My truck is legal to drink these days; built 8/99. Legal to drink oil, it seems. And then just **** it right back out. I have gone 3-for-3 on fixing an oil issue only to discover a new one along the way - that's getting real, real old. I did a reboot of a chunk of the system - front main seal was leaking so replaced the now aged LPOP at that time. When the shop finished, the guys said "by the way, the valley is full of oil, too."

Though with only a pretty slow leak I decided to hold out till the new batch of synthetic had more miles on it. But, the truck wouldn't wait - 2 oil leaks now. The top end one could be the gasket around the HPOP - but that is a rebuilt unit.

The serious new, basically un-driveable leak is the dip stick tube mount.

They suggested going with the aftermarket mount from Strictly Diesel. That creates a work-around vs taking off the whole oil pan to replace with Ford's design, the way I understand it. Though would also require letting one nut off the back side remain in the pan forevermore, but that does seem acceptable.

I'm about to order that as it wouldn't be in their normal supply chain and a hassle for them to do it. And will just add on an entire new tube too as 21 year old parts open to the road might be a little crumbly anyway.

So, just wondering who else has lived through this one and were there any I-wish-I-wouldas along the way?


Doh! Forgot other key question - would it be simpler to get a new tube via any of the 4 main FLAPS chains, rather than shipping it in from Arizona?

 

or, another entry in the FML week I seem to be having, this kit from Strictly Diesel is listed as out-of-stock. I haven't contacted them to see an estimate on when that might end.

Any other options here?

I already blew out the seam in a dual trans/coolant radiator in an old Toyota, my normal back-up vehicle, just the other day, and it is now junkyard bound.

 

Take a look at the @DieselOrings (an FTE Sponsor) dipstick to oil pan fitting repair kit, which does NOT require the removal of the oil pan, and thus does not require removal of the engine,

The Diesel O Rings kit is in stock right now, and at just $63.99 as of this writing, is almost 5 times less expensive than Strictly Diesel's $300 "golden nugget" that you report is out of stock.

Dipstick adapter repair kit for the 7.3L diesel at Diesel O Rings

 

Theres another option as well...it looks like the golden nugget but, you weld it on...80 buks...ill find the "ad"

they gone up in the last month..


https://www.dieselpowerproducts.com/p-complete-performance-dsf-wi-weld-in-dipstick-fix-94-03-73l-ford-powerstroke

 

Good call but with one big caveat:

The precious metal repair WILL fix the oil leak. The repair kit MAY keep leaks at bay for a while but sometimes it doesn't work at all. The problem lies within the pan itself with the o-ring groove in the adapter (the part IN the pan) - sometimes the flange is bent so far back (often NOT by overtightening but because the force of the swelled-up o-ring actually is enough to warp the pot metal) that the tiny cross-section o-ring included in the kit cannot possibly even attempt to seal the gap and will often fall out before the repair is completed. Trans-gel will hold it in place until the engine gets warm.....but then it just falls out of the groove and you're at square one again.

I'm going to give away a little secret - called a #328 o-ring. I buy these things in bulk from MSC and they are 3/16" in cross-sectional width and fit in the groove perfectly. These will take up the gap in between the flange and the inside of the pan although sometimes they take a little bit of effort to get the threads started if the flange isn't bent just quite enough. A bit of "Right Stuff" on the threads and the back side of the nut will keep the nut from backing off and help seal the little indexing groove from any potential seepage. There are dozens of 7.3s running around here with the larger cross-section o-ring and no repeat leaks.

 

The Diesel O-Rings Kit w/ a very generous application on Permatex Ultra Black worked on mine. Until I had to pull the pan anyway to deal w/ a oil pick up issue. After seeing how much the adapter had rolled at the seal face I was surprised at how well the Ultra worked. Now it's got a new adapter and o-ring with a more reasonable application of Ultra. That stuff is a mother bear to get off if/when the time ever comes.It took a razor blade cut all the way around just to get the nut to break free.

 

Good stuff everyone, thanks!

I’m not opposed to using the 3 bill solution and then not having to worry about it in future. The build-your-own gasket solution seems more like a bandaid that would inevitably need another bandaid later. The more just exactly perfect O-ring is intriguing as is the bit of welding option.

But supply chains and shipping are a mess right now of course, so time could become a factor for me. The replacement external part is expected to be back in stock later this week - but UPS ground shipping is suggested as only realistic option.

I have changed the starter myself a couple times over the years but can’t recall a visual of this point along the way. Overall seating the new parts seems to me better handed off to an experienced pro and will probably let my local shop make the call.

 

Check out 73dipstick.com RR sells them. They have no interior o ring. It is the one I will be trying. Looking forward to your review.

 

I could maybe be onboard if they used a stainless nut as well Heck even just a coated steel one, but aluminum. Not so sure about that, those threads are pretty fine. Plus that's down low collecting all the extra good road trash, grime, and salt. Aluminum corrodes to easy in those kind of conditions.

 

Y2KW57 likes this post.

(See, you're racking up likes already, and we haven't even flipped the switch yet)

 

@jackstraw PM SENT

 

I had to use the golden nugget , as the threads on the dipstick flange were stripped, problem solved!

 

I'm hopeful I never need to do this repair, but if I do I will try to bribe a friend of mine with access to a CNC machine to make a couple. Not for sale of course, that would be patent infringement.

 

I did that too. I had a friend with a mill make a one-off deal for me on a job I was doing.

 

LOL, an early adopter I see! Reps for that.