Greetings! I am the proud owner of a new (to me) 2000 F-350 with the 7.3L Power Stroke. I regularly tow my trailer up and down a stretch of road called Parleys Summit which is quite a long steep grade. I have always downshifted with my older F-250 with the 460 to help from burning up the brakes. But reading through the manual of the F-350 it said not to do that. What is the best way to slow down your rig with a diesel?

Thanks, Rich

 

I'm going to assume you mean with an auto transmission, cause I know quite a few members on here mention downshifting and keeping the ebpv with the zf6. I know i downshift with my 99.5 zf6

 

the trans is the weaker part of your rig unless it has been upgraded.


Do you have a gauge and a trans cooler in it?


As far as downshifting, you can, just don't over rev it.


Might look into an exhaust brake and see if one is out there for your model year.

 

I am not familiar with that road, is it highway? With my '02, I'd turn OD off descending grades at highway speeds to help hold the truck back.

 

Richlars, I would invite you to visit the 99-03 diesel section here: https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/forum31/

There is a wealth of information there available for you to read for days on end.

In regards to your question, perhaps the manual was instructing you not to downshift when the RPM's are already high if you can help it. I drive a ZF6 manual truck, but if I anticipate that I will need to use the transmission to maintain a slower speed, I will regulate the speed and downshift at the crest of the hill.

We do not have an exhaust brake like some of the new fancy trucks have, but we have been towing heavy for almost 2 decades now all over the continent.

I tow 12K lbs of 5th wheel all over the country and never have a problem keeping speeds comfortable for the conditions or grade of the road. There is a learning curve driving the diesel coming from a big gasoline engine. For example, the sweet spot on the 7.3 is about 2000 RPMs, but if you are climbing a grade do not be afraid to get up near 3000 RPM. The 7.3 can run all day long at 3000 RPM and not even sweat.

Normally my truck will be around 28-30 PSI on the turbo at about 2800-3000 PSI climbing a grade at 65 MPH and maintaining speed.

Learn the truck, make sure it is 100% in regards to maintenance and enjoy the ride.

 

Yes it is an automatic. It is so new to e that I still haven't learned many of the basics. I had all that down with the 93 460 E4OD. In fact, when I went test driving trucks I realized that I didn't have a clue as to what I should be listening or feeling for. I really lucked into a gem after driving a few dogs.
Thank you so much for your help!

Rich

 

Thank you so much Sous for first of all your service to our country and then for the great advice. I look forward to following it closely. This week I plan on doing a fluid change and I do love Amsoil Products so it will be all Amsoil.

It has an older Edge Attitude chip on it and I hear that keeping an eye on the exhaust temp is critical. It also has a 4" exhaust, but other than that pretty stock. I plan on keeping it that way. When searching I was worried that most of the trucks I was looking at were owned by young knot-heads who had done all kinds of detrimental mods, beat the crap out of them and the expected to sell them at top dollar.

Thanks again for the advice,

Rich

 

Thank you for the kind words Rich, and it is good to have you with us. You will find that the FTE is a great place to be.

Your right, if the truck has a tuner of any sort, you really should have an EGT gauge at the very least. Stock is OK, but as Scott mentioned above there are modifications you can do that will only improve the serviceability or life of the truck, like the 6.0 transmission cooler. If you are changing the fluid in the transmission, now would be a great time to upgrade it. The 7.3 transmission cooler is a weak point of the build.

Jump over to the 7.3 section I linked above and grab a beverage of your choice. There is so much information there and I invite you to try the search function and gather questions. Just about any question you could come up with has been asked and answered there, but we are always looking for new ones.

The truck is a great truck. It is a bit dated, but there is a reason why they hold their value like they do, they just keep going...

 

The Parley's part is more of a local term, sorry. It is I-80 from the east side of Salt Lake City up to the summit near Park City. It has a couple of run-away ramps. The west side is the bad side. Eastbound is uphill and the old 460 did ok so long as I could keep momentum up. Sometimes it is difficult to time your moves between the turtle slow truckers and the bullets going up with no problem at all.

Thanks for the advice,

Rich

 

So would you recommend a stock 6.0 Ford cooler? Is that a fairly easy transition? I have always enjoyed turning my own wrenches, but getting to the age I don't tackle the tough projects any more.

 

Yes, I absolutely would. I believe from what I have read over on the 99-03 7.3 forum it is not a difficult job if you are a bit mechanically inclined, but could not tell you for sure as I have a ZF6 manual.

I can say that most guys get the 6.0 cooler from a reseller like RiffRaff, but some opt for the cheaper Dorman version.

I would not call it tough at all, maybe time a bit time consuming. But, if you are looking to swap the fluid, now is the time.

Again, the transmission is the weak point in your truck. A valve body can help as well, but your best bet is to head over there and read as much as you can, take notes and go from there.

 

x2 on the 6.0 cooler, they work well.

 

The 6.0 cooler for sure. Here is the thing about transmission braking with an automatic transmission. When using the transmission for braking it will gradually get warmer as it has to slow the truck. Nothing is free whether it is heat at the brake pads or into the transmission fluid. Braking produces heat.

This is not a big deal, but that is where the 6.0 tranny cooler comes in. You can see a slow rise in transmission temperature, if you have a gauge. Not huge, but it is there. When running our 7.3 I use the transmission on grades, but also use the service brakes and we do have the 6.0 cooler.

Stay cool,

Steve

 

Thank you all for such good advice! I am so excited about this truck. Each time I inspect for one thing or another I marvel at what great shape it is on for a 17 year old truck. I am excited to hook up the trailer and give it a tug. Next weekend we get to try it out going over the dreaded"Parleys Summit". I am going to try to get the 6.0 cooler on before that.