Yes, exhaust has a part in EGT's. Just the same as intakes do, turbo A/R, exhaust back pressure and free flowing systems in their entirety do. I don't have the time to find a few examples here on the FTE because I am wiring up my basement to be a wood shop. 2-2-2-4 service wire can be a bitch to work with at times...

 

The 7.3L is anything but quiet. What is considered a "reasonalbe" level for us is what most others consider loud (except for maybe the 12V Cummins guys).

I have a hard time having a conversation with my wife no matter if the windows are up or down.

 

Guys....I got this time machine for Christmas.....I set it to 2005, and I didn't install the 4" MBRP.

IMO I think the exhaust has such little difference in egt that it's a non issue to keep the OEM.

 

When I was bone stock I saw a 50*-100* Egt difference with a 4" system.

 

I think I am going to install the MBPR. My plan is to use the CSD downpipe, then the flex pipe Sous recommended to the 4" MBPR. Ultimately I already own the new exhaust kit, it looks bad *** and I plan on doing injector upgrades when my stock injectors die. The 4" exhaust can't hurt, it looks much better than my rusty stock exhaust (which is the actual reason I got the MBPR) and maybe I can squeeze a few more horses out of the old girl when I get the injectors and a tune.

 

If I were in your position and already had the MBRP kit on hand, I would do the same thing. No sense in spending half of what the exhaust kit cost to send it back.

I like my MBRP kit mates to the CSD down pipe very much. It sounds great, looks great and is pretty quiet. My wife and I can have a normal volume conversation at 65 mph with no problems hearing each other.

Good choice sir!

 

Good news on the GP's... Today it was 29 degrees since the fellas up north left the door open and chilled us southerners off a bit. I decided to test the GP's as it doesn't get much colder here in north GA. If it does, I usually set a fire in the house and stay inside. I gave the truck 40 seconds (timed on stop watch) to warm the GP's and cylinders up before turning the key to start. The truck started in about 1.5 seconds. I was counting as the truck was cranking and didn't make it to 2 Mississippi. No loping, no lugging or anything out of the ordinary except for a few seconds of minimal white smoke. I was expecting the smoke though due to the temperature of the engine and fuel.

Good news there for sure!

I loaded the truck with 942 lbs of landfill items to take to the landfill. This is stuff that is too big or heavy to go into the normal bin like construction waste from home upgrades, truck parts that don't fit well into the bin, an old wooden shed that we tore down, things of that nature. I knew it was 942 lbs because of the weigh out receipt that I received from the weigh station controller.

On the way to the landfill there are a couple of small hills. I was going 35 MPH in 5th gear intentionally lugging the truck up a hill to see what the temperatures would be for EGT's. They were dead on 500 degrees and dropped a bit as I crested the hill. The RPM of the engine was ~900, yes just below 1000. Rolling down the road in 4th gear at 45 MPH and ~1500 RPM the EGT's were at dead on 400 degrees.

Once I finish upgrading the 5th wheel with solar, we hope to take the camper out at that point and give her a shake down trip before our big trip in the spring. I should have some EGT's and performance results then. I am hoping in February sometime, but that will all depend on the progress made on the camper and the weather near the coast. Be that the east coast or the gulf coast.

 

Thanks for the continued updates.

 

Nice to hear Sous. That work is paying off. Good to hear you're using it too. The 7.3 does not like to sit for very long.

 

Where in North Georgia are you? I am staying down by Valdosta for the winter. Was pretty cold here Friday morning with a heavy frost. Looking forward to some tow testing.

 

Hartwell, just off the lake in the country.

We used to live in middle GA, but prefer the north of the state much more.

 

Its a beautiful lake and area!

 

Sous, I read through your thread and appreciate all the hard work and detail you have put into it and your truck. Thank you for that!!

In the process of understanding your goals and how to obtain them I guess I missed your expected rwhp/torque with the stock injectors/SXE setup. You do have my interest up. Are you expecting a modest rwhp and a fairly big torque number? Maybe similar to some of the smaller semi's (I think they are called class 8 trucks).

Reason I am asking is I lucked into a 2000 F250 7.3 4x4 SCLB with the ZF6 and 66k on the clock. Its going to be my work truck and will see a lot of towing for work plus pull my toyhauler at times. I was planning on injectors, turbo ect and worried about EGT's while towing. Your thread has given a lot to think about.

Thanks in advance!

 

@Tinstar1 , you are very welcome. I am glad that this thread with input from a lot of FTE'rs has helped you.

As for expected HP/TQ numbers, that is hard to say and a certain number was never really my goal. As you said, I am running stock injectors and there is only so much they can do. My goal for the truck was to build an efficient towing machine while maintaining the longevity and reliability of the 7.3.

I think I have done that with the SXE turbo. It is far more advanced than any drop in turbo and pushes more air at a lower boost pressure. The EGT's and performance level when towing is where my focus was. I believe that between the SXE, 1023 tunes and the overall health of the truck, it will do very well on even the steep grades.

The T4/SXE combo is a big investment up front. Although if you sell the take off parts... well, I am sure you saw my numbers listed earlier...

The SXE for me was an investment into the life of the truck and a way to enhance my towing ability.

 

We need some towing reviews with the setup now that it is together. I am interested in the "lower" boost pressure statement. Earlier you stated that you easily hit 30psi boost. 30psi just sounds pretty high given the 64.5/73 size of the turbo. Whenever I've gone "bigger" my boost pressure always drops. Have talked to a few people that are S366/stock injectors that don't go over 24psi.