# V10 motor good or bad



## exclusive

hey guys i just want to know if any body has any insight on the V-10 motors i mite be buying a 2000 f-350 with a v-10 is there any problems with these motors its got 130k thanks in advance


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## Brian Young

exclusive;1061048 said:


> hey guys i just want to know if any body has any insight on the V-10 motors i mite be buying a 2000 f-350 with a v-10 is there any problems with these motors its got 130k thanks in advance


Ive heard they are very good motors, just depends how well they are taken care of (just like anything). Plenty of power and torque.


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## C&H Plowing

gas hogg and no power like a diesel:laughing::laughing:


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## Brian Young

C&H Plowing;1061063 said:


> gas hogg and no power like a diesel:laughing::laughing:


Well now your comparing apples to steaks,lol There is nothing like a diesel! As far as "gas hogg" I hear they are comparable to any other gasser, (5.4L, 6.0L for Chevy). And honestly, if your worried about fuel milage with a big truck then buy a Honda and shovels.


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## wizardsr

C&H Plowing;1061063 said:


> gas hogg and no power like a diesel:laughing::laughing:


So, do you own one, or are you just trolling?

V10's are great motors, they'll run for a long long time if taken care of. A 1999-2001 V10's had the plug spitting issue. 9 out of 10 never have an issue, but there are a number who have, usually those who haven't torqued the plugs properly when replacing. There's a great thread that was going not too long ago about V10's, I'd suggest reading that thread also.

Gas hog? Not any more so than any other gas motor in a 3/4 or 1 ton truck.
No power like a diesel? Why is it than that my stock V10 runs away from my stock 7.3 loaded or unloaded?


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## DeereFarmer

V10s are great motors. I had an '01 F250 with one and it had plenty of power. It could tow my loaded 6K pound race car trailer all day long and hardly know it was there. It would get the same gas mileage loaded or unloaded, so if you tow or plow a lot it does help you out in the end. The mileage wasn't great, but what do you expect? It got better mileage than my '02 GMC 2500HD with a hopped up 6.0L V8. The only gripe I had with the V10 was the exhaust manifold studs (like every other Ford gas motor). I went through both sides and a head (because of a dealer "mistake"). Luckily that $2500 bill was under warranty.


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## Sawboy

Had the V10 in my 03 Excursion. Great motor with plenty of power. I also towed a car and trailer and never found myself looking for more power. Go with it. Great, dependable motor. And like someone else said, if your worried about MPG's in a big truck, your in the wrong biz.


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## grec-o-face

My V10 is great!
I get the same MPG's as the 5.4 trucks with much more power.
It loves towing & pushing snow.

The only real downfall to the V10's (99-04) is the exhaust manifold studs rotting. Once that's repaired, just simple maintenance like every other truck.


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## hydro_37

Great motor....wouldn't buy another truck that didn't have it in it.


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## Pinky Demon

What the rest of them minus the troll said. 

02 250 here, 75k miles.


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## 2COR517

C&H Plowing;1061063 said:


> ....no power like a diesel:laughing::laughing:


Most guys say the diesels have plenty of power....


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## KBTConst

I have one in my 02 Excursion with 163,000 on it still runs great only had to do normal maintenance so far and it gets 10 to 12 mile per gallon but thats ok I knew I wasn't buying a Honda.


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## 05 superduty

My friend has a 04 350 supercab dually thats got the V-10 in it and you couldnt believe the power and torque of this truck for not being a diesel


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## MatthewG

I have the truck in my signature, only problem is that each exhaust manifold is missing 2 of the 5 bolts, they were snapped off when we bought it and now it produces the "tickign noise" otherwise nice torque.


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## chs1993

Great Motor you'll have no problems my dad had a 99 F350 with a V10 and ran it to around 205,000 miles before trading it in a newer truck. The only thing he ever did to that truck was brakes and ball joints.


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## TBElectric

The engine itself is a good design with plenty of horsepower and torque, however you have to take into account tire size and gear ratio playing a huge role in the truck being able to put that power to the ground. I had a 99 with a v-10, 3.55 gears, and 285/75-16 tires and with that combination the engine didn't like it at all. Just food for thought.


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## snobgone

We had problems with throttle bodies on all four 05s that we have and manifolds. The newer ones have been fine, good enough for us to order two more just recently. They average around 6 mpg compared to around 8 for the 6.0 in the chevys (this is either pulling a trailer or pushing snow). The guys on here are posting the fuel economy as being the same but that is not our experience. Good luck.


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## badabing1512

V-10 = Good for Exxon Mobil, Bad for U


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## Pinky Demon

badabing1512;1063678 said:


> V-10 = Good for Exxon Mobil, Bad for U


Wrong........


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## Pinky Demon

TBElectric;1063636 said:


> The engine itself is a good design with plenty of horsepower and torque, however you have to take into account tire size and gear ratio playing a huge role in the truck being able to put that power to the ground. I had a 99 with a v-10, 3.55 gears, and 285/75-16 tires and with that combination the engine didn't like it at all. Just food for thought.


Yeah, that's a problem right there. The 99 did not have the PI heads, plus the V10 really needs a 4.10+ ratio to work beautifully, although the 3.73s are not bad for plowing or getting around with a load in the bed. Just heavy towing they don't work so well for.


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## MBB

F350 99 v-10 99xxx miles 4.55 gears, does everything my old 87 6.9 did, never blown a plug yet, do have the manifold bolt issue. 8-10mpg town up to 14hwy, all depends on load. 5ton trailer and lx485 on top no problem.
the 6.9 had 300xxx on it, eng still strong rest of truck fell off it.


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## Sawboy

4.55 gears? That ain't factory. They came with 3.73 & 4.10


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## grec-o-face

Actually, its either a 3.73, or a 4.30. 
My truck has 3.73s and it's just fine. I'm sure the 4.30 trucks are even better. I've even heard many people saying the 4.30s are better on gas.


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## snowdays

I have had two '99s with the V-10. One had 3.73 gears and I could get 13-14 highway at 65. The other has 4.30 gears and my best is 11 on the highway. I agree that the gears make or break the truck. If you just drive and plow and maybe tow occasionally, 3.73 would work. If you really tow heavy or frequently, go 3.73. I am thinking that you could get a 4.10 ratio also. Maybe that was in the newer trucks. Bottom line, great motor but don't expect any mileage like others have said.


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## Pinky Demon

snowdays;1064079 said:


> I have had two '99s with the V-10. One had 3.73 gears and I could get 13-14 highway at 65. The other has 4.30 gears and my best is 11 on the highway. I agree that the gears make or break the truck. If you just drive and plow and maybe tow occasionally, 3.73 would work. If you really tow heavy or frequently, go 3.73. I am thinking that you could get a 4.10 ratio also. Maybe that was in the newer trucks. Bottom line, great motor but don't expect any mileage like others have said.


WIth newer trucks, the gold standard is 4.10s. You can't get the 3.73s anymore.


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## snobgone

The new ones come standard with 4.88s with 362hp and 457ftlbs of torque with a v-10


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## wizardsr

snobgone;1064208 said:


> The new ones come standard with 4.88s with 362hp and 457ftlbs of torque with a v-10


Maybe in a 450 or 550, but not in a pickup. The pickups had 3.73, 4.10, or 4.30 in 99-04, 05+ had 4.10 or 4.30. I've got one with 3.73's and one with 4.10's. Both move out just fine, but I'd rather have 4.30's for towing and plowing. Seems like the fuel economy would be better with 4.30's as the truck wouldn't pop out of overdrive quite as often towing an enclosed trailer at higher speeds.


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## 91AK250

i now have my second V10, this one is a '00 with 119k. i love the thing! smooth as slik and plenty of power!


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## FLC2004

One of my trucks is a pickup with the V-10 in it (its actually my personal vehicle) and its got a ton of power. We plow with it, it tows my bobcat no problem and we sometimes pull our enclosed trailer or dump trailer with it. They changed the V-10 in '05 to 3-valve 6.8 but the older models like the 2000 your looking at with the 2-valve V-10 should still have some balls and they are very reliable.


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## snobgone

wizardsr;1064212 said:


> Maybe in a 450 or 550, but not in a pickup. The pickups had 3.73, 4.10, or 4.30 in 99-04, 05+ had 4.10 or 4.30. I've got one with 3.73's and one with 4.10's. Both move out just fine, but I'd rather have 4.30's for towing and plowing. Seems like the fuel economy would be better with 4.30's as the truck wouldn't pop out of overdrive quite as often towing an enclosed trailer at higher speeds.


You are correct, in the 450 & 550.


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## silver08

pepole who dont know anything about cars are funny . had a v10 for 5 years loved it .a guy from my wokr bought the truck and he loves it . mpg sucked but who buy a 3/4 ton and bigger truck for fuel frendly.
it pulled good with a open trailer but my 26 ft enclosed car trailer made it want to throw up on its self
so i bought a diesel and it tows whatever i need it to pull . I think its funny how pepole think they will run out of horsepower before traction .


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## Pinky Demon

silver08;1080417 said:


> pepole who dont know anything about cars are funny . had a v10 for 5 years loved it .a guy from my wokr bought the truck and he loves it . mpg sucked but who buy a 3/4 ton and bigger truck for fuel frendly.
> it pulled good with a open trailer but my 26 ft enclosed car trailer made it want to throw up on its self
> so i bought a diesel and it tows whatever i need it to pull . *I think its funny how pepole think they will run out of horsepower before traction* .


Exactly. A V10 will barrel over any amount of snow, but you've got to hook up all the power some how. 1000 lb. ft. out of a diesel is good for jack **** if you can't marry it to the ground.


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## rb8484

Have a V10 in my '01 excursion with 4:30's. Its a towing hog! Thing pulls my 10,000lb travel trailer with ease. Pushes snow like no other, it will push alot of snow at an idle!


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## 01lariat

Thread is slightly dated, but +1 for the V10.

If you do some research on the the PI heads and V10 you might come across spark plug issues. The early non-PI heads had fewer threads for the spark plugs to tread into. Some worked lose, or misinstalled/removed and stripped the threads in the heads.. Them early heads were replaced towards the end of the 01 production with the PI. Most V10's didn't have issues, but best be aware of it. If it was ever done, it probably was done at Ford. Check the records right at your Ford Dealer on your potential purchase. 

The 99 V10 trucks have less horse power. Rated at 260 they are less desireable. 2000-04 they are 310hp in the trucks.

4.30 gears are the bomb. if your going to run bigger tires like 285 or bigger the 4.30s or ever after market 4.56's are pretty nice.
4.10 are pretty good especially if you stay with something like a 265 tire size.
3.73 are very common in the early V10 trucks. Ok for all around use, but suffer on grades pulling. I pulled 10k today with mine. I just shut the OD off if I'm not highway cruising.

Triton engines in general. Silly tiny exhaust manifold studs. The rot off and manifold is left hanging there. Done my ps and this year I got to do the ds. Not that expensive doing yourself, but a pain in the neck. Problem common to the 5.4 V8 and 6.8 V10.

Gas consumption, depends, When I bought it I'd squeeze just shy of 14mpg out of it. Years later 11.9mph to 12.5 just driving. Not much has changed, bigger tires hurt me, but it is more like the heavier foot. The V10 is like a Mustang in truck form. Fun to drive, quiet and peaceful. Nice to be able to sneak around without being noticed.

About sums it up. 140k on mine. Uses less than a pint of oil between changes. I've replaced the oil/ftr every 3k, rpl spark plugs once, regular air ftr changes, exhaust manifold studs, a PCV valve and I cleaned the throttle body. That is it for the engine. It has been a sweet heart. I'd love to have an endless supply of them.


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## Honest Mike

See my signature. I custom ordered my truck exactly how l wanted it, and with a V10 and 430 gears!  Great truck, great motor. You cannot go wrong with the V10. I also have a customer with a 2000 Ford Excursion with the V10 that he bought brand new. He pulled in just the other day and pointed at his dashboard, he had just hit 250k miles! He loves it and will not get rid of it. He wants to see how long it will go. I was "thinking" of upgrading to a 2011 F350 in the same configuration, but found out that there is no more V10 in the pick ups, so no thanks, I will keep my 06, with only 18,500 miles lol!


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## Vikingman

Bought a 1999 f250 super duty in 2003 with the triton 6.8 v10. It had 58,000 miles when I bought it. I wrecked it and totaled it in 2015. It had 307,000 miles when I wrecked it. The only thing I did to it while I owned it was fix 2 spark plugs that blew out of the head and rebuild one alternator. The original belt finally broke at 305,000 miles. That's all that was done to the motor. I replaced ball joints on one side, brakes, rotors and tires and of course the oil. But this was hands down the best truck I have ever seen. I miss it so bad. As far as pulling, I loaded it so heavy that I broke a spring on the drivers side. Never did that truck ever show any sign of not pulling what I had hooked to it. An absolute mule. Gas mileage was 13 mpg loaded or empty, uphill or downhill, didn't matter. In my opinion, one of the best engines ford ever built. My ex-boss had a 2001 dodge with the 12 valve cummins. My v10 would handle anything the diesel would. I will never own a diesel as long as there are ford v10's.


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## ktfbgb

Vikingman said:


> Bought a 1999 f250 super duty in 2003 with the triton 6.8 v10. It had 58,000 miles when I bought it. I wrecked it and totaled it in 2015. It had 307,000 miles when I wrecked it. The only thing I did to it while I owned it was fix 2 spark plugs that blew out of the head and rebuild one alternator. The original belt finally broke at 305,000 miles. That's all that was done to the motor. I replaced ball joints on one side, brakes, rotors and tires and of course the oil. But this was hands down the best truck I have ever seen. I miss it so bad. As far as pulling, I loaded it so heavy that I broke a spring on the drivers side. Never did that truck ever show any sign of not pulling what I had hooked to it. An absolute mule. Gas mileage was 13 mpg loaded or empty, uphill or downhill, didn't matter. In my opinion, one of the best engines ford ever built. My ex-boss had a 2001 dodge with the 12 valve cummins. My v10 would handle anything the diesel would. I will never own a diesel as long as there are ford v10's.


Wonder if the guy that posted this thread 6 years ago is still looking at buying that truck?


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## lawnboy2121

I have an 04 with 99000 runs great no problems with it


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## mrfiestas

V10s never had a 3.55 ratio


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## raginout

We have 14 plow trucks ALL Ford F350 1999 - 2017 and 3 have a V10, 1999, 2006, 2012. These engines will save you $8000.00 or better and they will push any snow you need to push. We got all with 4:10 gearing and posi rear-ends. If cash flow is tight this is the best way to go, but if cash is of NO factor, then the 2008 and above diesel is the way to go if buying used.


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