I don't know anything about these chips that help with towing but I was talking to my neighbor who has a newer Ford diesel and he said having a chip put in made a very noticeable difference. I've been living and traveling on mu fiftg wheel without any problems but if there is something I can do to make it run better, well that would be great. We travel for three months with the fifth wheel and then spend 3 months parked somewhere using the truck as our "daily driver".

Do ya'll recommend getting a chip? If so what type do ya'll like? Lastly it's not going to affect the reliability of my favorite truck is it?

Thanks for the input.

 

PHP Hydra chip is amazing.

Nice picture btw.

 

Do you have gauges? That PHP hydra is THE chip for the 7.3. Amazing the difference. Gauges are mandatory though.

 

I don't have any gauges but I was using TorquePro with a tablet on the dash as a display to add "gauges" ... However I haven't used it in quite a while. I assume it would be able to display all that would be needed if I hooked it back up, right? I remember it had all kinds of things you could watch/track.

I used to use it basically just to watch the temperature of the transmission but since I had a second cooler added I haven't worried about that too much.

 

Definitely would work perfectly. EGT monitoring is the one thing to consider adding. With tunes in particular.

 

Awesome, so I can use what I already have to track the egt. What exactly am I looking for, both empty and towing my 10k dry weight fifth wheel (probably about 12k loaded as we travel with full water tanks a lot because we boondock mostly)?

Any other gauges I should be paying attention to also? If so what am I looking for?

I really appreciate the help, though I've been towing and driving this truck all over North America I really don't know too much when it comes to the mechanics. I love the truck and hope to keep it for at least another 10 years or so until my kids will need a crew cab rather than the extended cab that I have.

It's been extremely reliable considering how we use it half the year for towing long distances through mountain ranges and use it as our daily driver the other half of year when my wife works and we've got 330k on it now too, though I take it slow and easy, I don't have anywhere I have to be anyways...

 

with Torque Pro I don’t think you can monitor EGT’s because you actually need to tap the exhaust with a sensor to a gauge. But I certainly could be wrong. I use my cts2 gauge.

I think you’ve already stated why you haven’t had too many problems with the truck overall so far. Very conservative driver.

any history of the truck in regards to maintenance? Most of the trucks this age if not all have leaky up pipes. That will rob you of boost.

what intake do you have?
do you have an updated turbo wheel?

to upgrade to the chip all of the above really ought to be looked into. A chip will absolutely wake a 7.3 up as they are very doggish without but it does come with the cost of the other upgrades too especially if toting family around.

 

There is no EGT sensor, you have to get a EGT gauge or a monitor like an Edge that has an EGT probe with it. Don't add any chip until you have a way of motoring your EGT, boost and trans temperature. The Hydra chip is the best option on the market.

 

As the guys above mentioned, EGT gauge is mandatory with tunes. The tune on the chip will add more fuel to make more power, and if too much fuel is added for too long (a complicated thing) the internals of the cylinder will get hot, potentially hot enough to melt in a bad scenario. Monitoring the exhaust gas temp allows you to know when to pull your foot off the skinny pedal. There is no stock sensor for this so it cannot be seen with Forscan. You'll need to drill and tap your pass side exhaust manifold and install the probe, then wire up a gauge in the cab. Extremely common procedure, lots of how to's on the subject.

Another gauge most get is a boost gauge. It's great for showing off your hot new billet turbo wheel. And some diagnostics, I guess. Forscan can read manifold pressure (same thing) but a dedicated gauge is not expensive. Depends how you want to see the info.

I'd also recommend a Fuel Pressure gauge. FP cannot be read thru Forscan so ya need a gauge. If the truck is running well it's boring and useless. But if the truck runs poorly knowing the fuel pressure makes the diagnosis twice as easy.

You already know how important Trans Temp is. You could read that and boost with Forscan and have dedicated gauges for EGT and fuel pressure. I don't want the hassle of running Forscan while driving so I have 4 dedicated analog gauges; EGT, Boost, Trans Temp, and Fuel Pressure. Once installed they require no further activation or setting up, it's completely passive. Plus they are always in the same spot every time I look so a glance suffices.

Riff Raff Diesel is a site sponsor and sells quality goods at fair prices. Check out their gauge packages and come up with some questions, we're always happy to help people spend money on mods.

I really like Isspro EV2 gauges, but Autometer makes good stuff. Glowshift was the cheapest option for a long time but apparently their quality has improved.

As for what tunes are best, ginormous topic there. Everyone has an opinion. Before jumping on tunes decide if you have other mods in mind. Looking for stock plus is pretty easy. But if you want bigger power say 350hp or more you'll need bigger injectors and a bigger turbo, and then you're looking at completely different tunes. Think thru your goals before starting down the road to PMS. (Powerstroke Modification Syndrome). Speaking of mods, your choices are severely restricted if the truck is registered in California.

One thing I like about DP Tunes is they have a Decel tune. Select that and the EBPV closes to act as an exhaust brake. Great on a long steep descent to save the brakes. Otherwise my tune and switcher setup is pretty much obsolete. Works fine for my application so far. Prolly will change when I win lotto.

Nice looking rig! How long is it? Pic makes me want to get back on the road!

 

The truck is a two truck owner, including me, and it's bone stock I'm pretty sure. The previous owner owned a large truck repair garage (HDT, busses, etc.). He used it basically as his daily driver and since he had his own large shop the truck was immaculately maintained by his employees. I still get complements on how how good of shape it's in since I have to use different shops each time pretty much because we travel so much.

As far as the gauges go I think I'd just go for the whole package. The tablet was a cheap easy solution but it's not as simple as permanently installed gauges. I don't think that'd I'd be doing a whole lot more mods and the one everyone recommended comes with some presets thst seem like they would be sufficient for me.

I appreciate ya'lls help.

 

Looks like a fun PMS interlude, keep us up on the process. Always glad to help you spend money.

 

I just added gauges (EGT, Boost, Fuel Pressure) to my truck before towing from CO to CA for King of the Hammers. First time pulling my 26' gooseneck with a truck camper and rock crawler on it. It's a heavy setup (not sure on exactly what it weighs, haven't scaled it) and I knew I needed gauges before the trip. This was my first time getting to tow with my PHP Hydra in a tow tune. I watched that gauge like a hawk for 2000 miles. It basically ran between 1100-1200 degrees the entire time for 35+ hrs on the road.

Having a tow tune was awesome for keeping the truck in a higher RPM before the auto tranny would shift. It's worth getting gauges and a PHP to tow. I'm already saving for my next round of mods.

 

The driver side manifold is the spot to install. It is wide open and easy to get to.

 

I highly recommend dual egt gauges in a V8 set up. One gauge for each side.

 

Thanks for the advice. I plan on having the truck for at least the next ten years hopefully and don't want to do any damage to it, however I would like firstly better mpg and secondly better performance, though that's not that too important because I'm never in a hurry and so particularly on those 10% grades and such I don't mind hanging out with the semis, lol. Thanks again.