Most Common High-Pressure Oil Pump Symptoms on 6.0 Powerstroke

Those who’ve been into the game of using a diesel-engined truck know how much fame Ford earned for its 6.0 Powerstroke engine series. While new owners showed satisfaction with its usage, old owners faced problems when the 6.0 Powerstroke high-pressure oil pump symptoms started to show up. 

Facing problematic symptoms became a common scenario among most users. The trucks with a 6.0 Powerstroke started to show symptoms of high-pressure oil pumps like – engine weakness, oil leakage, low oil pressure, heavy noise, etc. 

There’re ways you can detect the high-pressure oil pump or HPOP symptoms on a 6.0 Powerstroke engine. And to help you learn everything about this faulty engine and how you can solve it, this article will guide you. On that note, let’s take a look. 

Why is the High-Pressure Oil Pump Important? 

If you’re wondering what a high-pressure oil pump is, it’s a hydraulic supply pump that sends the oil volume through the oil rails, and not to mention, is also gear-driven. 

This system exists for the injectors to use. And the unit injector it uses is known as the HEUI fuel system. 

Ford uses this system to drive its power stroke engine. Circulating oil throughout the engine is made trouble-free by using an oil pump. Keeping that in mind, the high-pressure oil pump was introduced. 

But this system works a bit differently. Unlike conventional injector pumps, the HPOP doesn’t create pressure. For the injectors, this creates volume. 

Initially, it moves through the sliding pistons, rotating beers, and camshaft of the engine. So, the work it does is sufficiently large compared to other particles in a truck. 

The HPOP plays an important role when it comes down to operating the engine. Some of which are: 

• To help the fuel injectors to fire, the high-pressure oil pump fires at considerably high pressure. This oil pump system was first introduced on the line of Ford trucks from 1994 to 1997 with Powerstroke engines. 
• It’s a critical tool for using as a tensioner for a timing belt, tensioner for variable valve timing systems, and tensioners for variators. 
• Primarily used as a lubricating agent for the entire engine. 
• The HPOP serves as a Hydraulic fluid. This fluid helps in running small actuators within the engine. 
• This injection pressure goes with a range of 450 – 3600 psi on the 6.0 Powerstroke engine, which is the highest range its tire can hold. Naturally, healthy Engines need only 100 psi to run smoothly. 

The high-pressure oil pump is specially designed for helping trucks have a long-lasting and durable effect. It extends the years the engine can run and provides various benefits to every vehicle. 

This system simply cannot be abandoned if you intend to run your truck for a long time. 

6.0 Powerstroke High-Pressure Oil pump Symptoms

When you’re facing problems while driving your truck, you must check out the symptoms first. The oil pump of your truck’s engine is an essential component that’s necessary for your engine’s performance. And the HPOP failure will bring serious damage to your truck. 

So it’s crucial to make sure you detect the problems by analyzing the symptoms. Here are some of the symptoms you’ll notice if your truck undergoes those problems. 

1. Weak Engine 

The engine tends to get weak when there’s a problem with the High-pressure oil pump. That’s why it’s important to learn the symptoms to know when the engine starts to get weak. 

To know if it’s a weak Engine, check out the following steps: 

• Pay attention to the exhaust as it takes out a huge pile of smoke compared to regular smoke when the engine is weak. 
• Check if you hear any noise or not from the hook while driving. Also, check whether the speed goes down with RPMs or goes up. 
• Lights can tell a lot about the engine’s weakness. Keep the light in check to know if your engine is weak or not. 
• Look for a fuel efficiency dropdown. Your vehicle will face problems speeding up and will need an engine warm-up from time to time. 
• A big drop in the overall performance of the engine also indicates a weak engine. 

Thus, when you come across these scenarios, make sure you immediately check the high-pressure oil pump so you can avoid causing your car further damage. 

2. Oil Leakage 

Always look out for anything abnormal with your vehicle while riding it. As the machine always cracks whenever there’s a problem. 

Sometimes you might see your truck giving off blue smoke from the exhaust. If you see that, know that your car is leaking oil. 

When the engine has an oil leakage, there’s smoke coming off from the exhaust most of the time. The reason could be a faulty valve seal or piston ring. 

A problematic high-pressure oil pump mostly causes these symptoms. It also causes oil leakage when the engine doesn’t seal oil while going to the cylinder. 

Thus, make sure you look for any oil leakage as it might harm your vehicle. 

3. Cranking 

Long cranking is one of the common symptoms which tells you right away that there’s an issue with your HPOP engine. It usually happens while starting your vehicle.

But it’s important to know the duration of cranking first. In general, it’s considered normal for a 6.0 Powerstroke to crank for about 2.4 to 5 seconds in hot weather at 32 degrees. 

And during the cold season, it’s normal for the 6.0 Powerstroke to crank up for about 3 – 5 seconds. 

But, the air gets trapped in the HPO system at high temperatures. So, keep an eye on the duration to see whether your car is taking longer than that or not. 

If it’s, then be sure that there’s a problem with the high-pressure oil pump in your car.

4. Warning Light

In the dashboard of every car, there’s a light warning to warn you if the oil pressure is low. This light exists to inform you beforehand when the oil pressure is low. 

And when anything goes wrong with the pump, there’s always a low oil pressure by the oil pump. So, you must check the oil level and see whether it’s low or not. 

Always keep an eye on the light to keep the oil level in check. And if you find your oil level below its level, then add the oil to the required level accordingly. 

But, if you see that the light keeps warning you about low oil after adding enough oil, that means it indicates that there’s an issue with the HPOP system. 

5. High Exhaust Gas Temperature (EGT) 

There’s a safe temperature range as to how much heat your engine can handle for a 6.0 Powerstroke engine, 1200 to 1300 degrees EGT. But, using it too much can sometimes lead it to rise to 1500 degrees. 

A good thing about this is that you don’t have to worry about high EGT when you ride in hot weather. Unfortunately, always having that temperature isn’t good and is deemed safe when it stays within normal range. 

If you constantly see high exhaust gas temperature, then that means there’s a lot of fuel on the engine. And by releasing the acceleration pedal, you would want to decrease that. 

But after doing that, you don’t see the EGT going down. That would mean the High-pressure oil pump is causing problems. 

6. Noisy Valve Train 

The Valvetrain system is one of the most major components of an engine. It plays a crucial role in keeping your engine running. Plus, this has some essential components like- valve guides, pushrods, hydraulic lifters, seals, etc. And these parts work better when they’re well-oiled. 

When these parts aren’t oiled enough, you’ll hear noise flowing out. The hydraulic lifter makes a lot of noise when it’s not lubricated enough. A bad oil pump makes a lot of additional noise that will come from the valve system. 

But the worst case is when the valve train system stops working entirely. This case doesn’t happen when the engine is working correctly. Instead, when the oil flow suddenly gets cut off, they start to make noise and cause a creaking sound. 

Thus, this is another symptom that indicates a faulty high-pressure oil pump of your engine. 

7. Noise from Oil Pump 

Sometimes oil pumps fail and start to make heavy noise. It’s mostly a loud whining or whirring noise that you can hear out loud from your car’s oil pump. This scenario takes place as a result of the internal gear mechanism wearing out. 

It’s a symptom that’s most likely uncommon but does happen from time to time. And it only happens when your oil pump isn’t working. You might also hear noises when your car is parked– which means stopped engines. 

Even though most drivers don’t face this symptom, you must get your vehicle checked immediately – if you do. 

It’s better to fix it before further damage occurs is caused to your vehicle. 

How to Fix a 6.0 Powerstroke High-Pressure Oil Pump

It might seem like you can repair it at home by just fixing some wires. But that’s not it. There’s no flexible repairing work of faulty 6.0 Powerstroke High-pressure oil pump that you can do. 

And be sure that your oil pump isn’t working if you’ve come across any of the symptoms mentioned above. 

The ideal step to take if you face these Symptoms is to replace the whole oil pump. These 6.0 Powerstroke oil pumps can get damaged quickly compared to the other oil pumps. So, make sure you take proper steps to get the required materials to replace your oil pump. 

And keep in mind that if you feel like you need more time or equipment, don’t try to start the engine before replacing the oil pump first. 

That’s because meddling with a faulty pump can cause further damage to your engine and immediately wear it out. 

So, whenever you face these symptoms, make sure you replace the oil pump so you can use your vehicle problem-free next time. 

Frequently Asked Questions 

1. How much HP can a 6.0 Powerstroke Handle? 

Horsepower can vary from one to another. Normally in a regular car, you can expect the car to have about 180 to 200 horsepower on average. And small cars can have up to 100 horsepower. In comparison, a 6.0 Powerstroke engine pushes up to 325 HP with 560-570 pounds of torque. 

The reason is, the 6.0 Powerstroke needs to operate at a slightly higher RPM range as it pushes a lot of airflow through the engine. So, it can make a peak power up to 3200 RPM. That range is about 500 higher than most other diesel vehicles. 

2. How many fuel filters does a 6.0 Powerstroke have? 

The 6.0 Powerstroke has two fuel filters- the primary filter and the secondary filter. The primacy filter is the larger filter and is located in the Horizontal Fuel Conditioning Module, which you will find in the driver’s seat side frame. The secondary filter is placed on the top side of the engine; below the engine oil filter. 

3. How often should you change the oil in a 6.0 Powerstroke?

Recommended by Ford, it’s advised to change both fuel filters. You can change a filter under normal service when at a 15,000-mile interval. And change another filter under severe service when it’s at 10,000-mile intervals. This recommendation applies to every engine’s oil change. 

4. What is considered high mileage for a 6.0 Powerstroke?

Compared to gas trucks, diesel trucks get higher mileage for having durable engines. These engines are designed to withstand a high compression ratio when it’s used for hauling or towing. 

A 6.0 Powerstroke diesel truck can run beyond 100,000 miles. It’s also rather common to see diesel trucks running from 200,000 to 300,000 miles. Experienced drivers whose interests lie within used diesel pickups know that this much high mileage doesn’t lower the engine’s life expectancy. 

Conclusion 

The engines of any car or truck are unreliable without an oil pump. And just like any other automobile, the 6.0 Powerstroke engines from Ford also tend to show problems from time to time. 

Therefore, it’s crucial to always keep the 6.0 Powerstroke High-pressure oil pump symptoms in check, so you can fix the problem immediately. This way, your vehicle will not be damage-free but also serve you for a long time.