So I've only put about 500 miles on the truck (00 7.3L, 160k miles) since buying it in March, but I'm leaving for the 4th with the wife and dogs and driving about 2k miles over a week or so. As preventative stuff I topped off the coolant and changed the oil and fuel filter. The oil was easy enough, 15 quarts of Rotella and a Motorcraft filter, but the fuel filter was a bigger problem. I popped the cap only to find that the PO used a Purolator filter (filter and lid are one piece), so my Motorcraft wouldn't work. Went back to the store and got another Purolator and finished up the work.

2 questions:
-When I went to start the truck in park, it wouldn't turn over. Everything looked like it should, but no dice. Shifted to neutral and it fired right up. I was a bit confused, so after all the maintenance was done I tried it again and it did the same thing. It's never done this before, I'm assuming just a shifter problem? Not hitting a safety switch? Any easy fixes? More of a nuisance than anything, but I'd like it to be fixed.
-Though I like Purolator (I use their PureOne filters on my Suby) I know OEM is recommended for the fuel filter. Should I source an OEM lid at the next interval and change over? It's $40 or so I'd rather not spend, but if it's really a good idea, I suppose I'll do it.

Also, any maintenance recommendations prior to the trip? Everything appears to be just fine and the fluids have been swapped recently and are at the correct levels. Thanks guys,

Geoff

 

No opinions?

 

I am not familar with the diesel per-say as I have a V-10.

I would suggest:
Check belt if it has cracks replace it.
Clean battery cables.
Check wiper blades.
Check brakes, pads for thickness.
You have mentioned you checked ALL FLUIDS make sure you did.
Check tires and tire pressure.
Check air pressure in spare tire, lug wrench and jack.
Check for any leaks.
Check AC, for proper operation and drainage.
Take along a tool kit and a crescent wrench
Toss a roll of duct tape in the tool kit and a few feet of wire.
If you have a few extra fuses throw them in the tool kit.
Take a good walk around your truck as if you were going to buy it and had never seen it before. Replace anything that need replaceing before you leave.
Have a safe trip and drive carefully.

 

I wouldn't blow money on an expensive filter and my ex only starts in park. Did you change anything to make it do that?

 

Transmission Range (TR) Sensor is my bet. They often go out in Park but not Neutral.
From Chilton:
Raise Vehicle
Unplug sensor
Detach shift cable
remove tr sensor bolts
remove sensor
install in reverse

To check the sensor, raise the vehicle on jack stands, put the vehicle in reverse to see if brake lights come on, if they do, the sensor is bad, if they don't, you can loosen the bolts and take the shift cable off, LOOSEN, do not remove the bolts, and move the sensor back and forth until the reverse lights come on.

Hope this helps some man.

 

It's actually the exact same price as the OEM, but I think it might be pretty much the same as the Wix. Don't quote me on that and no idea if it performs better or worse than the OEM. As for the starting, literally nothing has changed, I pulled it into the garage and it's sat for a week or so. That's it.

Curious on the check method, do all 4 wheels need to be up? And should it be running with my foot on the brake or what? Thanks man.

 

Hey sorry buddy, that's right here above the part where I started in the manual.

Raise the vehicle and support it securely on Jackstands.
The manufacturer recommends the use of a special alignment tool, but there's a quick and easy method to verify whether the sensor is adjusted, and it adjust it if it isn't:
a)Turn ignition switch to On, put the shift lever in Reverse and verify that the back up lights come on.
b)If they do not, but the engine can't be started in park or Neutral, or it can be started in any gear other than Park or Neutral, then the sensor is probably defective.
c)If they don't come on, detach the shift cable from the manual lever, loosen the sensor retaining bolts and move the sensor slightly until the back up lights come on. Tighten the sensor retaining bolts to the torque listed in this Chapter's Specifications and reattach the shift cable.
d) If you can't get the back up lights to come on by moving the sensor slightly, verify that the back up lights and the back up light circuit at okay. If the back up lights and circuit are okay, the sensor is probably bad. (My guess though if you're having troubles with shifting, and starting in neutral, it's the switch, and, and the circuit is fine.

**Transmission Range (TR) sensor mounting bolts :::: Torque 80 in-lbs

Hope this helps. I'm pulling this strictly from the manual, I have no idea how to do any of it, hoping to help out though.