Ford 7.3L Gas Engine

[4570Man]

What’s wrong with pushrods? I’ve seen more problems with the Ford extra long timing chains stretching than pushrod problems.

 

[TractorGuy]

What’s wrong with pushrods? I’ve seen more problems with the Ford extra long timing chains stretching than pushrod problems.

What's wrong with timing belts? Belts nowadays last forever and a no interference engine can be designed to make them an even better alternative.

Ask the V10 owners above how many timing chains they had to replace in 400,000 miles? Find me a pushrod engine that has run that long.

 

[4570Man]

The only v10 owner I know personally had the replace the chains around 200k. Who cares about 400k? 97 out of 100 light duty trucks are in the junkyard before then. If you’re buying a medium duty truck with the intention of going 400k you probably should get a diesel. And most diesels have pushrods. Go look at the 400k pickup market. The vast majority of them are diesel duallys and the vast majority of those are Chevys from what I see.

 

[TSO]

With the V10's I've personally owned, plus other V10's I've known thru friends/family... I've never seen a spark plug thrown. I have seen one of the 2 piece plugs seize in the cylinder after 100k when trying to replace it. That didn't have anything to do with the engine, it was because of the spark club design itself.

Never had to replace a timing chain either.

DID have to replace exhaust manifold gaskets tho...

 

[Sawyer Rob]

Ford should embrace a simplified overhead cam design that eliminates rocker arms. Just because GM can't get out of the pushrod era doesn't mean Ford should go backwards.

OR you could say, ford has come back to the KISS method, in another words, back to what is reliable and works!!

What is probably the most reliable engine ever put in a pu?? I would say Cummins 12valve, and guess what? It has pushrods!

SR

 

[ruffdog]

What’s wrong with pushrods? I’ve seen more problems with the Ford extra long timing chains stretching than pushrod problems.

The long chain issue is not just with Ford...it is a design issue that other makers have had too. A short chain in a pushrod engine can get quite loose but it is controllable, while the same wear with a 4' long chain is a disaster.

 

[Shaneard]

What is probably the most reliable engine ever put in a pu?? I would say Cummins 12valve, and guess what? It has pushrods!

SR

Minus the killer dowel pin issue they are tough.

 

[3930dave]

The long chain issue is not just with Ford...it is a design issue that other makers have had too. A short chain in a pushrod engine can get quite loose but it is controllable, while the same wear with a 4' long chain is a disaster.

Often, before you have a mechanical disaster, a long-chain modern engine will have it's valve timing off enough to throw a fault-code. May still drive fine, but won't pass emissions...... if that matters where the truck is plated.

Rgds, D.

 

[deerefan]

Your attached picture shows no rocker arms, but some OHC engines have rocker arms. Then you have to include bearing retaining caps and all the associated hardware to drive the cam(s) plus oiling. Overall, it's not necessarily a simpler design.

Why are pushrods not a good design? I know they are archaic, but they work. Am I missing something?

 

[Motorboatin]

Why are pushrods not a good design? I know they are archaic, but they work. Am I missing something?

They are better at producing torque and more reliable. Seems like a win-win for truck owners

 

[goeduck]

They are better at producing torque and more reliable. Seems like a win-win for truck owners

Do not forget push rod engines are more compact. Translates to more room in the engine bay or more room for additional displacement, accessories, etc.

 

[Motorboatin]

I'd be curious to know how pushrods contribute torque.

Reliability? Depends on what other parts you include in the picture. I'd be inclined to say it's a draw.

Pushrod engines typically have two valves and big valves with large ports move lots of air which = torque

Fewer parts will always be more reliable. Simple is better at lasting longer

 

[Motorboatin]

An OHC engine can be designed to the same thing.

And cost more in the process

 

[goeduck]

From the car and driver article... what is Fords logic in doing this?

A slightly less powerful version of the new 7.3, rated at 350 horsepower at 3900 rpm and 468 lb-ft of torque at 3900 rpm, will be standard on the F-450 chassis cab, the F-550, the new F-600, F-650 and F-750 Medium Duty trucks, and F-53 and F-59 stripped-chassis models.

 

[ning]

From the car and driver article... what is Fords logic in doing this?

A slightly less powerful version of the new 7.3, rated at 350 horsepower at 3900 rpm and 468 lb-ft of torque at 3900 rpm, will be standard on the F-450 chassis cab, the F-550, the new F-600, F-650 and F-750 Medium Duty trucks, and F-53 and F-59 stripped-chassis models.

Derated for continuous (heavy) duty rating.

 

[NPurdy1112]

Woah I was late to this thread. Was not expecting a full 8 pages already. I will be interested in the tow/haul numbers!

 

[nikerret]

Derated for continuous (heavy) duty rating.

It’s probably the same engine and tune, in the gasoline engines. For example, the same was done with the 6.2L. All that was done was measuring at different RPM’s (commercial vehicles are rated based on where the sound reaches a certain level), instead of peak power and torque.

The diesel chassis cabs are de-rated, but also use a different turbo and some other parts.

 

[nikerret]

Go look at the day I graph, from the first page. At 3,900 RPM, it’s the exact same in the regular engine as the commercial numbers. They just don’t list maximum/peak, on chassis cabs.

 

[Fallon]

From the car and driver article... what is Fords logic in doing this?

A slightly less powerful version of the new 7.3, rated at 350 horsepower at 3900 rpm and 468 lb-ft of torque at 3900 rpm, will be standard on the F-450 chassis cab, the F-550, the new F-600, F-650 and F-750 Medium Duty trucks, and F-53 and F-59 stripped-chassis models.

It's not a Ford thing. All the big 3 do it for CnC rigs vs pickups. Consensus I've seen is for increased durability. Really the same reason teactor engines are underpowered for their size. Lasts longer & will easily go all day for years on end when you cant push the engine hard compared to a more tuned engine. Most automotive engines would blow up or melt down if pushed hard for significant durations. Fine for short demands like merging. Less fine for commercial duty stuff flogging it all day.

 

[goeduck]

It's not a Ford thing. All the big 3 do it for CnC rigs vs pickups. Consensus I've seen is for increased durability. Really the same reason teactor engines are underpowered for their size. Lasts longer & will easily go all day for years on end when you cant push the engine hard compared to a more tuned engine. Most automotive engines would blow up or melt down if pushed hard for significant durations. Fine for short demands like merging. Less fine for commercial duty stuff flogging it all day.

Got it. Kinda like my old Mercedes 240D. 67 HP was not enough to stress anything out. :thumbsup:

Or get up to the highway speed limit. :shocked: