[Crash_AF]

Just bought a late 2000 (01 model) F250 Lariat extended cab 4x4, 6 speed 281k miles that had been repo'd for $2500. Of course, the truck has problems, but I couldn't pass up the price.

The truck starts hard, doesn't seem like the glow plugs are doing anything. Lots of white/gray smoke while cranking, so it's getting fuel.
After the truck starts, it runs smooth, no rattles or knocks, revs smoothly and no big clouds of blue smoke.

Throwout bearing is making noise and the clutch engages really low. Feels like 2 inches off the floor, but it doesn't slip under normal acceleration. It shifts smoothly going down the highway without whining or grinding.

Once the truck warms up on the highway, it shuts off and won't restart until it cools down (45 min to an hour). After cooling off period, it fires back up like nothing's wrong, no CEL and it runs until it warms back up and cuts out again. IPR? The tach moves while cranking so I don't think it's the CPS.

Any advice on diagnosing the health of the engine? It evidently had a programmer on it because there's a disconnected pyrometer lead under the hood and an OBDII to 8 pin connector hanging out doing nothing. It also has an AFE open element air cleaner installed.

Oh, and the front of the engine down low is covered in oil, but it doesn't seem to spot on the ground. Had been sitting in the same spot for over a week and there were no puddles under the truck (and yes, it did have fluids in it, LOL)

I've got decent experience with my OBS Powerstroke, but it's got half the mileage of this one and I've never had any major issues. Thanks for any help you can provide to point me in the right direction to rehabilitate this neglected workhorse.

 

[RT]

If it were me, I'd pull the injectors and visually inspect them a put new o-rings on. New glow plugs and updated harnesses. Then, I'd get a Stancor relay for the GPR and be done with worrying about the glow plug circuit.

If the throw out bearing is making noise, the transmission has to come out anyway. Check the clutch condition and replace the fork with the updated one. (The original tends to bend). Check the linkage under the dash and if that's all good, get a prebled master/slave kit. Sounds like you got a great deal.

Edit: I would add that I don't think it's your IPR given that a hot IPR fail issue kills the engine itself and then won't restart. You said yours won't restart after YOU turn it off. That's more likely a leak in the high pressure oil system (O-rings) that prevent the truck from building the requisite 500 psi to fire the injectors with hot, thin oil).

 

[Crash_AF]

Edit: I would add that I don't think it's your IPR given that a hot IPR fail issue kills the engine itself and then won't restart. You said yours won't restart after YOU turn it off. That's more likely a leak in the high pressure oil system (O-rings) that prevent the truck from building the requisite 500 psi to fire the injectors with hot, thin oil).

No, it shut down at 75 MPH on the highway the first time. Restarted after sitting on the side of the road for 2 hours while my friend and I went to grab food and wait for another friend with a AAA card who was gracious enough to use one of his free tows for me so I didn't have to pay to have it hauled 50 miles home. It started normally after 2 hours, drove 2 miles and shut down again at 65 MPH, but this time I could coast off an exit to a safer spot to wait. 45 minutes later, it started and ran long enough to park it in a nearby parking lot and died right after I set the parking brake.

Thank you for the advice, need to look into glow plug replacement. Last one I did was on a CUCV 6.2, and I'm guessing the 7.3 won't be as easy.

 

[RT]

The only bad part on swapping the glow plugs is pulling the valve cover. After that it's a breeze. Your shutting off while running is the IPR. Put a fresh international dark blue CPS in it as well.


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[Crash_AF]

The only bad part on swapping the glow plugs is pulling the valve cover. After that it's a breeze. Your shutting off while running is the IPR. Put a fresh international dark blue CPS in it as well.


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Why the dark blue CPS instead of the standard gray? Or is it black one that's the updated one?

I tried plugging my Bosch 1200 code scanner into it and it won't communicate with the truck. When I connect it with the engine running, the engine stalls. What's going on with that?

Thanks again.

 

[RT]

There are some scanners that just aren't compatible with the PSD. You need AutoEnginuity with the Ford package, the Ford NGS, or a high end Snap-On with the right cards.

The dark blue has the best reduction in PERDEL values after the original black. You can't find the black anymore, so dark blue is second choice. You have to tell the Ford dealer you're buying one for a 94-97 PSD to get the right part.

 

[klhansen]

Your front oil leak may be a number of things. I had a similar leak that turned out to be the CPS o-ring being cut when I installed it. Found it after pulling the harmonic balancer thinking it was the front crank seal. :slaps forehead: Could be the front seal, but the way to be sure is to clean it up well and run it for a bit and look for fresh oil.
RT is leading you in the right direction on the other stuff.
Sounds like you got a steal. :thumbsup:

 

[Crash_AF]

Your front oil leak may be a number of things. I had a similar leak that turned out to be the CPS o-ring being cut when I installed it. Found it after pulling the harmonic balancer thinking it was the front crank seal. :slaps forehead: Could be the front seal, but the way to be sure is to clean it up well and run it for a bit and look for fresh oil.
RT is leading you in the right direction on the other stuff.
Sounds like you got a steal. :thumbsup:

Thanks for the heads up on the o-ring. I'm planning to pull the radiator and IC to clean them since it's probably never been done. It'll be easy to clean the front of the engine with all of that out of the way.

In digging on top of the engine today, I found that there are two GPRs. One is hooked up and hanging in space, the other is bolted where it's supposed to be with nothing hooked to it. Also, the crossover cable from the driver side battery is just dangling in the engine compartment beside the radiator. No wonder it wasn't cranking over quickly. The parts store bolt on terminal clamp should have been a clue that something was missing.

I'll pass along more info as I make more discoveries. I should start a blog or something LOL Filled up an entire 50 gallon trash can with garbage from the interior and a third of the bed. Yay repos...

 

[klhansen]

That second "GPR" is probably the Intake Air Heater relay that your 2000 would have had on it. Lots of guys remove the heater itself from the turbo outlet spider and disconnect the relay. It shouldn't be hanging in there loose, but bolted in place on the bracket in front of the GPR. The IAH relay is taller than the GPR.

 

[Crash_AF]

That second "GPR" is probably the Intake Air Heater relay that your 2000 would have had on it. Lots of guys remove the heater itself from the turbo outlet spider and disconnect the relay. It shouldn't be hanging in there loose, but bolted in place on the bracket in front of the GPR. The IAH relay is taller than the GPR.

No, it looks like someone tried to install a relay to test if that was the problem. I'll snap a pic tomorrow, but it's definitely a Motorcraft GPR mounted properly with the replacement dangling from the wiring above it.

 

[klhansen]

For reference, here's a photo of a stock GPR & IAHR setup.

 

[Crash_AF]

Yep, that's what mine looks like except I also have another GPR hanging out behind those two... here's the pic.

 

[klhansen]

Looks like someone was too dang lazy to unbolt the old GPR. Probably died and they left it there as ballast. :shrug03:

 

[Crash_AF]

Also, I have a pyrometer mounted on the truck that's not hooked to anything with a connector just coiled up by the left hood hinge... Any ideas what it was connected to? I think the truck had a programmer plugged into it, but not sure what type.

 

[Crash_AF]

Looks like someone was too dang lazy to unbolt the old GPR. Probably died and they left it there as ballast. :shrug03:

LOL, I think it was being tested and they gave up? When I picked it up the lower terminal on the 'loose' one wasn't even hooked up. They said they disconnected it to start it with ether. :| Having it hooked up seems to make no difference in the ability to start.

This poor thing has been abused.

 

[klhansen]

Also, I have a pyrometer mounted on the truck that's not hooked to anything with a connector just coiled up by the left hood hinge... Any ideas what it was connected to? I think the truck had a programmer plugged into it, but not sure what type.

Do you mean a thermocouple in the exhaust manifold? That's what sends the signal to the pyrometer (gauge), but they usually need a box of some sort to tailor the low voltage thermocouple signal to the gauge input. No idea what that connector would go to. Maybe someone had a turbo timer on it (keeps the truck running after the ignition is turned off until the EGT's drop below a certain point). You might try posting that pic with your question in the '99 & up Upgrades and Aftermarket - 7.3L Engine forum. Maybe someone will recognize it.

 

[Crash_AF]

Do you mean a thermocouple in the exhaust manifold? That's what sends the signal to the pyrometer (gauge), but they usually need a box of some sort to tailor the low voltage thermocouple signal to the gauge input. No idea what that connector would go to. Maybe someone had a turbo timer on it (keeps the truck running after the ignition is turned off until the EGT's drop below a certain point). You might try posting that pic with your question in the '99 & up Upgrades and Aftermarket - 7.3L Engine forum. Maybe someone will recognize it.

Yes, I mean a thermocouple post turbo... sorry, brain lost that word for some reason when I was typing the post. LOL

I'll toss it up on the aftermarket board, I figure it was a Bully Dog or some other programmer because there is an OBD2 to 10 pin cable running along the bottom of the dash and up between it and the A pillar.

Thanks

 

[Crash_AF]

Worked on the truck some today. Got a new positive cable/starter cable set and spent the afternoon wrestling that into place. Truck turns over much happier with both batteries connected. While changing out the power cable, I found a large amount of oil buildup/residue under the power steering pump and the front of the oil cooler. I'm assuming that this is an oil cooler leak.

Removed the brown GPR that was hanging out. Testing the GPR in the factory location proved it worked, now I have to figure out the bad behavior. It engages immediately with key on, never cycles, and stays on until the key is turned off, or about a minute after the engine starts. Even with the Wait light off, the GPR continues to stay closed. The truck is still hard to get started, lots of white smoke and intermittent 'almost' catches, even with repeated cycles of the ignition prior to starting. I do have 12V on the glow plug side of the relay with it engaged.

Cleaned up the interior a bit, the power windows and power mirrors didn't work. Found a blown fuse but the mirrors still don't work.

I get a constant 'Door Ajar' light on the dash and the dome light stays on until the relay times out and kills it. I've sprayed contact cleaner in the latch area but it still hasn't freed up the switch.

 

[Little_Giant]

Worked on the truck some today. Got a new positive cable/starter cable set and spent the afternoon wrestling that into place. Truck turns over much happier with both batteries connected. While changing out the power cable, I found a large amount of oil buildup/residue under the power steering pump and the front of the oil cooler. I'm assuming that this is an oil cooler leak.

Removed the brown GPR that was hanging out. Testing the GPR in the factory location proved it worked, now I have to figure out the bad behavior. It engages immediately with key on, never cycles, and stays on until the key is turned off, or about a minute after the engine starts. Even with the Wait light off, the GPR continues to stay closed. The truck is still hard to get started, lots of white smoke and intermittent 'almost' catches, even with repeated cycles of the ignition prior to starting. I do have 12V on the glow plug side of the relay with it engaged.

Cleaned up the interior a bit, the power windows and power mirrors didn't work. Found a blown fuse but the mirrors still don't work.

I get a constant 'Door Ajar' light on the dash and the dome light stays on until the relay times out and kills it. I've sprayed contact cleaner in the latch area but it still hasn't freed up the switch.

Cycle the key on, but don't start, and start a timer. Does the GPR stay on for more than 2 minutes? If not, then it may be working fine. The GPR cycle time is different than the wait to start light, it is normal for the relay to be on longer. I'm pretty sure the max time though is 2 minutes.

It varies with engine oil temp.

There are graphs that show the time vs. EOT, but I don't have it handy.

 

[Crash_AF]

Cycle the key on, but don't start, and start a timer. Does the GPR stay on for more than 2 minutes? If not, then it may be working fine. The GPR cycle time is different than the wait to start light, it is normal for the relay to be on longer. I'm pretty sure the max time though is 2 minutes.

It varies with engine oil temp.

There are graphs that show the time vs. EOT, but I don't have it handy.

The GPR stays on for about 2 minutes when cold, so I guess everything is ok on the top side. I'm going to pull the valve covers to test and replace the glow plugs next.

Decided to have a shop do the IPR replacement for me, they noticed the fuel return line leaking at the fuel filter housing. Put a wrench on the ferrule and it snapped the fitting off the pressure regulator. Now they can't get the broken piece out of the line so they're going to try to figure that out tomorrow. Evidently the fitting had been cracked for a while from looking at the broken edge.