So I had my turbo out to rebuild it so I installed the FRx and the HPx while I had it out. Also installed the high flow banjo bolts and the high flow CVD fittings (much easier with the turbo out of the way). Did the EBPV delete pedestal also. All I can say is WOW! I can't believe the difference! It's like I bought a new truck. It idles so smooth and quiet. Acceleration is a lot more responsive. Seems to have a lot more power. And no more "cackle". It runs so quiet I almost have to get out and listen to see if it's still running.


As for my previous turbo problems, I am pretty sure the EBPV was stuck shut. Couldn't get it to spin up until about 1800 RPM then it would only go up to about 6-8 PSI and immediately drop to 0 when throttle was released. The EBPV was leaking oil all over the back of the valley and down the back of the engine too. I am so glad it's gone. The EBPV delete pedestal was a wise choice. I replaced all seals and bearings in the turbo and installed a billet compressor wheel. It spins up right away and I hammered it on the highway on a slight uphill grade in 5th gear going about 55 MPH and hit 25 PSI of boost no problem. Also installed the S&B filter kit before turbo problems. I guess it didn't know what to do with all the air it was getting after the new filter was installed. Had a tiny K&N filter on it before. You can hear it sucking in the air driving down the road with the S&B filter.


I am more than impressed with these mods. They have proven true to their word for me. I would recommend everyone with a 7.3 to do these mods. Gives you piece of mind to not hear those injectors knocking, and knowing they aren't starving for fuel and oil. Just need to do the hutch/torpedo mod and do away with all the quick disconnects on the fuel line and she will be top notch.


Thanks to everyone on this forum for your advice and knowledge. You guys sure know what your talking about!


And thanks to Riffraff Diesel Performance for all your quality products and great prices!

Mike


2001 F-350 Lariat Dually Supercab 6-spd manual 7.3 Powerstroke Turbo Diesel 185,000 miles

 

I plan to do all of these plus bellowed up pipes and new waste gate controller. I am hoping for similar results to what you have described.

The only thing I am a bit sketchy on is the turbo rebuild. Although, I will study the written and video instructions out there when it gets closer to install time.

Thanks for posting your results, and enjoy the truck.

 

It's not really that hard to do. Riffraff has good instructions on how to do it.

The hardest part is getting the 4 bolts out of the center carrier to the turbine housing. Get you a good 12 point 8mm 1/4" drive deepwell socket. Soak theme in PB Blaster and let them set for a good while before trying to loosen them (I let mine set overnight). Once you get these out it's all pretty easy.


If you are planning to do the CVD fittings, do the passenger side while the turbo is out. I tried to do mine with the turbo still in and it was nearly impossible to get to. Ended up waiting till the turbo was out. Had to remove the alt/power steering pump bracket to do the drivers side but it wasn't that hard to remove. Only 4-13mm bolts. Do the drivers side banjo bolt at this time too. It's behind the bracket. Be sure and order new Viton sleeves for your fuel line connections to the new CVD fittings (not sure why the don't come with new ones). If you order the FRx, it will come with a small tube of Gasoila NPT thread sealer and there is more than enough in it for the FRx and the CVD applications. Only put it on the side that threads into the head.


The FRx is fairly easy to install. I installed it all while the turbo was out. Drivers side was a breeze with the turbo out of the way. Had to remove the AC bracket to do the passenger side. Again, only 4-13mm bolts.


When I did the HPx, I installed the fittings in the heads with the turbo out, but not the tube. Waited until the turbo was back in then installed the tube before installing the spider. Very easy to do. Use Gasoila on the fittings that thread into the head for this also.


The passenger side banjo bolt is a pain to get loose. Lay under the truck with your feet toward the drivers side and you can reach up beside the exhaust and get to it. Be sure to hold the 1/4" drive ratchet in the head of the bolt. Almost rounded mine out before it finally came loose. Comes right out once it breaks free.


Hope you have the same results I did. I can't believe the difference. Best of luck to you!


Mike


2001 F-350 Lariat Dually Supercab 6-spd manual 7.3 Powerstroke Turbo Diesel 185,000 miles

 

Great advice, I and many others will appreciate it when wrenching on the truck.

 

I think the title of the thread should be, "I fixed the reason I had low boost numbers and the truck now runs better."

Otherwise, people are going to think that the other "mods" are the cure for low power problems.

 

This thread is about the FRx and the HPx advantages. I started it to tell my experience with the improvements these mods made. I just added the part with my turbo problems and fixes so everyone would know what I did. I didn't mean in any way that the turbo fix solved low power problems. I meant that I had more power and a smoother running engine with the FRx and the HPx along with the CVD and banjo upgrades.


In no way did I mean rebuilding your turbo and doing an EBPV delete would give you more power, just better boost numbers.


If anyone misunderstands this, I am sorry. All I meant was the other mods I did gave me more power and a smooth, quiet engine. I just wanted to go into detail about everything I did so if anyone was going to have their turbo out at any point and wanted to do the other mods, to try to do them with the turbo out. Makes it much easier to do.


Mike


2001 F-350 Lariat Dually Supercab 6-spd manual 7.3 Powerstroke Turbo Diesel 185,000 miles

 

I didn't take your post or subject in the same way that others may. I think you shared your excitement and opinion on the work you performed on your truck, and the mods you installed when doing the work.

If/when someone searches the forum for the key words in the subject or body, they will quickly understand what your message was and what you were trying to share with us at FTE.

 

Thanks Sous. That was my reason for the post, to share what I learned while doing the work. I was hoping that it may help others later on when doing something similar to what I had to do. That's what this forum is for, right? Sharing knowledge. I know other posts on this forum have sure led me in the right direction and helped me figure out problems. Just hope mine will do the same for someone else.

 

mrm8174 quick question for you. Do you monitor fuel pressure?

If so, did you notice any vibration or flutter in the fuel pressure after you installed the CVD fittings?

I did the same fuel mods that you did, and now I have a vibration/flutter in the fuel pressure. I have a mechanical gauge, so no sender issues.

The reason I'm asking about the CVD fittings is because I read somewhere that the check valves in the OEM fittings are there to dampen any fuel pressure spikes, and I'm wondering if that's what I"m seeing now with out the check valves.

Thanks.
DL1221

 

from what I understand check valves don't affect this.
the purpose of those valves is so your fuel bowl doesn't explode IF you have worn injectors.

- that is what i've been told and would love for someone to elaborate.

I wonder if your FPR is stuck.

 

Also,

I removed my check valves and installed stainless steel lines.
Was SUPER impressed with how quite the truck got (fuel lines were larger diameter And CVs were restricting flow for sure.

Except,

2k miles later I now have 2 injectors that need replacing.

I'm not experienced enough to say if 160k is just end of life for injectors, but at 158 my truck sounded great, I removed check valves and 2k miles later this.

when I took mine off, I was fully aware that their function was to protect injectors and fuel bowl during cranking, but I use 5w40 and with 2 new batteries the truck starts right up in denver winter....so I thought no big deal.

Now I wonder if I was wrong. I hear people go 250k on stock injectors and now I wonder how much do the check valves extend the life of injectors...

 

I'm afraid the same thing might be happening to me. After installing the CVDs, banjo bolts, FRx and the HPx, my truck was very noticeably quieter and was running great. After about 500 miles I've noticed my injectors are starting to chatter again and it seems to have a little bit of a miss. I'm afraid some of them may have given up with the new found pressure they have. They have 186K miles on them. The throttle seems to have a little bit of a flutter too when driving at about half throttle. Guess I'll check the injectors and see.

 

I installed the FRx a while back and noticed it quieted the engine somewhat but I did not notice an increase in power. I decided against the HPx after reading some reports of leaks and ruptures, decided it was not worth having another potential failure point.

 

Now I'm more confused, not sure if these CVDs were a good idea or not, or if they are even my problem. I understand if you have big injectors you need a big fuel supply, but that's not me with my puny Stage 1.5s.

I agree, the stock fittings are very restrictive compared to the CVDs, but Ford put those check valves in there for a reason. I wish I knew what that reason was, or what damage they are trying to prevent. One of the Ford manuals says:

"A check valve is located on both heads to prevent fuel pressure spikes in the fuel rail."

But are fuel spikes bad for the injectors, bad for the fuel bowl, bad for the fuel pump, or bad for what?

As I said, I'm not even sure if the CVDs are causing my fuel pressure vibration (high frequency flutter) that I see in my gauge.

So far I've done the following: Hutch/Harpoon mod (with new lines and a pre-filter), new Bosch fuel pump, rebuilt the fuel bowl, FRx with gold spring, CVDs, the big black banjo bolts (all four of them) also from Riffraff, and new fuel lines to both heads. I've also hot wired the pump directly to the battery, and had it suck diesel directly from a 5-gal jug. And I still get that fuel pressure vibration.

Talked to Clay at Riffraff he said the CVDs shouldn't cause that fuel pressure vibration on my gauge. He said that my mechanical gauge was too sensitive, and I should go with an electric gauge to dampen the fluctuations. Also thinking that what my gauge is picking up is the injectors firing, and that's why the gauge shakes so much. That would explain why the high frequency vibration, and why the gauge is steady during coasting when the injectors are off. But is this normal, or are these the spikes that the factory check valves are supposed to eliminate? Anyway, every other fuel pressure gauge that I've seen is steady as a rock, even with a mechanical gauge.

If anyone that can shed some light on this, I would really appreciate it, I'm fresh out of ideas.

 

I can't tell you whether it was a good idea or not but sure as hell it seems to me that contrary to the pro advice, we are experiencing
-exactly the same failure
-at exactly the same mileage
-after modding the exact same part

Hopefully I'm just crying wolf here.