Guys I am pretty frusterated with this truck. Its a 1993 F-350 4x4 with the factory turbo 7.3L . Standard cab with a 5 speed. In the 5 years I have had it here is what I have done to it. The family has owned this truck since new and done a ton more then what I have listed for my 5 years.
1 Clutch
4 batteries
2 arm Loads of glow plugs
2 starters
1 set of heads
new fuel lines
rebuilt injector pump
New fuel filter every 6 months
Put in a motor at 132K (Pin Holes in cylinder walls)(So now I have a new set of heads sitting in the garage)
And a million misc stuff
Does it ever stop with this motor? I don't use the truck alot. In fact I use it maybe 2-3 times a month. I swear everytime I turn around it needs something. The new motor was straight from ford and it has 35K miles on it now. To have it switch and the price of the motor it cost me $8,000.00. I have a few ford mechanic friends that tell me to ditch the truck because its a IDI. And the problems never stop. What do you guys think?
im gonna be the 3rd owner of my truck and it has 270k on it and the only major engine work we have done is replaced the heads because we blew them because it over heated
and we have replaced the transfer case because it leaked
and the front driveshaft because when we got it it was dented and then cracked and finally plowing up a big pile it snaped
__________________ -Tj
RIDES 1987 ford F-350 xlt lariat, full leather interior, 7.3L idi, banks turbo, E4OD, MBRP muffler, 6" lift, 38" superswampers for summer, 35" BFG all terrain for winter, bronze pearl paint
CURRENT PROJECTS 1979 ford F-350 custom 351m C6 soon to get a 7.3idi, banks waistgated turbo, ZF-5, 6" lift kit, Saphire blue paint, auto meter colbalt gauges, and much more
WANTS A 2008 ford F-250 XLT with a 6.4L and a zf-6
Last edited by 7.3L F-250 : 03-31-2008 at 07:08 PM.
dont give up on these old diesels yet. theres many diehard ford guys that consider this engine to be the most reliable diesel ford has ever made. my only question to you is other than the ford factory motor were all those parts you purchased cheap chinease made parts or good OEM stile american made parts(cheap isnt always cheap) however if your not crazy about fords like me i would go 12 valve cummins.
haha the cummins comment got me. I loved my 2004 dogde but the ex-wife got it. The truck is doing alright now. Once in a while she still fights me starting. She just cranks and cranks. Usually just out of the blue. She will run great for a week then all of a sudden not want to start. It always does but its a little agrivating some times.
What brand of glow plugs do you use? Bad glow plugs could explain the hard starting, and thus also the starter and battery failures. I find the Ford Motorcraft plugs to be by far the best, mine are 3 years old and they still work.
my glowplugs are over 5 years old, got covered in anti-freeze when the engine blew and yet still work awsome
__________________ -Tj
RIDES 1987 ford F-350 xlt lariat, full leather interior, 7.3L idi, banks turbo, E4OD, MBRP muffler, 6" lift, 38" superswampers for summer, 35" BFG all terrain for winter, bronze pearl paint
CURRENT PROJECTS 1979 ford F-350 custom 351m C6 soon to get a 7.3idi, banks waistgated turbo, ZF-5, 6" lift kit, Saphire blue paint, auto meter colbalt gauges, and much more
WANTS A 2008 ford F-250 XLT with a 6.4L and a zf-6
I'm not sure of the brand. I honestly have put so many in I don't think I could pack them. I personally have not been putting them in. I have always had a shop do it. Maybe its time I do it myself and see what the heck the deal is. Especially if you guys are getting years out of yours. Shoot I'm lucky if I get a single year.
use only motorcraft--also known as berus--as the other brands like to swell the tips--not good!!! have the batts load tested--as they can go intermittent-----then check the starter-----solenoids like to go funky on them--and yet the starter will be ok---been there---
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94 f250 idi turbo sc e4od alum fac rims 149,289 --dana 60 frt with posi--10.25 rear w/posi--shouldnt get stuck!! ats turbo 3" parts on--what a diff from stock turbo!!!!!--- also 96 F250 with 305,000 is fixed!!-- 7.3 rattler-also 85 6.9-needs new engine!! tired!!
Sounds to me like you aught you get another mechanic or shop. Only takes 1/2 hr. to replace the GP's . AutoZone was selling the MotorCraft/Beru for 3.00 a short while ago, Ford garage wanted 25.00 ea.. Check eBay for them.
Sounds to me like you aught you get another mechanic or shop. Only takes 1/2 hr. to replace the GP's . AutoZone was selling the MotorCraft/Beru for 3.00 a short while ago, Ford garage wanted 25.00 ea.. Check eBay for them.
haha yeah I'm on my third one. The first one sold me a rebuild on the injector pump, new fuel lines, a few injectors...........and come to find out it just needed a starter.
The next one tried to sale me new fuel lines and well I just had to laugh and walk out.....
This one has been pretty good to work with and they don't try screwing me yet. I had problems with my F-150 and they found out it was bad wires and plugs. 6 months later same issue. They replaced all the wires and plugs with motorcraft free of charge.
But the diesel has been a never ending project. So now its my turn to play with it. What is my Ohm meter suppose to read on good glow plugs and bad?
What is my Ohm meter suppose to read on good glow plugs and bad?
The easiest way to check glow plugs is to set your multimeter to DC Volts and put the red lead to battery positive and the black lead to the glow plug terminal. A good glow plug will show battery voltage, a bad one will show zero. If you really want to do ohms, a good plug will be less than 1 ohm for a cold plug between the plug terminal and a good ground; a bad one will be infinite ohms.
Also check the glow plug wires. There should be less than 1 ohm between where it connects to the glow plug and the test terminal on the glow plug controller (test terminal is the one with the squiggly-shaped piece of metal on it).
If you find any Champion or Autolite glow plugs in your truck, I recommend you replace them immediately with Motorcrafts, even if they're not burned out. They swell their tips when they die, and then you can't get them out the way they went in.
Haynes Diesel book has much info on the glow plug system.
Wow. That is a big list..... (ya sure it wouldn't have qualified for the Lemon law when it was new.....)
Tip: Don't be cheap with batteries. Especially when there are more then one. Always change in sets, if one is still good, keep it as a spare or sell it. I have a lot of diesel tractors and a few semis. A bad, low battery is the FASTEST way to kill your starter too- made that mistake on a 3208 Cat. Make sure the corrosion isn't IN the cables. Most of my tractors I'm running 800-900 CCA Optima Red Tops. Record I have w/ them is about 9 years before they get weak enough to be a problem. My '83 4.9L pickup has had the same starter (knock on wood) since it was bought '84 & the Optima has been in it for over 9 years.
A buddy bought a 92 F250 4x4, E4OD, 7.3L IDI that someone slapped an ATS turbo on it. He loves the thing. Had 130K when he got it. Any how, everything seems good on it, no major leaks and stuff. Just because it's and IDI, it doesn't mean it's a bad engine. Remember it's "brothers", the ones that International put in Medium duty trucks.... same engine, different settings.
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1999 E-350 Cub Wagon, 7.3L Power Stroke, E4OD, 3.55
1990 E-350 Club Wagon, 7.3L IDI, E4OD, 3.54LS
1983 F-150 2x4, 4.9L, C-6 w/GV-OD, 3.55 Farm pickup
1981 C-8000, 3208 CAT, RT-6510, Rockwell SSHD Tandems (Swap)
1977 K100C, NTC-350, RT-1110, Tandem
1977 Transtar II, NTC-290, RT-9509 Single
1977 Transtar II, Formula 290, RT0-9513, Tandem
1974 C-750, 391CID, Clark 5 speed, Eaton 2 speed
I have only had my 7.3 IDI for a couple of months but the first thing I did when I got it was to add supplemental coolantant additive (SCA). This is my first diesel truck but I have had diesel equipment and I know about pinholing/pitting from sleeved diesel engines. This is due to cavitation in the cooling system and you need the additive to prevent it's occurence. I use the Cummins brand (Fleetguard) DCA4. For more info/discussion.... you can go to this link.
1987 ford F-350 xlt lariat, full leather interior, 7.3L idi, banks turbo, E4OD, MBRP muffler, 6" lift, 38" superswampers for summer, 35" BFG all terrain for winter, bronze pearl paint
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