Ford 7.3., tell me your stories good and sad

[MrJimi]

If you are referring to a dually pickup bed, I have some bad news for you, the cab and chassis frame from the cab back is different from the pickup frame. The cab and chassis frame rails are flat on top to make it easier for body builders to install aftermarket beds. The pickups have a raised section above the axle. Most cab and chassis have a narrower rear track width than a dually pickup . Not trying to lay a turd in your lunch box, just trying to catch you before you buy a bed that might be difficult to mount and not look right.

Thanks, thats the kind of reply I am looking for from a person that knows. My frame is 34" wide at the outside edges and has some large rivets? about the size of nickels and about 1/8" high. I was thinking about a 1"X3",s on top then just bolt it? I do weld and make lot's of stuff ( take a peek in my gallery's here ) and so far this pick up bed will be lot's of $$, I can make a simple flat bed real easy and cheap
Trust me, I am not hard to please
Jim

 

[MrJimi]

Well, I picked up a very complete bed this past weekend for the transformation and I shall have a Ford F 550 pick up with the 7.3 turbo soon
here are a some pictures
Jim

 

[ddivinia]

I bought a 2001 F-250 4*4 Diesel and it was one of the biggest piles of crap I ever owned. I got a dud, no doubt about it. My Brother bought an 01 F-350 and his has been great. My trans failed at 50K miles, water pump at 40K, injector pump, etc, etc. He has had a couple cam sensors fail. Cam sensors seem to be one weak aspect of the engine. Also - they could never get the engine cooler lines to quit leaking. I trade it in on a 05 Dodge Ram 3500 while it was on the lift waiting on a new trans. THe F-250 only had like 55K miles when I dumped it. My Dodge has 45K on it so far.

If you get a good one - you will love it. Cummins in the Ford body is what I want.

D.

 

[MrJimi]

I bought a 2001 F-250 4*4 Diesel and it was one of the biggest piles of crap I ever owned. I got a dud, no doubt about it. My Brother bought an 01 F-350 and his has been great. My trans failed at 50K miles, water pump at 40K, injector pump, etc, etc. He has had a couple cam sensors fail. Cam sensors seem to be one weak aspect of the engine. Also - they could never get the engine cooler lines to quit leaking. I trade it in on a 05 Dodge Ram 3500 while it was on the lift waiting on a new trans. THe F-250 only had like 55K miles when I dumped it. My Dodge has 45K on it so far.

If you get a good one - you will love it. Cummins in the Ford body is what I want.

D.

Ford has a Cummins in their bigger trucks and Cat engines, not affordable to me
Jim

 

[Diesel-ME]

Looks like this topic is pretty well covered... but here are my stats:

2002 F-350 SRW 4x4 SuperCab

I get 18MPG unloaded (except winter of course)
I get 13-15 when towing - OD off if hilly

With 90,000 miles I have had very few problems. Replaced the CPS at about 60k. I have a smallish/yet annoying oil leak somewhere on the front of the engine - just add oil

I added a bypass oil filter long ago (Oil Guard), run Rotella synthetic for 10,000 to 20,000 drain intervals but have oil tested in between.

Last winter my block heater started tripping GFCI so when I use it (only below 0 temps, I plug in to a non-gfci. Oh, I did have to replace the glow plug relay last year (80,000-ish miles).

~paul

 

[cjcocn]

I bought a 2001 F-250 4*4 Diesel and it was one of the biggest piles of crap I ever owned. I got a dud, no doubt about it. My Brother bought an 01 F-350 and his has been great. My trans failed at 50K miles, water pump at 40K, injector pump, etc, etc. He has had a couple cam sensors fail. Cam sensors seem to be one weak aspect of the engine. Also - they could never get the engine cooler lines to quit leaking. I trade it in on a 05 Dodge Ram 3500 while it was on the lift waiting on a new trans. THe F-250 only had like 55K miles when I dumped it. My Dodge has 45K on it so far.

If you get a good one - you will love it. Cummins in the Ford body is what I want.

D.

If you check out the FTE forums you can read about the CPS recall that Ford is doing on the CPS units. Basically, if you have ever had to have your truck towed to the dealer (not applicable if you took it somewhere else) for a CPS problem and you have your receipts, you can get reimbursed for at least a majority of your CPS related costs. The Ford dealers have all been provided the info on how this works.

If you still have your original CPS, you can take your truck in to a dealer and they will change it for you. If you would rather do it yourself, the new CPS units are part number Ford #- F7TZ-12K073-B. If you would like directions on changing it, Guzzle has a good page on that (I believe he also has the recall notice posted on that page as well): Welcome to guzzle's CPS R&R Web Page

If you want a Cummins in a Ford, do a www search on it as there is a company or two that does just that. They have everything you need to drop in a Cummins, or even drop in a Cummins and an Allison tranny (including all mating plates, etc).

HTH

PS ... 2000 F250 7.3L PSD ext cab w/ an 8' box that has been a-okay for me in the short time that I have owned it (April 2007).

 

[volcamp]

I have a 2001 F350 Dually with the 7.3 Powerstroke. Currently at 165K with no problems whatsoever. We own a horse farm and do Tennessee Walker shows. Much time hauling various size horse trailers, campers, hay, equipment throughout the area and southeast US. Including our 40' horse trailer with living quarters. You don't hitch up to that baby with just anything. Would not trade it for ANYTHING!

 

[rback33]

If you want a Cummins in a Ford, do a www search on it as there is a company or two that does just that. They have everything you need to drop in a Cummins, or even drop in a Cummins and an Allison tranny (including all mating plates, etc).

HTH

I figured there were people that do that. Whenever my lottery investment pays out I may have to put one of those together.

 

[artfull dodger]

My 1990 7.3 non turbo was a good engine, so was the 1995 PSD I had. With any brand there will be duds. Right now I run a 1997 Suburban with the 6.5L diesel, it has as many lovers as haters, but at 201K its still running strong with little to no blow by. Most comes down to regular maintaince. Neglect a diesel and it will be the biggest POS you ever own. Keep the oil changed with correct diesel oil, treat the fuel at every fill up to deal with ULSD and gelling, change fuel filter regularly and most will be trouble free. I change my fuel filter before winter, and in the spring. I also carry a spare in the truck and know how to change it on the side of the road in the dark, because thats when you will foul a filter, and probably in the middle of a snow storm. Know your engines quirks, what its know to fail for and either fix the known issues or have plans to fix when the crap out. Cheers Mike