking about the trailer waaay too much.
Plus a van makes a great canvas for bored daughters in the middle of summer
Plus a van makes a great canvas for bored daughters in the middle of summer
One piece of fashion advice, if I may:
The 24 Hours of Lemons Forums → Other Random Car Stuff → Ford v10 tow rig opinions
