I was cruising the used car lots and in little Shelbyville TN, there she was. A 2000 Extended Cab, 6 speed 4X2. With a totally unmolested bone stock 7.3 with a whole 99,300 miles on the clock and runs awesome. Needless to say I quickly snapped her up. This is the only power train I wanted, the 7.3 with a 6 speed. No offense to you 6.0, 6.4, and 6.7 guys, but I wanted the tried and true IH. The truck is in awesome shape, with a few things wrong. One is the power mirrors work when they want, may be the control switch. The Shifter boot bezel / trim piece is broke so its not tight to the floor, kinda noisy in the cab. But I will order one from bronco graveyard. And the retractable cup holder thingy is broke, it doesn't open up when you pull it out from the dash. But I have a question, today it was super cold here in McMinnville TN, so I fired it up about 10 minutes before I had to leave to go pick up my daughter from school. Thinking that would be plenty of time for her to warm up....WRONG. When I left the driveway it was way sluggish and I could hear like something blocking the exhaust. When it warmed up it quit. What is this I'm hearing? Do I need to allow her more time to warm up. I absolutely love the truck, I think it has plenty of power for me, although I will uncork the exhaust (that muffler looks like a 55 gallon drum under there) and air box. But as far as tuners and such I'll pass.

 

Very cool Uncle Jessie. Sounds like a great truck.

Will Daisy be riding with you?

 

I used to work with a CO Technician in Nashville that was nicknamed Uncle Jessie. Any chance you're that same guy?

 

My Daisy rides with me all the time.

 

No not me, I have recently moved to TN, I'm originally from SC. I used to have a White 78 Ford F150 Reg Cab long bed, That we called Uncle Jessie, hence the user name.

 

Go to the 7.3 forum. You need to do all the baseline stuff - check for boost leaks, new fuel filter, etc. A stock 7.3 is a total dog on a cold day. Is your thermostat good? Also, you may have a block heater and choose to use it - the cord/plug are behind the driver's side towing hook. There is an exhaust valve that closes on cold days when you are warming up the truck, but it's supposed to open when you hit the brake or put the truck in gear. If this valve is sticking, that could be your problem. When the valve turns on, the engine speeds up and the exhaust sounds like a jet plane - that's how you know it's working. On a cold day, the exhaust valve closes within 5 min. on my truck and it goes into jet-plane mode. The moment I tap the brakes, the engine slows and the valve opens. Good luck with the new ride!

 

OK. The dude I knew even looked like Uncle Jessie.

 

Congrats man!