[UWCowboyMike]

Good Afternoon,

I'm doing some research on a 1992 7.3 (non-turbo), XL Lariat longbox. I've owned Duramax and Cummins, but both were 2011 and newer. I'm considering purchasing a cared for and low miles 1992 7.3 with 105K miles. Light on the rust, and I know it likes to drink, but I'm wondering what I need to check out. I'm seeing concerns with the stock tranny, low output on the alternator, etc. But of course even a dealer isn't going to tell me much. It appears the truck had 5 owners but all within the same family and I'm told was sold back in 1992 by the owner of the dealership where I found it. The truck can be seen at Schieir Automotive, their website, in Omaha. Can't post links in the forum since I'm new. Sorry....but these are usually the best places to turn when researching stuff you don't know about.

Thoughts/Advice?

Mike

 

[madpogue]

Um, WHICH stock tranny does it have? Oh, is it SchRIEr Automotive, and this truck - 1992 Ford F-250 | 7.3L V8 Diesel Engine, Red Interior Omaha, Nebraska | Schrier Automotive ? If so, they're asking WAAAAY too much, unless it's going to be a show queen. You should be able to find a ZERO-rust PSD supercab for that price or less. A clean NA IDI 4x4 automatic supercab XLT should be a $4-6K truck.

 

[chuckster57]

WOW!! That even more than a rust free turbo'd IDI in calif. walk away.

 

[oldrebuiltdodge]

Did someone just do a complete frame-off restoration on it or are they absolutely nuts? I'm with everyone else. Don't just walk away...RUN.

 

[LMJD]

Depends on how you look at it. If that thing's as clean as it looks in the pics, I wouldn't pay what he's asking, but to me it's worth more than $4-5 thousand. Generally anyone who has a truck that old and it's that clean also kept up with everything mechanically too, which means a lot. IMO there's a lot to be said for paying a premium price for quality rather than one that you get home and find it needs everything mechanically from one end to the other. Lost count of all the guys here and other IDI sites that broke down with a major $$$ problem before they even got the beater home.

 

[Trucker87]

OMG, Nary a pic of the engine. Maybe it's gold plated. Here's mine for $6K. Details in the signature. Chassis 129K, 7.3 Engine 75K. Automatic E4OD. Front bench seat like new. Rust free, chassis and frame.

 

[bugman]

Depends on how you look at it. If that thing's as clean as it looks in the pics, I wouldn't pay what he's asking, but to me it's worth more than $4-5 thousand. Generally anyone who has a truck that old and it's that clean also kept up with everything mechanically too, which means a lot. IMO there's a lot to be said for paying a premium price for quality rather than one that you get home and find it needs everything mechanically from one end to the other. Lost count of all the guys here and other IDI sites that broke down with a major $$$ problem before they even got the beater home.

Only a few problems buying it. One is getting a loan for that much on a truck that is 25 years old. The other is insurance, if you pull it off of the lot and total it all the insurance company is going to give you is low book for it. That is unless you spend a lot more bucks on insurance and insure it for what it cost.

 

[LMJD]

Good points, but maybe he can pay cash. Don't know how that insurance deal would work out. Chuckster's and my truck are extremely clean for their age, and if they were totaled I guess we would have to suffer with a low book payoff. Since mine is no longer a DD, just used mostly for towing and I don't do a lot of that anymore, my rate is dirt cheap and I can't justify increasing the rate versus what I'd hopefully sell it for. If you drive less than 5000 miles a year (IIRC) Farmers drops the premium way down. And considering a loaded new diesel is $65-$70,000 that guy's asking price isn't too vulgar if it is actually in like new condition.

 

[chuckster57]

Trucks in general command a higher price out here, if they are real clean even more. BUT that is way too high for even an IDI non turbo. I know I would be looked at sideways if I put a price tag of even $10,000 on mine, with only 74,XXX miles.

 

[madpogue]

OMG, Nary a pic of the engine. Maybe it's gold plated. Here's mine for $6K. Details in the signature. Chassis 129K, 7.3 Engine 75K. Automatic E4OD. Front bench seat like new. Rust free, chassis and frame.

Not to mention yours is an F350 crew cab, vs. the F250 SC in the ad; that's about $1K right there.

 

[UWCowboyMike]

Thanks to all for the advice! It is super clean and minimal rust. But being surrounded by trucks I am checking options. Found a 97 Powerstroke 7.3 and a 2003 6.0 and now trying to again figure out what to consider....both new options priced under 10K.

 

[chuckster57]

If you drive either one then drive the first one, you'll think it's a very expensive SLUG!!

 

[narmalee]

Thanks to all for the advice! It is super clean and minimal rust. But being surrounded by trucks I am checking options. Found a 97 Powerstroke 7.3 and a 2003 6.0 and now trying to again figure out what to consider....both new options priced under 10K.

6.0... they are great motors... after you put about 15 grand into them...


around here FULLY loaded 6.0s leather, heated seats, alloy rims, 4x4 all the bells whistles and windchimes, less than 100,000 miles are going for 7-10k... there is a reason


I am VERY happy with my 97, even tho it's needed a fair bit of work to get running right, 62k miles is hard to beat for 4,000, specially with a brand new set of 10 ply tires on it


I think I've spent about 500.00 on it to get it running properly, most of that was the duel batteries lol rest was all sensor replacements


seriously, shop around a bit, took me 6 months to find what I wanted




there is a reason 250k cummins are selling for 11k+ and 6.0 100k- miles giving away... stay away from the 6.0 that's my .02

 

[LMJD]

Narmalee is sure right, there's been no end of problems with the 6 liter engines. And I'm not just going by internet B.S., I've personally met a lot of owners who had fits with that particular engine. One of the many attractive 6 liter features is when the engine suddenly drops to an idle, meanwhile flames shoot out the exhaust pipe. I was behind a frustrated rancher pulling a stock trailer one day and he had traffic blocked on an overpass while his 6 liter was doing its flamethrower thing. I later asked what causes this on the 6.0 liter section here but never got an answer.

 

[madpogue]

^^^^^ That still doesn't make an automatic TTB IDI worth 15 large.

 

[bugman]

The flame thrower 6.0 was taken care of, it was a bad injector or something like that. However I have a few friends that bought them from 2003-2007 and the only one that still have one is the guy that bought the 2007, by then most of the headaches were taken care of.

I would go with the 97.

 

[Trucker87]

EGR sooted up. Low fuel pressure will destroy injectors in a 6.0. Way way to many problems with one.

 

[LMJD]

EGR sooted up. Low fuel pressure will destroy injectors in a 6.0. Way way to many problems with one.

That's what I kept hearing, seems there were engine oil leak problems and maybe head gaskets too? I never did keep up with all of it because I wasn't that interested in that engine. I met a guy at the cardlock and he had a loaded beautiful F250 6.0 that looked showroom new and he was crying the blues because of it's trade in value. Said he was good friends with the owner of a major used car lot here in town and he said the owner told him when I tell you what I can give you for it you won't like me anymore. Against my advice (naturally) my son bought one and last year he had to sink about $5000 worth of engine work into it.

 

[narmalee]

^^^^^ That still doesn't make an automatic TTB IDI worth 15 large.

your sure right about that lol, you can get a very nice newer truck for that that would run circles around that thing

 

[Phil G.]

Narmalee is sure right, there's been no end of problems with the 6 liter engines. And I'm not just going by internet B.S., I've personally met a lot of owners who had fits with that particular engine. One of the many attractive 6 liter features is when the engine suddenly drops to an idle, meanwhile flames shoot out the exhaust pipe. I was behind a frustrated rancher pulling a stock trailer one day and he had traffic blocked on an overpass while his 6 liter was doing its flamethrower thing. I later asked what causes this on the 6.0 liter section here but never got an answer.

This is how internet BS gets started in the first place. Confused and mixed up stuff gets restated that gets proliferated around the net that isn't true. The flame thrower was the first gen 6.4L on the '08's. It happened if an injector was leaking into the cylinder while the engine was trying to regen. A software update took care of it. Dead pedals.... not exactly at the top of the list of major 6.0L issues and it happens to the 7.3's as well. Just the nature of the drive by wire setup.

I've met plenty of owners that that had major issues with the 6.0 as well, I'm not defending the engine, just asking could we get the facts right when we are going to take a run at it?.....

As far as Dodge boys taking a run at the International engines...nothing new. heard it before many times. I like the Cummins engine, it's a great product, I wouldn't mind an older 5.9 myself. I almost test drove a new one in '07 when I bought my '07....till they said if I wanted an 8' bed, I had to buy the "almost crew cab" they tried to pretend was a crew cab. If the Mega cab had come with an 8' bed I might be still driving one today.