I have 96 f 250 dp cold air gauges minimal mods, reason I took the truck in was it just has seemed to lose some power and about 3 to 4 miles per gallon. Did the usual checks and all seemed good so I left it to the pro's. I was told I have lots of fuel in the valley and that means the fuel pump is bad but was also told that fuel pressure was good this did not make sense to me. Next I was losing boost rapidly even with my foot into it at 70 and about 25 pounds high pitched blow off sound. was told intake side of shaft nice and tight but he thinks I need a new turbo that the exhaust side may be loose this also did not make sense to me. please tell me if my concerns are legit or not and what I can do to confirm or deny the diagnosis
thanks
Jim

 

Fuel in the valley can be a number of things. Look at the bowl real good to see if it is leaking from there. They can get a hole in the bottom. You can fix with JB weld. You may also have a sensor or line connected to the bowl that is leaking. Find the leak first. Don't assume it is the pump because most likely it is not.

Sounds like you have a boost leak and not a bad turbo.

Are you sure the guys you took it to know what they are doing?

 

25 psi is more than Ford ever said was acceptable for it. above 16 and we wouldn't even mess with it.
you do need to find the fuel leak. And take it to another shop.

 

25 is the most I have gotten average 20-22 stock turbo we are pulling everything off to see the problem and noticed fuel bowl has allot of crap in it is that easily removable so we can clean it out or is there a better way

 

how are you getting 25lbs on a stock truck!? i get 27lbs with an intercooler and stage 2 injectors!

but since you dont have an intercooler, just build a cap with a shrader valve and put it on the intake plenum on each side of the head and spray soapy water on the side your testing, put about 10lbs in and see if it leaks other than that you cant really leak anywhere else.

 

I could get 25 from my stock sticks and turbo so he is right on the money. I could NEVER get more than that though. That was with a TW chip.

I have found that removing the bowl is the best way to clean it out. You can never get everything out just by flushing it because it does not drain completely.
You need to clean the fuel out of the valley and get in there while it is running and find that leak. Get a small mirror and a good flashlight.

If you find that the bowl has a hole in it, No Worries. You can clean the hole up. Be sure to poke on it all over the bottom to be sure there is not any more holes getting tready to show up. Then scuff it up a bit and put a patch of JB weld on there. You should probably let it sit overnight then reinstall.

 

I highly doubt your turbo is the issue. Its possible that it has a pre turbo exhaust leak or a boost leak at the intake y pipe but the turbo itself will not be the issue unless its dusted (compressor wheel sand blasted). Fuel leak could be from the fuel pump even though the pressure is good. Really the only to know for sure is to clean the valley and see where exactly its coming from.

BTW I can see 25 from a stock chipped truck. My 95 with TEE5 was at 20 psi with a 10K mod.

 

Wow, I'm at stock injector boost levels. LOL.

The fuel pump as said before can leak even though it is showing good pressure. Mine leaked conciderably when I bought my truck. I would clean everything up really good and make sure you find the exact spot where fuel is coming from. There are a bunch of things that could be leaking in the valley. You might even have multiple leaks.

If the intake side of the turbo doesn't have a bunch of play and the wheel is in good shape, the turbo is fine. If it holds 25 psi I doubt you have much of a boost leak either, but it worth looking for boost leaks and exhaust leaks just to make sure. The whistling could even be a loose intake connection. I noticed one time i didn't get one of my intake connections back on right and it whistled a lot louder until I found the spot and put it back on right.

 

believe it or not guys i was in the mountains in pa comin home from wyotech. right next to the school is a 2.5 mile hill steep grade. i pulled 27 almost 28lbs with my rig at 1200*. i had a pic on my phone that i would post but the damn thing took a crap on me. if i get it working i will post a pic. and that boost is just with the mods in my sig