2005 powerstroke getting hot?

I hope somebody can help me out. I own a 2005 250 crewcab short bed. I use to pull a cardinal 312bhl 9400lb dry,this past summer during our 7400 mile trip across the USA the truck only got hot once. Steep grade,the radiator blew antifreeze out the cap. I assume the cap is set to blow under certain pressure? We bought a new 3400 bighorn a little heavier than the Cardinal.This weekend the cap blew again,it was about 40 degrees outside.The truck was under a load,I dont think it was as big as load as it blew the first time. The speed I drive is abought 65 cruising in the flat land. I have the Hypertech programmer in the truck set on stage 3.Do radiator caps go bad? Sometimes I have got the truck up to 70 it seems to tow easier, it doesn't have to down shift as much. The trucks temp guage has maxed out a couple of times, I would start to pull off the road, then looking back at the guage and it would be back to normal,so I assumed just a computer glitch. The truck has 37k on it, I have had no other problems....

Go to www.thedieselstop.com and search on this. How much more horsepower is your programmer pushing?

There are many that have had coolant leak issues with the 6.0 with and without programers. It could be a bad coolant cap to blown head gaskets. Since you are at 37k the 100k motor warranty will be in effect with a $100 deductable for a repair.

I would take it in to the dealer and have them check it out, hopefully your dealer is "mod" friendly.

Bill

If you decide to take it to the dealer, I highly recommend that you remove the chip. Ford is really getting picky about them and in some cases, voiding warranties. If you read much on the Diesel Stop Forum, you will see what I mean.

Good Luck,

John

I have a friend that has a 2003 6.0 with a with a Banks Six Gun tunner, he has had to have the head gaskets replaced 3 times (all under warranty... pull the tuner off). When he puts a heavy load on the engine, the pressure in the radiator would go over 25 psi. It appears to be a weak spot in the engine.

Do what JP said and pull that tuner chip.. You might consider a reset of the truck computer long before you see the dealer .. There could be various problem associated with over heating , some maybe engine related and some cooling system and some due to the chip..
The stock Ford 6.0 will pull that bigHorn just fine..

The head gasket problem was with 2004 and early 2005's. When you pull the rad cap off it sounds like a gun shot. I really believe it is your chip. Must of the chip literature I have read states not to tow using your chip as it alters exhaust temps and can burn out turbos.

I agree with phranc. I have an '05 F-250 6.0 factory set and pull a Cyclone 3795 with no problem. You are right about running 70-73 mph if you are using the Tow/Haul setting you can use cruise control and it works just fine.

To clear the computer unplug the batteries for a while to clear anything. I pull a 3670 RL Bighorn with a stock F350 6.0L and it pulls fine with no overheating. Mine was build Nov 2004 so it is an early 2005.

Bill

I took the truck to the Ford dealership this morning, I removed the programer about 3 days ago and also disconected the batteries for a couple of hours.They called me back a couple hours after I dropped it off,they said that the head gasket is not blown,but they think the EGR valve is bad? If thats the case it will cost me my $100 deductable. so I guess they could not tell I had the programer.

That sounds good. At least the head gasket wasn't blown. I had a 2001 Powerstroke with the old style plug in chip,dealer installed. All was fine towing for about 2 years. Then the pump seal in the transmission began to heat and expand. Of course I had a major leak until the seal cooled. This happened twice. I then took the truck back to the dealer that installed the chip and they said that the chip was overheating the transmission. They told me that the chip they installed was for performance,not for towing,and that Super Chip nor the dealer ship would pay for replacing the seal. The tranny was out of warranty at that time. So I pulled the chip out,had a new seal put in and I never had another seal problem.