The Official Ford Power Stroke Diesel FAQ Last Updated 12/31/97 --------------------------------------------------------------------- I N D E X A. Description of FAQ A.01 Author A.02 Purpose A.03 Online Information A.04 Updates B. Fluids and Service Items B.01 Where to Buy? B.02 Oil Recommendations B.03 Oil Filters B.04 Air Filters B.05 Fuel Filters B.06 Coolant B.07 Coolant Additive B.08 Coolant Test Kit B.09 Synthetics C. Tires and Suspension C.01 Tire Sizing C.02 Load Ratings C.03 Front Spring Sag C.04 Rear Spring Lift (F-250) C.05 Rear Spring Drop (F-350) D. Starting Problems D.01 Block Heater D.02 Glow Plug Cycle D.03 Glow Plug Relay E. Transmission/Driveline E.01 Towing with the Auto E.02 Manual or Auto Hubs? E.03 Locking Differentials --------------------------------------------------------------------- A. Description: A.01 - Author This FAQ is maintained by Jason M. Lester (jlester@naxs.com). A.02 - Purpose The purpose of this FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) is to try and answer the most common questions about the Ford Power Stroke Diesel engine and the vehicles it powers. Checking this FAQ before asking about a particular question may give you a quicker answer and helps keep us from rehashing the same topics over and over. A.03 - Online Information This FAQ is very closely related to the online site "Jason's Power Stroke Page" at http://www.abol.com/users/jlester/ This website is a very good resource for Power Stroke owners with Tips, Reviews, Pictures, Conferences, and Chat among other things. A.04 - Updates - The FAQ's original publication was 1/1/98. It will be updated frequently as new information and questions become available. - New items will be marked in updated FAQ's with an * in the index and beside the new updates. - The newest FAQ is always available from: http://www.abol.com/users/jlester/psdfaq.txt B. Fluids and Service Items: B.01 - Where to Buy? The question of where to buy the various maintenance items needed for the Power Stroke often comes up. The answer depends on the types of stores in your area. Of course everything should be available at your Ford dealer, but it's usually quite expensive. Oil can be found almost anywhere. Some favorites for the Shell Rotella-T used by many of us are Wal-Mart, Sam's Club, and Advance Auto. Specialty items like the fuel filter and coolant additive are not readily available at most parts stores. For these you should find a medium/heavy-truck dealer if possible. As long as they carry Navistar or Fleetguard, they should be able to get you all the items you need. From what we can tell, the Fleetguard, Navistar, and Ford brand oil and fuel filters are made by the same manufacturer, so you don't need to worry about quality with those three brands. B.02 - Oil Recommendations This has been a touchy subject for some folks. The majority of us use Shell Rotella-T 15W-40. That doesn't mean it's better than the others, but it's readily available in most areas and fairly cheap. I can buy it at Wal-Mart for about $5.20/gallon or at Sam's Club for $29.99/case. Some other brands frequently mentioned are Chevron Delo 400, Mobil Delvac 1300, and Castrol Heavy-Duty, all in 15W-40 weight. The most important thing is that it meets all the proper specifications (Service Class SG and CG-4 or higher). B.03 - Oil Filters Wal-Mart also carries the real Ford Motorcraft Fl-1995 Oil filter that is original equipment for your vehicle. It runs around $10 or so. If you can find a Navistar or Fleetguard dealer in your area, you may be able to better that price a couple of dollars. They appear to be identical to the Motorcraft filter. B.04 - Air Filters For the best air filter, try a K&N Lifetime filter. This is a reusable filter that is guaranteed for the life of your vehicle. They're available at most speed stores. If you can't find one in your area, try Diesel Injection Service at http://www.dieselpage.com. They have excellent prices and usually have some specials going on. You can also find the standard Motorcraft, Wix, etc. at most parts stores. By the time you buy a couple of those, you could've paid for a K&N though. B.05 - Fuel Filters Fuel filters usually aren't available at most parts stores. You can either get them at your Ford dealer or at one of the places I listed above. I like to keep a spare with me in case I get some bad fuel somewhere. B.06 - Coolant Any of the name brand coolants should be okay for your Power Stroke. It is recommended that you do NOT use one of the new "lifetime" coolants such as Texaco's Dex-Cool. It may cause a premature failure of your engine and will void your warranty. B.07 - Coolant Additive The coolant additive is very important for maintaining the life of your engine. If you've heard stories of earlier Ford diesels failing, this missing additive was probably the culprit. See the Coolant links on my Tips web page for more information about why this additive is important. The additive is called DCA4 or FW15, depending on who you talk to. Fleetguard is the original manufacturer of the additive and is the recommended brand. You can also pick some up at your Ford dealer. Other brands may be available, but no one has told me for sure. B.08 - Coolant Test Kit A coolant test kit is also available from Fleetguard. This is not the normal kit that you can find at most parts stores. This is a special kit that measure the amount of DCA4 in your coolant to help you determine for sure when you need to add more. B.09 - Synthetics Another touchy subject on the website. Most of us agree that using synthetics in the transmission, transfer case, and differentials is probably a good idea since they aren't changed very frequently. Synthetic engine oil is a topic of hot debate. Synthetic oil specially made for diesels probably IS better than most conventional oils. The question is whether you should use it or not. The biggest problem is the cost. Synthetic usually costs about double the price of conventional oil. For this reason, most oil companies recommend leaving the oil in for "extended drain intervals". Because of this, I don't recommend using synthetic. This will definitely void your engine warranty and just doesn't seem like a good idea to leave oil in for thousands and thousands of miles. If you do use synthetic, change it as frequently as you would conventional oil. It is proven that the Ford diesels will run for several hundred thousand miles on conventional oils, so why spend more? C. Tires and Suspension C.01 - Tire Sizing Many of us like to go to a larger size tire on our vehicles. There aren't many sizes available for 16" wheels that will fit our vehicles. You can't go to a 15" wheel without grinding your brake calipers down, so your only choices are the 16" or 16.5" wheels. For the stock rims, here are some sizes that some of us are using: 265/75R16, 255/85R16, 285/75R16, 245/85R16, 265/80R16 Check out one of the Tire websites listed on my Links page for more information on these sized tires. C.02 - Load Ratings Most vehicles powered by the Power Stroke engine are made to haul or tow large loads. If you change tires, you need to make sure your new ones can carry the weight of your truck and it's load. The front end of your truck probably weighs around 4500 lbs, so your tires need to at least be able to carry 2250 each. Most of us try to get tires in the 3000 lbs range to make sure we won't be overloading them. C.03 - Front Spring Sag A common complaint with F-250's with the Power Stroke is that the front springs seem to sag after a few thousand miles. There appears to be a weakness in the front springs. Ford does recognize the problem and has issued several TSB's about it. The most current is TSB 96-23-16. This TSB addresses the sag issue by having the dealer install an add-a-leaf and realign the truck. The TSB only covers F-250 models and F-350's with the TTB suspension. If left unfixed, the sag will contribute to premature tire wear and bottoming of the front suspension. Check your front suspension bump stops and see if the leaves seem to be hitting them more often than they should. You can also check for this problem by looking to see if your tires are leaning in at the top. C.04 - Rear Spring Lift (F-250) An easy way to lift the rear suspension of the F-250 to make it match the height of the front after performing the TSB above is to use the rear blocks from an F-350. This should lift your truck about 2 inches or so. C.05 - Rear Spring Drop (F-350) If you need to drop your F-350's rear suspension, you can use the blocks from an F-250. This should lower your truck about two inches in the rear. D. Starting Problems D.01 - Block Heater A common question on the website is where to locate the engine block heater and when to use it. The heater plug is located on the driver's side of the engine compartment. It is black, so it's hard to find the first time. Look for it around the battery/radiator area. It will have a cover over the plug. Lots of times, it's strapped to the truck with a tie wrap that may have to be cut. See the website's Tips sections for more block heater tips. As far as using the heater, it takes about 3 hours for it to heat up the engine. You can find a timer device at most home stores so that you don't have to heat the engine all night. If you leave at 7:00, set the timer for 4:00 and your engine will be warm when you leave. The Power Stroke starts better than most diesels when it's cold, so the block heater isn't always necessary. Try starting yours at different temps to see what temperature you need to plug it in. 20 degrees or lower seems to be about right for most people. D.02 - Glow Plug Cycle The glow plug heat cycle is different depending on what model truck you have. If you have a 1997, the glow plugs only heat when needed. If the truck is warm, they will not heat up. Also, the glow plug heat cycle does not seem to coincide with the dash "Wait To Start" light. The glow plugs actually heat up to 2 minutes. You can tell how long your glow plugs heat by watching your voltmeter. You should notice it drop way down when the engine is cold and stay there a minute or two. That discharge is caused by the glow plugs and is normal. In really cold weather, wait several seconds after your "Wait To Start" light goes out before cranking your engine. It can really make a difference on those cold mornings. D.03 - Glow Plug Relay Pre-1997 trucks had a problem with the Glow Plug Relay burning out. This is a common problem and your dealer should be able to fix it with the newer heavy-duty relay. If you have to crank your truck several seconds, even when it isn't really cold, your relay is probably bad or you have one or more bad glow plugs. E. Transmission/Driveline E.01 - Towing with the Auto There have been some problems with transmission failure in the EO4D auto transmission when towing heavy loads in overdrive. There are no hard and fast rules about when to use OD and when not to. For light loads (3000 lbs or less), you're probably okay to use OD. For heavier loads, you should be okay to use OD on long flat roads or when going downhill. When driving uphill, in a strong headwind, etc., you should shift your tranny into Drive to keep from overheating your transmission. A large aftermarket transmission cooler could also be added to extend the life of your auto. Personally, I have a 5-speed manual in my truck and have never had any trouble when towing. E.02 - Manual or Auto Hubs? The topic of manual versus auto hubs for 4WD's often comes up. After hearing many horror stories of getting stranded because of a blown hub, I recommend always getting manuals if possible. We very seldom hear of an owner who has blown a set of manual hubs. If you're ordering a new truck, specify manual hubs. If you already have autos, you may want to consider replacing them with aftermarket hubs from Warn or Milemarker if you frequently travel off-road. Manuals also have the advantage of being able to easily carry a spare with you. E.03 - Locking Differentials A hot issue on the conferences is the question of whether to use open differentials, limited slips, or lockers on your Power Stroke. I'll start off by saying that the factory diffs on the front of your truck are always open. No Power Stroke has ever been sold new with a limited slip or locker in the front. The rear is available with an open, limited slip, or Detroit locker (Super Duty's only). Some feel that open diffs are better on slick pavement. Limited slips seems to be a good compromise, but will eventually wear out. A locker is the ultimate traction device but can be scary on ice if you aren't used to one. A very good solution is an ARB Air Locker. It has the advantage of being open when max traction isn't needed, but can be locked at the touch of a button. The biggest disadvantage of the ARB is the very high price.