The 6.4 Powerstroke was introduced in 2008 and quickly
became popular due to the factory twin turbo setup and new body style Ford
implemented these engines into. Early 2008 Superduty trucks were known as job 1
trucks and later were replaced by the job 2 version. Job 1 trucks were
notorious for the flames shooting out of the exhaust due to leaking injectors;
however, Ford quickly recalled several thousand trucks and cured the issue with
new software being installed. Now that these trucks are getting some miles on
them since they are around 7 years old the emissions systems are beginning to
fail.
The first emissions related failure most people experience
is the DPF or diesel particulate filter clogging up and constantly
regenerating. A common sign of DPF failure is a white or blue haze coming from
the exhaust, low boost, loss of power, and the clean exhaust light constantly
flashing. These trucks have to be driven at least 30 miles and sometimes more
to properly regenerate the exhaust system. Farmers and other people who
constantly work with these truck in off-road situations experience this more
often than others. The trucks that are left idling while working or those who
drive only a small amount of miles a day tend to clog up the DPF filter.
The second emissions related failure is the EGR system. The
EGR also known as exhaust gas re-circulation system fails because of the coolant
passages rupturing into the exhaust passage. Exhaust is sent through the EGR
into the intake to lower EGT’s and cut down on the amount of oxygen allowed into
the cylinder for combustion. 6.4 Powerstrokes have two EGR coolers and the EGR
valve is located in the intake elbow that attaches to the intake manifold. The
EGR valve gets clogged up and restricts the airflow to the intake manifold
resulting in catastrophic failure. Catastrophic failure is usually a burnt or
cracked piston in the number 7 or 8 cylinder. One EGR cooler stands vertically
in front of the block while the second lies horizontally on the driver side
behind the steering linkage. These coolers usually leak internally and sometimes
externally depending on how clogged they are.
Problems usually occur on trucks that are used off-road and
do not have conventional driving habits. For trucks that are being used
off-road one can perform deletes with proper tuning to cure these issues. When
deleting the EGR on a 6.4 it is recommended to also change the intake elbow
along with eliminating the coolers. The intake elbow helps eliminate the lean
condition caused by the factory intake horn where the EGR valve is present. DPF
delete pipes remove the particulate filter from underneath the truck and
prevent any clogs that occur because of the screen that restricts airflow.
Proper tuning is required to make the truck operate without any check engine
lights or warnings. Keep in mind this is for off-road situations only and not
allowed for on road vehicles.
For any questions or pricing call Custom Diesel for all of your performance diesel needs!