Hey all,

I've got a 2002 V8 7.3 with about 233k miles on it and I'm ready to start investing in some upgrades to increase performance and to have a little bit more fun with the truck. Looking for any and all advice or suggestions on what to start with and where to go to get it. Here's a short list of what I have been thinking of doing:
-Programmer/Chip (DP Tuners seems to be the most favored on these forums)
-Air intake system (box system? open element??)
-Exhaust (4"/5" turbo back?)
-Head Studs
-injectors

Please help me out and tell me what I need to include that is essential or things that would just be fun to add on to this project.
I'll be upgrading the wheels, tires and adding a suspension lift to it eventually but I want to focus on performance upgrades before I get into the aesthetics.

 

Unless you are going really really deep into the mods, head studs aren't needed on the 7.3
I want to say that's in the 40+ psi boost area before people mess with them.

starting with the Hutch & harpoon mod will probably be the most popular recommendation

 

Can you elaborate on what that is? I don't think I know what you're referring to.

 

Stay with the 4" exhaust unless you are going over 400+ HP.

 

I think most will agree that before you start adding power you want to go through your truck and make sure everything is is in top form. Boost leaks, sensors reading correctly, fuel flowing well without air (hutch and harpoon mods), Etc.

Tell us a little about it, Yr, mileage, mods, auto or manual, etc.

You'll also want to add gauges to your list if your going to add tuning or plan to tow. EGT, Boost, Fuel pressure, and tranny temp are common.

For intakes it depends on your tolerance or desire for noise and plans for injectors. The 6637 flows really well but has a higher noise level. The Ford AIS is quieter and flows plenty for stock injectors. The S&B flows enough for bigger sticks and is quieter than the 6637.

 

If you mean the Hutch mod here is a link to a how to

Welcome to guzzle's In-tank Hutch Mod Web Page

There are a lot of variations of this mod so do some searching before you decide how to do yours.

The original ford fuel lines use quick disconnects that over time when worn allow air to be sucked in. The quick disconnects work well under pressure but since our trucks use a pump that pulls fuel from the tank the the lines from the tank to the pump don't have pressure but vacumn. Also the screens inside the tank can get clogged. This mod removes the screens and the QD fittings.

 

The H&H mod involves eliminating the airation of the deisel fuel both inside the fuel tank and by eliminating the leaky quick disconnect fittings. Basically the stock tank dumps the returning fuel directly on top of the pickup point which makes the fuel bubbly. Air in the fuel makes the injectors knock (think of the old plumbing for a sink without air knockers) and you get slightly less performance/milage since you are forcing air into the injection cycle instead of the 100% fuel that the computer is calculating to be injected.

Good hutch / harpoon mod thread

The harpoon mod you do at the same time, you cut the vent/fill tubes inside the tank and you can fill the tank 99.9% full before the pump clicks off due to foam, no more dribbling in the last 2-4 gallons of fuel for 5 minutes. Also some open up the small fuel filler opening so you can use the larger diameter semi truck fuel pumps, they pump faster, and its very handy when towing large tall trailers that may not fit/maneuver well under the passenger vehicle covered pumps.


The next upgrade on this front is the Riff Raff fuel rail crossover ( FRx ) which eliminates the dead head of the fuel system on each head, but this upgrade is a bit more than double the cost of a good diy Hutch mod

 

So the basic run down of the truck right now is as follows:
2002 7.3, 233k miles, 4x4, auto transmission, no modifications whatsoever. All else is well with the truck. I've had no recent issues at all.

In regards to the gauges, I was under the impression that I wouldn't need the gauges if the programmer I went with had the display that monitors a whole myriad of different sensory outputs. I talked to Jody over at DP Tuners and with the set up he was recommending, that's the information he gave me.

 

You will need an EGT guage and fuel pressure guage, there are no sensors to plug into for these on our trucks like that.


A free but time consuming mod is doing a hot torque on your injectors, expect it to take a full weekend your first time under the valve covers. Especially if you clean the oily nastiness off of everything while you are doing it.
Hot torque thread
This is my thread on it, not the best on here but I have torque values and other semi useful info on it in there

 

There are a number of ways to monitor much of the engine by tapping into what the PCM is seeing. Some have tablets and use bluetooth adapters, some have scanners, etc. BUt like Wesley said the PCM doesn't look at EGT or fuel pressure.

You may not be having any issues but you still want to look at your up pipes from top to bottom and make sure there is no soot, would indicate loss of pressure to drive turbo. Do a boost leak check and make sure your not losing boost. Have you ever cleaned your EBP tube. With those miles if not it's time.

If you've owned it the whole time and know the maintenance done then it sounds like you have a solid truck to work with.

 

Thanks for all the info Wesley and AllAboutMPG. Gonna start diving in there to look at all those things and i'll keep lurking around on here looking for info.

 

Too bad I am not still in Oceanside. We could meet up and go over this stuff. I'll echo what these guys have said. The first thing is to go over the truck, change all the fluids, address leaks, check boost leaks, and make sure the truck is in top shape. These SDs run really well stock when they are in top form, so mods are just a plus when you can do them. Oh, annnnnnnd pics or this thread is useless!! LOL Welcome to the forum.