I am in Charlotte, NC, and i have removed the GPs and the injectors from my truck. all is fine with both sets, no sheared off plugs or clogged injectors. i am going to remove the heads and then determine the coarse of action from there because i think a valve is gone. (white smoke, horrific noise)

will a bad valve cause anything else to go bad (cam, piston, etc.) ????

How much should i expect to pay for the redoing of the head/valves in this town? what should i tell them to do to it?

anyone in CLT know of a good machine shop?

How risky is it to redo the top end vs. how much it would cost for a drop in?

the 250 has got 200K and is a strong runner up until she went to smokin' and clangin'. any input about a "breaking point" to breakdown and redo the whole thing vs. just the top end.......looking for some advice here because i dont know much about the tendencies of this engine, etc.

thank you all for the great insight i have received. you are a real blessing to me.

tskinner

 

white smoke and clicking isnt necessarily a valve. How do you know the injectors are not clogged? Have you had the injectors pop tested ? You could take compression test on each cylinder before dismantling the glow plugs and injectors. I wouldnt pull the heads til I know what is happening compression wise.

 

i have not checked the compression with a gague, only with my finger.....not the best i know. the GP all lit the light, and the injectors were all pop tested. if it is not a valve, what do you suspect? i was getting fuel to all cyl and with the valve covers off all looked good.

 

turn the motor over with a socket and brakeover and see if there isany real bad tight sots when you turn it over. what did you figure out when you did the comression test? did one have no compression at all? i have seen a few 7.3's with droped valves. but the valve spring would be laying on top of the head. supposedly, 7.3's are bad about wearing the valve guide out because the valve seals were updated and the new valve seals didn't let any oil in for lubrication and thats why they wear out so bad. its wut i heard anyways.

 

i have seen a 7.3 run with a broken piston and the rod was slappin around bangin and clangin, real pretty noises, but that hoe was still runnin. needed a new block after about 10 miles.

 

I found that my white smoke issue went away after the injection pump was replaced. The old one was pretty fouled up, not to mention it was not delivering the correct amount of fuel for the turbo.

What exactly is the horrific noise? Can it be pin pointed to one area of the engine?

 

If you have 200K on her and the original ip then it probably needs replaced. I just had myne replaced at 200K. $$$$$$$$$

 

when did this horriffic noise start??? what does it sound like? is it fast or slow? does it sound like a lifter rattling on a gasser or more like a fast knock like a rod knocking?