it gets that cold here in manitoba too -40 or -55 with windchill

 

Yeah...I've been unfortunate enough to experience prairie winters. Winterpeg gets so cold so fast.

 

Try working on an oil rig in manitoba in the winter, then you can talk to me about cold...

 

How has this turned into a contest of who's been in the coldest weather?

 

Speaking of Cold.. No won't bore you with that.

When I start my truck in the morning I glow plug it till the light goes out. Crank it up and walk away. Maybe 5 or so minutes later I come back and the truck is idling away at about 1000 or 1100 all by it's self. Soon as I touch the brake it drops back to normal idle.

Seems like the truck knows when it's cold and how to take care of it's self.

Erick Panger
LESK WVO Conversions
2005 F250 PSD Running on Veggie Oil
Plant Drive Two tank WVO system.
Hotstk, Vormax, A1000 and Vegtherm

 

Yep, mine does the same. Only if it is below about 50 deg though. I think read somewhere that the colder it gets the higher the idle...

 

After reviewing those pics... I wanted to know how my EGR was doing. So yesterday I yanked it to review. The F350 has 15644 miles and 401 engine hours on the display.

Here are the pics

https://www.ford-trucks.com/user_gal...id=104474&.jpg
https://www.ford-trucks.com/user_gal...id=104475&.jpg

After cleaning up lightly
https://www.ford-trucks.com/user_gal...id=104477&.jpg

So for additional info on my driving habits

I am bone stock as for the mechanical workings of the drivetrain. I use Power Service Diesel Kleen (gray) @ 16oz per 25-30G of fuel. The first 1250 miles I followed the engine break-in procedures listed here in the Tech folder. First oil change done at this point as well. I then loaded my 2500lb slidein camper and pulled a utility trailer (1500-2000 lbs.)and proceeded to add 13000 miles over a 9 month period traveling thru the Rocky mountains of the US and Canada (the Canadian one were prettier). I ran at the posted speed limits. We averaged 12.5 mpg for the entire hauling/towing period... not much flat ground driving and mostly rural highways as there is little scenery from the interstates. Oil changes were with dino oil @ 5000 mile increments.

I do not have a lead foot and tend to baby the truck sice the cost of fuel is so high! Now it is used for work travel which is 10 miles one way each day. Once its warmed up I give it one good "floor" up to freeway speed to "blow out" any buildup from my babying it. Unloaded I'm getting 14.5 mpg in city.

 

Thanks 05Bluehog! Looks like yours was a lot drier with less oily gunk. I wonder if that is from the Power Service or not many short trips...

 

OK, you guys are pulling these out with a bit of lifting with pry bar and wire?
I was told there's a special puller needed. From Ford it's more than a hundred bux!

I had an issue about 5,000 miles ago. Coming off a 5,400ft pass, dropping through 7% grades to about 1,500 feet in about twenty minutes. Cold night towing my camp trailer. Lots of decelerations/compression braking. (ZF6spd)

As the road leveled out I got back into the throttle and experienced the dredded cough and snibbles. Not a lot of power and with a lot of smoke. I figured it was EGR or something tied to it. We made it to hunt camp dragging our tail. Next morning, Same thing. So I shut the engine off and I disconnected the EGR valve. I left it that way for the last 5,000 miles or so. Now I get the recall notice in the mail last week. So, I've reconnected it. Runs like a champ. (I've posted to the E5015 recall thread)

Now I see in this thread, that it appears pretty easy to pull the valve. I'm really interested in how it looks. I run Power Service in a normal mix, any time it's below 40*, and any time I'm towing. (so just north of Seattle, that's pretty often, 9/12 months a year). I drive 19 miles to work daily. Rural highway 55mph. (in fifth gear, that's about 1,300rpm. There can't possibly be much Exhaust Backpressure. -EGR opens when EBP is less than Manifold Pressure, Right? So, with the 4" turbo back, with cat, without muffler exhaust, I can't believe there's more than 1-2psi pre-Cat.) So I gotta believe that my EGR valve is open 80% of it's life. Shifting through gears with the ZF6, I'm sure it cycles open/closed more often than with the Torqueshift transmission.

I do have to pull out in traffic often, so I get to go through the gears at strong throttle so there's no worries that I'm leaving carbon buildup in the cylinders or exhaust. EGT pre-turbo runs about 650* when I'm cruising. But when going through the gears it'll hit 900* unless I'm towing, where it's liable to hit 1,150+* then. Boost is normally less than 5psi at cruise, but normal driving will get it to 15psi when accellerating through the gears. Up to 30psi when towing if I've got my foot into it on a grade. I get 17+mpg on average. Logged with every fill-up. Best of 21mpg on the freeway at ~65mph. Worst of 14.5mpg towing across the passes. I don't baby this truck, but I don't abuse it either. I've towed anything from a utility trailer full of motorcycles to being 3,000lbs over weight.

If nightly temperatures are below 40*, my block heater is plugged into a timer that turns on ~3.5hrs before I intend on driving the next morning. I religiously warm my engine before driving. Approximately half way to operating temp. At least 1/4. Factory pre-programmed idle pattern. Coming up to 30,000 miles on my 04/04 built truck/engine. I also let my pre-turbo EGT's cool down to ~350* before shutting down the engine. I live on a rural highway, so turning into driveway from 55mph, temps are well above 575* as I idle to my parking spot. Less than a minute or so of idling is all that's needed to cool down. (I usually walk out to the mail box then shut down.) There have never been fuel control modifications/tuner installed. I purchased my truck with a little over 700 miles on it, and most of that was the dealer trade/transfer to my location. Factory oil and first dealer oil change @1,500mi was dino oil. Since then it's been Delo400. After the initial oil change, initial break-in was an 1,800 mile hunting trip towing ~6,000lbs.

If this EGR valve is that easy to remove, I just might do that this weekend when I do the oil/fuel/air filter change, before I even call my stealership to get the recall scheduled. -but I'm still chicken of a reflash. Truck's never been back to the dealer since the initial oil change. NEVER!

I'll let you know what I see.

-Steve

 

Man sounds like you got a good one. Your fuel mileage is really good. I drive mine easy too. This weekend, however, I towed my 7x16 enclosed ATV trailer, maybe 4500#, from St. Pete to Ocala and back. Lie-o-meter said 11.6 when I got home. Ran mostly 70mph or less. 4400 miles on the truck. Power Service at 16oz/tank.

I was hoping for better than this especially towing in FL. If I hit the mountains it is certainly not going to get better.

Is this what the "improvements" from 2004 to 2006 have cost? 2-3mpg?

I watched my boost gauge. Never saw it past 27-28psi. EGR is still connected. I think I read that if you unplug it goes down to 28psi. Maybe mine is not working now???

 

Jackofalltrades,
Please do post pics of your egr. I personally thing the original poster has something else going on in his truck to cause that kind of gunk on the egr.

 

Yamahonda41, As flat as Florida is, I can't imagine that you'd ever need to hit more than 20psi boost. Even starting out from a stop light to get to cruising speed. Your fuel economy would indicate to me that you've either got a lead foot, or more drag from your trailer than you might think. I have a 25 foot camp trailer that weighs in loaded anywhere from 5,500 to 6,500 pounds. Cruising at 65ish, on level ground, boost is seldom more than 9psi. Yes, if I want to pass someone, or when I'm entering the freeway, boost above 20psi is normal. Or, if I'm pulling the load up a 7% grade with my foot into the throttle at 60mph, more than 20psi is normal.

Have you made any modifications to the drive train of your truck? Do you have a dually with 4.10:1 gearing? Bigger tires? Did you encounter a head wind both to and from your destination on your recent trip? (here in Washington, towing anything, speed limit is 60mph)

I will add, that fuel economy for me showed a nice increase as the engine broke in. 7,500 to 10,000 there's a noticable increase. But I've never seen less than 14.5mpg when towing from the northwest coast of Washington to Idaho. A couple passes more than 5,000 feet and many rolling hills on that trek with a few 6% and 7% grades that are more than just a couple miles long.

It's not my intent to change the subject of this thread, -just responding to a post. I'll be sure to photograph my EGR valve when I get it out.

-Steve

 

Jacko, No mods to truck. OEM Conti 18" tires, 3.73 gears, SRW F250. I know the drag on that Haulmark Trailer is severe. I got about 8-9mpg with my F150 CC 4x2 running 75mph. This is about a 40% increase but still was expecting to get 15-16 towing instead of 11.6...

Just hit 4600 miles. Hopefully will get better after 10,000. If I don't use cruise the boost is much lower. Cruise waits until it's too late to get back on the throttle so even here in FL it is downshifting a lot more than if I don't use it.

Back to the subject - I will pull my EGR at 10,000 miles and take pics to add to our data collection.

 

I got back from the dealer bitching about having to replace my EGR valve for the third time in 60,000 miles. (04). They told me that Ford has a new design turbo that would cause the EGR valve not to plug. They replaced both the turbo, EGR valve, and new program for my truck, under the Ford 100,000 mile drive train warranty. All work was done in one day, and it seamed the dealer got it right the first time.

I took a trip to Ohio and back, 700 miles, it seems I even got a better mpg. Do you think Ford could have got one right for a change?

 

Heck yea man, after 3 years and half a billion dollars worth of warranty work I know at least once it can be done!!!