Per the title, this one is weird even for someone as seasoned on the 7.3 as I am....

I was driving to work this morning when suddenly this abnormally loud screech came from the engine. I was in moving traffic where I couldn't pull over, so while I looked for safe place to pull over, the first thoughts through my head were:

- The Waterpump sprang a leak
- Alternator seized up
- AC Compressor seized up
- The belt was failing and about to come off
- The tensioner or idler were failing

I pulled over to check my suspicions and found that none of the above were the case. I did, however, notice the following things:

- Seconds before I safely pulled off the road, I started smelling a burnt, but moist electrical smell which prompted me to quickly pull over in case it was a fire.

- While looking below the hood from the passenger side, I noticed a small spark coming from the area between the crankshaft and tensioner.

Knowing I have the AAA card to play, I carried on to work and made it there without issue. Heading home, however, things got interesting....

Before I started my truck, I looked below it to make sure it wasn't leaking any vital fluids and find this along with a small shred of the belt:





I decided to try driving home before I called AAA and things seemed ok minus one thing. Driving, the engine is smooth as glass and you would never think anything was wrong with it. Sitting at a light idling, the engine has a consistent vibration to it that only happens when you're stopped and the engine is idling. It even does it neutral with my foot off the brake.

 

have you identified what it is yet?

 

Damper coming apart or coming loose?

 

Is your AC working. Not part of the ac compressor clutch is it??

 

I haven't identified what the part is yet, but the damper/harmonic balancer looks like its ok. The AC worked fine yesterday on the way home from work, so I know it's not that.

On the way to work this morning, I noticed that it seems to be happening in the higher RPMs (while accelerating) as well as while its idling. Mueckster was kind enough to give me a harmonic balancer so I have that in my corner. I'll run some diagnostics with the AE to make sure I don't have an injector problem and follow up.

 

Performed KOER and got codes for the GPCM:

P1397 and P0670

I unplugged the GPCM and it seems to run a little better, but still with the same vibration.

It doesn't seem to be an injector issue since with the ICP plugged or unplugged it doesn't report any codes. I also ran a cylinder contribution test and it passed with flying colors.

My next steps are to change the ICP and CPS as a precaution, but whatelse could this be?

Here is a video of my harmonic balancer at idle:

 

I would pull the belt off and give everything a spin by hand to see if anything feels abnormal as well as check the charging system due to the report of "burnt, but moist electrical smell"

 

The 1397 code is a system voltage out of spec code. What is your voltages? I wonder if you took out a wire somewhere...

 

I have the special tool for removing the damper wear ring on the HB along with the damper R&R set. Let me know if you go that route, and I can make a trip to Houston and visit some family while I am there. I have a brother in The Woodlands I can stay with while I am there if necessary. He is a diesel/heavy equip mechanic. That said, I would be more worried about finding out if that piece of metal came off my truck and WHERE it came from!!!

What is the fluid all over the bottom of the block under the balancer....looks like it is on the lower hose as well?

 

The harmonic balancer/damper/crank pulley is suspect. When you had your LPOP replaced, did you go with an OEM one or with the Melling unit?

 

Exactly what I figured....It was replaced the Spring of 2012 and was replaced with the Melling M208.


As far as the fluid, it's oil from the LPOP seal. I too noticed it leaking from the front of the engine and it's another reason why I wanted to tackle the Harmonic Balancer and kill two birds with one stone.

The more I stare at that piece of metal, the more I think I know where it came from....

Last summer while on my way home from fishing in Sargent, the idler pulley started to squeal sounding like a grinder against metal. It got me just outside of Pearland before it finally gave and came apart as I was driving. What was left of the pulley was scorched and I never really found where all of the debris went to. So I'm guessing that ring may have come from there, it just finally worked it's way loose from wherever it was.


All that being said, Nicmike, I will definitely take you up on your offer!

Shoot me a PM with details and what's convenient for you.

 

Did you replace the damper wear ring when you put the M208 on last year? It is what fits between the damper shaft and the LPOP seal. Ford says it is required when replacing the LPOP or damper... The old wear ring on mine had a groove worn in it when I did my LPOP a couple weeks ago. I posted pics in another thread in this section. It was an LPOP thread of some sort...

 

Unfortunately I didn't do the work for the LPOP Spring 2012. I had Powerstroke Magic do it before the leak got bad and that's what lead to another siutation occurring.