2002 F250 SD 7.3L Lariat, Automatic. Hypertech Max Energy Level 2.
A couple months ago I notice an oil leak and couldn't nail down exactly where is was coming from so I took it to my local Ford dealership. A week later and they resealed the HPOP and replaced the turbo pedestal. A week later I started seeing another leak and this time they said it was the valve covers.
Somewhere around the same time, I was driving home and when the transmission shifted into OD, it lost power and the engine shuttered badly like it was missing on half the cylinders. I kept it out of OD until I got home. I checked all the connections and didn't find anything. I cranked it and drove it without any more issues. When it died I had just went across some railroad tracks and thought maybe I had jarred a sensor maybe.
Ove rthe next couple weeks it happened several more times but again I could shut the truck off and restart and the problem would go away. Then last week it did it again when it shifted into 3rd. Engine shutters badly and looses power but this time it would not regain power once dropped into any lower gears. Shut it off, restart and stay below 30 in 2nd and all was fine.
Got it home and pulled the DTCs. It showed a bad IPR. That kinda made since so I replaced it, took it out for a spin and all seemed to be good. Then I was out yesterday and it started doing it again when it hit 3rd gear. I pulled the DTC but only got a P0603. I've got that code a couple times but haven't thought much about it since I've had the battery disconnected several time. This morning I go out and my batteries are dead.
Does anything about the last couple months of my troubles point toward anything? I'm at a loss.

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated

Thanks

Jay

 

Since it seems related to jarring like going over some RR tracks my first thought is a chafed harness grounding on the DS valve cover. On the DS side look for a harness across the valve cover leading to a big square connector. That's the 42 pin connector. Loosen the bolt until no longer engaged. The bolt does not come out it is retained in the connector. Pull connector apart and check underside of the wire harness where it drapes across the VC. It can rub through and random wires will short out. Some liquid electrical tape and split hunk of heater hose will fix and protect it.

Also look at the wire connector at the ICP, a sensor on top of DS head toward the front. If it is wet with oil the sensor is failing and should be replaced. OE part is more expensive here but aftermarket ICPs tend to suck.

Could be other stuff like bad grounds or power slices, but I like to start with the easy things. And that potential chafed harness is a failure point that should be addressed on every truck anyway.

On edit: and welcome to FTE!

 

Something else I started thinking about... It doesn't mess up until it gets hot. 5 miles to work in the morning is good but coming back from lunch it would. 15 miles at 10am 70mph was good but the return at 4pm resulted in 2 hours to get 6 miles. Heat related?

Jay

 

I dont want someone to go without an answer to their questions.

You said you replaced the ipr, but that sounds like an ipr problem. To check get some co2 in a can, like keyboard duster or a cup of ice and dump it on the ipr when it shuts off on you. If the truck starts up then suspect the ipr to be bad.

If problem still persists try replacing the cps, you can use a part store cps but I don't recommend it in the long run. It would be best to get a cps from ford for now and they are the same price. The auto part store CPS suffer from interference from the windshield wipers and when decelerating since the engine isnt during the injectors the truck can shut off and you lose breaks. This happened to us on the highway a few times, scary as hell.

 

Thanks for the feedback.
I drove the truck Tuesday to work and back without any issues and the Wednesday evening coming home it died hard (I live 5 miles from work).
It wouldn't crank at all at first. After about 15 minutes it would start but sounded like it was running on 2 cylinders (dieseling). 15 minutes after that it sounded like it was running on half they cylinders. Shortly after that a little rough and then by the time the tow truck got there it was running fine.
I believe it's definitely heat related and whatever it is seems to be getting worst. The truck was towed to the dealership Wednesday evening and I haven't heard anything yet. They said it may be a few days before they could get to it.
Hopefully they'll locate the issue and get my daily drive back up. I'll post with whatever they find.

Jay



My daily ride! 5 years in the works.

 

Let us know what they find before you tell them to fix it, that way if its an easy fix they won't charge you an arm and a leg. One member for charged around $250 for getting his flasher relay replaced. I got mine for about $10, the dealership is ridiculous sometimes.

It could be a simple wire shorting out, a quick fix with some electrical tape and a heater hose to encase the wires.

 

Well, after 1.5 weeks at the dealership and back to being daily for a couple weeks, it appears the dealership found and resolved my issues. Apparently it was s broken fuel pickup.
I was associating time with heat, they actually nailed it down to time vs fuel level. Anything less than 1/4-1/3 of a tank and it would only run so long before picking up too much air. Above that level and the broken part must have stayed submerged.
I have to commend the guys at Woody Anderson Ford, in Huntsville AL, for their perseverance.
I hope no one has this problem, but if you do, I hope this thread helps you find resolution faster.

Thanks

Jay

 

Look into the Hutch/Harpoon mods and never have that problem again.
They are cheap to do.