7.3 maintenance / preventative maintenance question

8,279 Views | 67 Replies | Last: 5 yr ago by Tim Weaver
Presley OBannons Sword
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Guys, I bought (paid too much for but don't really regret it) a '99 F-250 with the 7.3 last summer. I absolutely love the truck, and have had really no issues (knock on wood) with it so far. I bought it with 93k miles, and I've put almost 40k miles on it this year. That sort of super high mileage driving shouldn't continue much longer, but I live in the burbs of Houston and will always have somewhat of a commute regardless.

My question is this...what can I do or what do I NEED to do to best ensure the longevity of this truck? I have every intention of squeezing every mile out of it that I'm able to, because 1) I like the truck and 2) I REALLY like not having a payment. I change the oil and fuel filter at the recommended intervals religiously, but I don't know what other things I need to be doing. I know there is a lot of knowledge on this board, and a lot of you have or had 7.3s.

Thanks!
will.mcg
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AG
Oil is the life of you engine. Keep the oil clean & the fuel clean. You might think about replacing wheel bearing & seals every 100,000 miles which should be before they go out on you.
Burdizzo
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AG
My experience with owning a 7.3 idi (predecessor to the Power Stroke) for 24 years and 300k+ miles was that keeping the drivetrain running was pretty straightforward. He issue was that once the truck hit about 15+ years old and about 200k miles the truck started to deteriorate around the drivetrain. Bushings wore out, things started to rattle, moldings and weather strips dried and rotted out, etc.
Tim Weaver
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Just drive it. Don't baby it either. Putting a good load on the engine helps the rings to seal better.


Check the factory airbox for cracks. I don't know if the older ones are like this, but the 2000's models the airbox cracked under the filter and would let dirty air in. The fix is the popular 6637 mod. It's a ginormous airfilter you buy at Napa. It's expensive, but it lasts for ever and ever. It might last you 100k miles if you are just city driving.

Also make sure your Crank Position Sensor (CPS) is the proper one. I can't remember if it's green or grey or black, but one of those colors is a good one. The other 2 will fail. It's worth carrying a spare CPS and the tools to change it because it will stop you dead.

Watch the accesory belt tensioner. They can come apart, but they will show it by seperating long before it happens. Not terribly dangerous, but can cause some grief it damages other things like the fan.

Is it a 4x4? They need special attention paid to the suspension components to keep them driving straight. 2wd's are pretty bulletproof in this regard.

Other than that I use Motorcraft filters and Rotella oil. Buy your oil at Sam's. I freaked out the first time I had to buy 5 gallons of oil! lol

I also bought an oil extractor. I started changing out 5 quarts or so of transmission fluid every oil change for about a year. I need to do that again. At the time I just couldn't justify the expense of a full trans flush and fill with a 17 quart capacity of synthetic fluid! It's expensive!



That said, I bought mine with 140k on it and I'm about to hit 360k soon. I have put 2 alternators, 1 starter, 1 radiator and water pump, an Injection Control Pressure Regulator Sensor (ICP Sensor), 1 Fan clutch, and I added a trans cooler to it for towing. Right now I have a CEL saying my glow plugs are bad on one bank. Could be a relay or the under valve cover harness. I haven't looked into it yet. Both are easy to change.
Presley OBannons Sword
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Thanks for the post. Yes it's a 4x4, btw.

What year is yours?
Presley OBannons Sword
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Quote:

Other than that I use Motorcraft filters and Rotella oil. Buy your oil at Sam's. I freaked out the first time I had to buy 5 gallons of oil! lol
I buy motorcraft filters and oil from walmart. Is it cheaper at Sams?
Tim Weaver
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The oil is cheaper. They don't have the filters.


Mine is a 2002 Excursion 2wd.
Presley OBannons Sword
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I'm trying to go 500k mi on this beast. I cherish the thought of not having to buy another vehicle for many years. One of the reasons I went with a low mileage 7.3.
Tim Weaver
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It will do it.

The interior probably won't but the drivetrain will.

My interior is a mess now. Cracked leather seats, and many of the lesser used switches are flakey. Like the seat adjusters. Only half of them work in my truck. I think it's just from disuse. The rear popout windows don't like to work if I've not exercised the switches in a long time.

I know all of this can be avoided/fixed, but I just thought I'd mention it. It is truly the best vehicle I have ever owned. If I was planning on keeping it I would look for a newer F250 interior. Maybe a King Ranch.


If I wanted to go to 500k miles I woould need a complete interior refresh and new weather stripping. A paint job and dent removal wouldn't hurt either. I guess for under 10 grand I could have a "newish" truck with over 300k miles on it! haha.
Tim Weaver
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Oh yeah, one more thing. Invest in some Jimmy Jammers AND don't ever leave anything in the truck worth stealing.

The ford trucks of the past few decades are easier to break into than opening a can of sardines. Really. Go read about it.

So if you do a stereo make sure it is Uber-stealth. I've known people who have owned a fancy stereo for less than a week!

Don't leave anything in it that is at all valuable. No change in the cupholders or anything. Even if you have Jimmy Jammers they will F-up your door handles trying to get in.
Presley OBannons Sword
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Thanks for the advice on the jimmy jammers. I will definitely take action on that. I got a ravelco early on for vehicle theft protection, but I guess I need to protect myself from just regular smash and grab jobs too. The truck I got was in almost immaculate condition. For being seventeen years old, one would be hard pressed to find a truck in better shape than the one I found. I think I can still get a few good years out of the interior, and then my plan is to upgrade to the more modern seats.
agwrangler2001
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AG
A few recommendations to consider.
  • Start an oil analysis schedule so you can establish a trend, which may allow you to head off any major issues, and possibly increase your change intervals(especially with bypass filter, see below). I use Blackstone.
  • Go ahead and get a good set of gauges, especially if you are towing.
  • A lot of folks are big on added filtration, i.e Bypass oil filters, coolant filters, auxiliary trans filters etc. If I had a low mileage 7.3, I would seriously consider all of these.

My 7.3 is at 305k and still running strong. Every so often I consider going in and putting new injectors in, along with a turbo upgrade. But then I remember, it's basically running flawlessly, so why?

The best part about the 7.3 in my opinion is ease of repairs/maintenance and overall simplicity.
Every time I pop the hood on a newer Powerstroke (04-17), I'm like, nope!
1agswitchin4lanes
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AG
Don't forget the coolant additive. Used to be FW16 but not sure what its called now.

International dealers also sell it as DCA4.

Good advice here.

You can also swap to the dual alternator fan hose so the upper hose doesn't run between the belt drive loop.

If you have ESOF, keep an eye on the hubs and the plastic actuators and vac lines to make sure they work.




JB
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Just recently bought a 00. Instead of the Jimmy Jammers, I replaced the front door handles with the the rears to eliminated the key lock. It was cheap and easy

The 6637 air filter mod was also pretty easy

Mine has 255k on it now and runs pretty damn good.
1agswitchin4lanes
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AG
JB said:

Just recently bought a 00. Instead of the Jimmy Jammers, I replaced the front door handles with the the rears to eliminated the key lock. It was cheap and easy

The 6637 air filter mod was also pretty easy

Mine has 255k on it now and runs pretty damn good.

Sadly, They can still get in....effin thieves....


JJ would still be a good idea.

Presley OBannons Sword
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Thanks everyone.
JB
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AG
The ESOF was not working on mine when I got it. I tracked it down to a clogged fitting that screws into the knuckle, where the vacuum line hooks up. Cleaned it out and it works. I think cracked vacuum lines are typically what fails though.
Jason Ag
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AG
1agswitchin4lanes said:

Don't forget the coolant additive. Used to be FW16 but not sure what its called now


I didn't even know about this for a decade, my fault. When I found out I flushed out the green and switched to this (no additive needed):

https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/shell-rotella-elc-antifreeze-1-gal

This is a really cool site a guy put together: http://www.superdutypsd.com

As said before gauges and filters, I've thought about an external filter on the transmission. Also the stock transmission cooler is undersized, might look into upgrading (if it hasn't already) that if you pull heavy loads. Again transmission temp gauge would be nice.
JB
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AG
oldarmyag08 said:

1agswitchin4lanes said:

Don't forget the coolant additive. Used to be FW16 but not sure what its called now


I didn't even know about this for a decade, my fault. When I found out I flushed out the green and switched to this (no additive needed):

https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/shell-rotella-elc-antifreeze-1-gal

This is a really cool site a guy put together: http://www.superdutypsd.com

As said before gauges and filters, I've thought about an external filter on the transmission. Also the stock transmission cooler is undersized, might look into upgrading (if it hasn't already) that if you pull heavy loads. Again transmission temp gauge would be nice.

Looks like I found next weekends project....
Jason Ag
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AG
I have a '99 4x4 7.3l that I plan to keep a while. You guys open to exchanging emails so we can have an easy way to exchange info?

You can email me at "texags username" @ gmail. com. I have some repair docs I'd be willing to share.
Presley OBannons Sword
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oldarmyag08 said:

I have a '99 4x4 7.3l that I plan to keep a while. You guys open to exchanging emails so we can have an easy way to exchange info?

You can email me at "texags username" @ gmail. com. I have some repair docs I'd be willing to share.

I'll email you from work Monday morning. Definitely interested in exchanging info and learning more
Presley OBannons Sword
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email sent
Streetfighter 02
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AG
I've got a '97. I'm in the middle of upgrading the headlights currently. It's a nice project that has been underway for two weeks now. I looked at all the fasteners this morning and I'm certain I don't know what goes where now.
Presley OBannons Sword
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Streetfighter 02 said:

I've got a '97. I'm in the middle of upgrading the headlights currently. It's a nice project that has been underway for two weeks now. I looked at all the fasteners this morning and I'm certain I don't know what goes where now.

Pics? That's my favorite model
Burdizzo
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AG
You guys looking for tech advice may want to check out oilburners or dieselstop . I got lots of good information from their forums back when I had a diesel.
Streetfighter 02
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AG


This pic is 10 years old. The truck looks pretty much the same. It really needs a once over on the mechanical. It's been slowly dripping oil and I'm about to put in a new driveway. It also needs new door striker plates to stop some bad rattling.

If anyone knows of a tutorial on wiring up the HID kit from that tcmglx guy on fullsize bronco feel free to let me know where it is.
91AggieLawyer
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AG
Why did Ford replace the 7.3? Gas mileage and/or govt. standards?
txyaloo
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AG
Streetfighter 02 said:



This pic is 10 years old. The truck looks pretty much the same. It really needs a once over on the mechanical. It's been slowly dripping oil and I'm about to put in a new driveway. It also needs new door striker plates to stop some bad rattling.

If anyone knows of a tutorial on wiring up the HID kit from that tcmglx guy on fullsize bronco feel free to let me know where it is.
Does he include a relay harness? I can take some pictures of my OBS relay install if you need it. The process is pretty straight forward.
Streetfighter 02
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AG
It has everything to be plug and play but I would like a reference to make sure I don't skip over something. Pics might help depending on the similarities of the lights.
Goose
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AG
91AggieLawyer said:

Why did Ford replace the 7.3? Gas mileage and/or govt. standards?
The latter. Emissions.
txyaloo
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AG
Streetfighter 02 said:

It has everything to be plug and play but I would like a reference to make sure I don't skip over something. Pics might help depending on the similarities of the lights.
If he doesn't include a harness, pick one up on Amazon. In the OBS, all of the power for the headlights runs through the headlight switch in the cab. It's pretty common for them to burn up. One of my HIDs would have problems igniting until I installed a harness connected directly to the battery. I used this one:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0086GBVP8/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

You need the 9007 version.

The set ups should be the same between ours other than you having dual batteries. The connections are plug and play. The big connector on the ballast connects to your stock headlight wiring harness. The two other connectors on the ballast connect to the bulb. There are some good walk throughs on Youtube that show removal of the front facia and replacing the lights. I have a crappy one piece headlight that was on the truck when I bought it which won't match yours.
Streetfighter 02
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AG
I believe it has all the proper parts. Having never done this before I'm just going a little blind. Tonight I'm going to repair the large plastic piece that everything mounts to. Somewhere in this truck's 20 years it was broken across the top. That should get me ready to go to install on Saturday morning.
Builder93
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AG
Mine is a 2000 F350 with 352K miles. Original engine and transmission.

Change the oil every 5K miles, flush the transmission every 30K miles and get the AIS air intake. It's used on military vehicles. Better than the 6637.

I am looking into redoing my interior soon. Cracked leather and stained carpet are bothering me, but I just love no car payments.
Streetfighter 02
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AG
I got it all installed yesterday. It took a while and there was some head scratching but after I got in touch with the seller he got me lined out pretty quick. I think he sent the 9004 version because my high and low beams are swapped. Shouldn't be too hard to correct. I think I just have to swap the outside two wires and all should be good. I'll aim them later. I think that's going to take some doing.
Streetfighter 02
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AG
Have you had any issue with battery drain from the headlights? I'm concerned since the kit needs 12V power to the harness that it will create an imbalanced draw from a single battery.
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