Hey Guys,

I may have finally found the right truck for the right price.

Question has anyone got any insight into 1999 f250 7.3 (i think this is an import) Manual.

What kinda L/100km could i expect Over an auto

IS it like a lot of cars where NEVER buy the 1st of a series as they have all the 'bugs'

are there any known issues?

 

The first models sold in Aus by Ford were 2001's.

This one will be a private import. See if you can find out if its a 99 or what is known as a 99.5 - which is still badged as a 1999 Model Year, but has a number of updates to the engine. You can easily tell the difference between these, by where the "Powerstroke engine" badge is on the front wing/fender for the 99's, where it is on the driver/passenger doors for the 99.5's and up.

The 99's with their mechanical differences have a number of unique parts, and it can be a little more difficult to source parts as a result. The 99.5's ran till 2003 in the states, and for the most part are mechanically similar to the trucks sold here by Ford Oz - i.e. easier to find parts.

There is no significant issues that I am aware of that plagued the early 7.3's that didn't also affect the later ones, I wouldn't be worried about getting an earlier one. I might be worried about the fact that it wasn't a factory RHD model though, you will want to check all the steering and interior quality.

As for manual vs. auto. You might get a little better, but nothing significant. I could eek out 12-12.5l/100km at 110kmh on my ZF-6 truck that had 2" lift/levelling kit and 33" hwy tires. The thing that is substantially better is that the ZF-6 is an extremely solid transmission, and outside of 3rd gear synchro going eventually, they don't have the reliability problems that can plague a 4R100 that hasn't been correctly modified.

 

A good description of the 99-99.5 trucks Adrian, not much more could be said about that, the conversion would be my interest.