December 26, 2018/Asheville Engine, Inc./

6.0 Powerstroke Head Gaskets. Ford vs Mahle Black Diamond

There has been quite a bit of debate about 6.0 Powerstroke head gaskets. “Which is the best?”

Black Victor Reinz head gasket with VR stamp and part number. Blue Ford OEM head gasket with VR stamp and Ford part number X’d out. We received 6.0 Powerstroke X’d out gasket in a genuine Ford Parts box from a dealership.


What’s the difference?

Despite what you’ve probably heard, the only real difference between Ford 6.0 Powerstroke OEM head gaskets and Mahle/Victor Reinz Black Diamond head gaskets is the color of the adhesive. Both the Ford OEM and the Mahle gaskets are good. We have actually received OEM Ford head gaskets, delivered to our shop from a local dealership that had the Victor Reinz logo stamped into them along with the Ford part number.

Don’t believe it?

Here is an interesting post by Chistine “Pinky” Ruggles at Bullet Proof Diesel about a comparison between the two head gaskets for the 6.0L. http://www.powerstroke.org/forum/general-6-0l-discussion/971506-6-0l-head-gasket-comparison.html#post11811546

In summary Pinky wrote, “we noticed a few things:”

“Between 2012 and 2015, Victor Reinz has notably changed their gasket manufacturing. Two main changes are observed. The first being the measured thicknesses of each layer of the gasket, especially the 4th layer fire ring. This contributes to the difference in the overall thickness of the assembled head gasket as well. The second change is the absence of a completely sealant covered gasket layer; present in 2012, and now absent in 2015. These differences, when compared to the Black Diamond gaskets, gives credibility to the idea that these (in addition to OEM gaskets) are all manufactured in the same place.

The Black Diamond, River City Diesel, and OEM gaskets all contained the stamped part number 6237557 on the second layer.”

Get what you want

As a customer, you should get what you want. Accordingly, we offer Ford OEM gaskets as an upgrade At Asheville Engine, we build most of our engines with Mahle head gaskets but the choice is yours. The current list of upgrades with prices can be found on our web site at www.ashevilleengine.com

All things considered, the most important thing for you would be to deal with a reputable engine builder. In an effort to making shopping easy, we post all prices on our website. For the best remanufactured Ford Powerstroke diesel engines, contact Asheville Engine …. We Keep You Strokin’

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Asheville Engine, Inc.

Asheville Engine is the leading independent Powerstroke engine builder in the world, powering trucks in Guatemala, Switzerland, Australia, Iceland, Denmark and other countries around the world. We are serious about our business and keep enough inventory IN STOCK to build 50 to 100 Powerstroke engines so our lead time is generally only 1 to 3 days.

6 Comments

  1. Bill Gallant on July 13, 2020 at 3:47 pm

    Hi,
    I am looking to replace a 2003 Ford 6.0 power stroke with in Asheville Rebuilt.
    Do you have a name and number of a person in Indianapolis Indiana who installs your engines?
    Thanks,
    Bill



    • Asheville Engine, Inc. on July 15, 2020 at 8:07 pm

      Bill, Thanks for contacting us. I emailed a list of 7 shops in the Indianapolis area who install our engines as well as two that we would recommend that you stay away from.



  2. Mark on July 25, 2020 at 8:36 pm

    I’d like to know if you have recommended 6.0 shops you’ve sent engines to in the Denver, CO area.

    What kind of price should I expect to install it? I would be doing the typical EGR & Oil coolers at the same time.

    Thanks,
    Mark



    • Asheville Engine, Inc. on July 29, 2020 at 3:12 pm

      Mark,
      We’ve got a lot of diesel shops in and around Denver, CO who install our engines. I just emailed a list of 14 shops within 30 minutes of downtown Denver so you can decide who to call. Installation prices vary based on how many other parts you replace under your hood and different labor rates around the country but you can expect that your quote should be for about 28 hours of labor to replace a long block.



  3. Ed Perrier on August 20, 2020 at 6:13 am

    Hello, looking at your engines, 6.0, do you have any recommendations for installing shops in southern NH area? Thank you.
    Ed Perrier



    • Asheville Engine, Inc. on August 21, 2020 at 5:09 pm

      Ed,
      Thanks for contacting Asheville Engine, Inc. Not knowing exactly where you are in southern New Hampshire, I picked Manchester and emailed a list of 5 shops who install our engines that are located within a 30 minute drive of Manchester.
      Good luck!