2011 F350 What to ask?

[Milton55]

We have started the process of preparing for a fully retired lifestyle which will see us becoming snowbirds next winter. We are still searching for a larger 5er and have sold our 3/4T a few weeks ago. I now have a line on a 2011 F350 King Ranch with 60,000 km. it is located 4 hrs from home but is on the way to visit family for Xmas and will be stopping in Monday to view it. I am not even close to considering myself a mechanic so thought this would be an ideal place to get some suggestions on what to look for.
Here are some of the questions I have emailed to the salesman?
Car Proof History Report, including details of Original ownership, Any accidents, Service history; i.e. Any major repair work outside of regular maintenance, Mfg date, In-service date.
# of Hours on motor? # of Idle Hours on motor?
Does the F350 have in-bed 5th wheel hitch mounts?
If any of you have suggestions of other things I should be asking or looking for when I inspect and test drive the vehicle I would appreciate your feedback.
Thanks

 

[chaplady]

Couple things come to mind with the mileage.
How much wear is left on brakes?
Is front end still tight ? Front end components can be costly.
Has transmission been serviced?
What did previous owner use it for?
What kind of warranties are left ?

 

[rjr6150]

Ask them to pull an Oasis report. This will tell you if any warranty issues with the unit.

 

[jnbhobe]

Get a Ford ESP warranty at a discounted price. Ford motor warranty is 5 yr 100K and it can be extended.

 

[priorguy]

If it's a king ranch it wasn't likely used as a plough truck. That can be real hard on the front end. Hopefully it has the fifth wheel hitch which would indicate the previous use. Best of luck.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[MTPockets]

With relative low miles for a 2011, if truck looks good it probably is. Try to find out any maintenance history. How was truck used? Bed condition will give a clue. Tire condition? On board computer will give engine hours, idling & total. It will also display trailer towing miles. Again, with these low miles if interior and exterior look good, it probably is good as long as other items check out. Batteries, tires may need replaced.

 

[wino2]

Check the coolant, if not clean have it replaced. Check all hoses and connections. I also agree, go with extended warranty. Not just powertrain, but electronics, etc. Hope it works out for you.

 

[travlingman]

Ask them to pull an Oasis report. This will tell you if any warranty issues with the unit.

x2 on the oasis report. If you do decide to get it, I would also make them do complete coolant, oil and all filters(fuel) change. I didn't get the hitch prep as you are limited to a few hitches. I wanted B&W and when I bought mine, they(B&W) didn't make one at the time to fit hitch prep. They do now though.

You didn't say if it was DRW or a SRW, but if SRW I would check axle ratio and GCWR.

 

[scottyb]

I have 32K mi or 51K Km on my 2013 F350 in 10 mo. It hasn't even came up for any maintenance items other than routine oil and lube and fuel filters.Your truck is barely broken-in. I would do due dilligence in checking the obvious, VIN report, Maintenence records, tire rotation, etc. Then I wouldn't hesitate to buy a 3 YO truck with such few miles on it, if I deemed it to be a good deal, and it seemed solid. The coolant additive light came on at around 15K mi, but the dealer said to just ignore it until after 50K+ mi.

 

[gasman]

I have an '11 F350 Crew Cab Long Bed SRW and love it. Mine has the 5th Wheel prep package. If this one does, you will see 5 small round covers in the bed and it will have a trailer plug in the driver's rear corner of the bed. With only 36,000 miles it is just getting broken in.

 

[porthole]

The coolant additive light came on at around 15K mi, but the dealer said to just ignore it until after 50K+ mi.

That is bad advice Scott.

The light activates around 15K intervals.
When it activates the coolant quality should be checked with the Motorcraft test strip kit.
If it is not within the guidelines, Motorcraft has an additive then can be added twice before the coolant needs to be replaced.

These new trucks have complicated cooling systems, and that is plural. The 6.7's have two cooling systems.
The mix of iron, aluminun and a host of other components complicates the old "50/50 any antifreeze will do" that was standard in the past.

 

[scottyb]

Duane, I am reading your attachment, and I can see where it says to check every 15K. However, this was the service manager of a very large Ford dealer. He re-set the code himself and said to ignore it and that it was not necessary to do anything at 15K. Have you added the coolant additive to your truck yet? Just curious what the test strips showed when you checked.

 

[porthole]

Duane, I am reading your attachment, and I can see where it says to check every 15K. However, this was the service manager of a very large Ford dealer. He re-set the code himself and said to ignore it and that it was not necessary to do anything at 15K. Have you added the coolant additive to your truck yet? Just curious what the test strips showed when you checked.

Service manager at a very large ford dealership means nothing. I worked in new car dealers for 18+ years. From a small mom & pop store (best shop I ever worked for) to the super mega-multi franchise dealers on the highway (worst to work for, but I got most of my experience there).

Almost every service manger at the large stores end up having little mechanical experience, and most never lasted 2 years in that position.

Granted, the odds of you needing any type of cooling service at 15K miles is very slim. But that is still no reason "not to test".

I have no doubt the interval determined by Ford is valid. There is so much that can go bad with as complicated as engines have become. All the dissimilar metals with various liquids and products of combustion and fuel thrown in just add to the mix. These are also the same engines that now have 7000+ mile oil change intervals.

My 15K and 30K (approximate) tests were done at the dealer while I was there for other reasons. I am now at the 45K interval and will be doing it myself, when I get the chance. I'll let you know then.

 

[porthole]

More information that you didn't want to know about the 6.7 cooling system:

SECTION 303-03B: Engine Cooling — 6.7L Diesel Powertrain Primary Cooling 2012 F-250, 350, 450, 550 Super Duty Workshop Manual
SPECIFICATIONS Procedure revision date: 07/20/2011
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Material
Item / Specification / Fill Capacity
Motorcraft® Engine Cooling System Iron Cleaner VC-9 / — / —
Motorcraft® Orange Antifreeze/Coolant Concentrated VC-3-B (US); CVC-3-B2 (Canada) / WSS-M97B44-D / 27.8L (29.4 qt)
Motorcraft® Specialty Orange Engine Coolant Revitalizer VC-12 / — / —

General Specifications
Pressure Tests
Complete cooling system maximum pressure Use individual reading listed on the pressure relief cap
Pressure relief cap Use individual readings listed on the pressure relief cap
Radiator (out of vehicle) 138 kPa (20 psi)
Thermostat Opening Temperatures
Starts to open — (low temperature) 88-92°C (190-198°F)
Fully open — (low temperature) 100°C (212°F)
Starts to open — (high temperature) 92-95°C (198-203°F)
Fully open — (high temperature) 103°C (217°F)


Torque Specifications
Description Nm / lb-ft / lb-in
A/C tube fitting nuts 15 — 133
Battery cable bracket bolts 12 — 106
Block heater 41 30 —
Charge Air Cooler (CAC) bolts 12 — 106
Coolant crossover manifold bolts 10 — 89
Coolant outlet connection bolts 10 — 89
Coolant pump bolts - large bolts 24 18 —
Coolant pump bolts - small bolts 10 — 89
Cooling fan-to-cooling fan clutch nuts 7 — 62
Cooling fan clutch 133 98 —
Cooling fan clutch electrical connector bracket bolt 24 18 —
Cooling fan shroud bolts 7 — 62
Cooling fan stator nuts 17 — 150
Cylinder block drain plug 60 44 —
Degas bottle bolts 19 — 168
Engine wiring harness-to-coolant crossover bolt 10 — 89
Fuel tube bracket bolts 10 — 89
Grille bracket bolts - lower 3 — 27
Grille bracket bolts - upper 40 30 —
Heater inlet tube bolts 10 — 89
Power steering fluid cooler bolts 35 26 —
Power steering fluid reservoir bolt 7 — 62
Power steering pressure hose bracket screw 5 — 44
Radiator bracket bolts 35 26 —
Radiator bolster bolts 40 30 —
Secondary degas bottle bolts 7 — 62
Secondary radiator bolts 11 — 97

---
SECTION 303-03C: Engine Cooling — 6.7L Diesel Powertrain Secondary Cooling 2012 F-250, 350, 450, 550 Super Duty Workshop Manual
SPECIFICATIONS Procedure revision date: 07/20/2011
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Material
Item / Specification / Fill Capacity
Motorcraft® Engine Cooling System Iron Cleaner VC-9 / — / —
Motorcraft® Orange Antifreeze/Coolant Concentrated VC-3-B (US); CVC-3-B2 (Canada) / WSS-M97B44-D / 11.7 L (12.4 qt)
Motorcraft® Specialty Orange Engine Coolant Revitalizer VC-12 / — / —

General Specifications
Item Specification
Pressure Tests
Complete cooling system maximum pressure 172 kPa (25 psi)
Pressure relief cap Use individual readings listed on the pressure relief cap
Radiator (out of vehicle) 138 kPa (20 psi)
Thermostat Opening Temperatures
Starts to open — low temperature 20°C (68°F)
Fully open — low temperature 30°C (86°F)
Starts to open — high temperature 45°C (113°F)
Fully open — high temperature 55°C (131°F)


Torque Specifications
Description / Nm / lb-ft / lb-in
A/C condenser bolts 11 — 97
Accessory drive belt tensioner bolt 48 35 —
Coolant pump bolts 25 18 —
Cooling fan stator standoffs 22 16 —
Degas bottle bolts 7 — 62
Power steering fluid cooler bolts 35 26 —
Radiator bolts 11 — 97
Thermostat cover bolts 6 — 53

 

[GOTTOYS]

I have to agree with Duane. Many Service Managers know squat about fixing anything. Their role in the Service Department is the business end and making money for the dealership...Don

 

[scottyb]

The chart you posted also shows to change the coolant every 15K for a 7.3L. How do you feel about that one? I personally have logged over 400K miles on 7.3's and the company fleet, probably well in excess of a million miles. My used trucks usually went to a friend or business associate and I had the pleasure of seeing them for many more thousands of miles afterwards. One 2002 F450 went 380K, before we traded it on a new F550. I can assure you that none of these vehicles had their coolant changed every 15K nor did they have a coolant additive. More like every 100K at best. Sometimes practical application doesn't always agree with what the engineers say.

I'm not saying that performing the test is a bad thing, although they do get to sell you a test kit.

 

[travlingman]

I'm not saying that performing the test is a bad thing, although they do get to sell you a test kit.

Mine does the test for free.

 

[porthole]

The chart you posted also shows to change the coolant every 15K for a 7.3L. How do you feel about that one?.

I know squat about the 7.3.

I'll follow the recommended info for the 6.7, as it is a high tech engine and I'm sure there is a good reason or two that there is a specific schedule as well as very specific antifreeze to use.

I also follow a fairly rigid schedule with my 1980 6-71 TI Detroit Diesels (boat). Gets expensive, but the coolant gets changed every other year per Detroit's recommended mix of the correct antifreeze and distilled water with the appropriate amount of coolant conditioner, Power Cool. Then there is the periodic PH test.

 

[TXBobcat]

Duane
Where did you get the information about the coolant. My dealer has been pushing their Gold all the time. I had someone put in some red or green and they told me I needed to change it back out to Gold.

The mechanics tell me that the only difference between them is the time you need to change them out. Gold has the longest replacement date.

I have recently been using a few private diesel mechanics and they don't make a lot of determination of the difference. My diesel mechanic here uses the Peak that he says is good for all makes and models. I was going to change it out but haven't gotten around to it yet.... Wondering if Ford is just trying to sell their brand...



BC

 

[For20hunter]

Mine does the test for free.

Mine too.


Rod Ditrich