7.3 Godzilla issues
Thread Starter
|
2nd Gear
Joined: Jun 2023
Posts: 2
Likes: 2
7.3 Godzilla issues
Hello,
I’m a first time poster but wanted to seek some opinions or advice on here from people with more experience and knowledge than me. I’m in the market to buy a 3/4 or 1 ton truck for our families travel trailer. I’ve talked to many friends and read quite a bit about gas vs diesel and decided I wanted a gas 3/4 as I’m not pulling often enough or heavy enough to justify a diesel. I mostly want a safe tow vehicle that’s reliable and can get the job done, I don’t need to tow 20k lbs.
I ordered a 2023 7.3L gas f250 and it’s basically ready to be picked up at this point. Over the last month I’ve seen so many problems online, especially YouTube, with engine failures with the 7.3 (especially under 30k miles). I’m starting to second guess the decision. I had a suburban previously and had to replace the engine at 100k miles due to lifter issues and a few other things which made me swear off buying a GM product again. Now I’m reading the same thing with ford at even fewer miles. Is everyone else seeing these same things or experiencing engine problems with the 7.3? I honestly don’t know what truck to buy
I’m a first time poster but wanted to seek some opinions or advice on here from people with more experience and knowledge than me. I’m in the market to buy a 3/4 or 1 ton truck for our families travel trailer. I’ve talked to many friends and read quite a bit about gas vs diesel and decided I wanted a gas 3/4 as I’m not pulling often enough or heavy enough to justify a diesel. I mostly want a safe tow vehicle that’s reliable and can get the job done, I don’t need to tow 20k lbs.
I ordered a 2023 7.3L gas f250 and it’s basically ready to be picked up at this point. Over the last month I’ve seen so many problems online, especially YouTube, with engine failures with the 7.3 (especially under 30k miles). I’m starting to second guess the decision. I had a suburban previously and had to replace the engine at 100k miles due to lifter issues and a few other things which made me swear off buying a GM product again. Now I’m reading the same thing with ford at even fewer miles. Is everyone else seeing these same things or experiencing engine problems with the 7.3? I honestly don’t know what truck to buy
Fleet Mechanic
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 1,351
Likes: 242
From: North Florida
The guys on here that have 7.3s love them. I haven’t heard these stories about failures. That being said, it’s pretty easy to find horror stories, about any product, on the internet. Buy your truck and enjoy it.
Mountain Pass
Joined: Dec 2011
Posts: 177
Likes: 15
From: Decatur AL
2020 F250 here. 7.3 with 3:55's. I pull a 9000 pound 5 the wheel with not probems. A little over 18500 on the odometer. Pulls like a champ. No problems what so ever. If you spend enough time on Youtube, you will never buy another vehicle ever.
Lead Driver
Joined: May 2021
Posts: 5,903
Likes: 3,525
From: Uh oh, CA
It seems like a lot of folks here are having good experiences with the 7.3 (and for the record, I have a 22 6.7). You can go over and look in the 7.3 specific section to see what folks are talking about there specifically, but the most I have seen in the 2017 section is more folks tend to complain about the 7.3/10 speed pairing than anything else. Honestly, ALL of these motors are great, however, any of them can experience troubles. None of them are exempt from it. The best advice is to take care of whatever engine you get. Stay on top of maintenance, and don't let a dealership do it. It's best to do it yourself since you know it was done correctly and with the correct supplies, plus, it will cost you less! Try and learn at least some about the engine and watch for signs of something not going right. Catch it early if you can and take care of it then... don't keep driving it and worry about it later. Anyway, go get that truck, and enjoy it! I'm sure like the rest of us here, you will love your Super Duty!
Lead Driver
Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 8,691
Likes: 4,810
From: Itinerant
I have 103k miles on my 21 and it is running fantastic.
YouTubers have to make it seem as the word is ending, everything is junk and ready to explode or everyone is naked to get views for money.
Even on this forum there's threads parroting the garbage of what they saw on you tube or a friend of a friend's uncle brother mechanic buddy said something but very few actual owners with the failures. Not saying that there are not failures just not every engine is prone to blowing up.
YouTubers have to make it seem as the word is ending, everything is junk and ready to explode or everyone is naked to get views for money.
Even on this forum there's threads parroting the garbage of what they saw on you tube or a friend of a friend's uncle brother mechanic buddy said something but very few actual owners with the failures. Not saying that there are not failures just not every engine is prone to blowing up.
Cargo Master
Joined: Jul 2021
Posts: 2,970
Likes: 2,407
From: Ridgway, CO
Problems are exceedingly rare on the 7.3 engine. My 2022 has almost 65k on it now and never missed a beat. Others are over 100k with no problems. The lifter "problem" is pretty overblown. There are probably close to a million of these engines on the road today and a small handful have failed, like any engine. The same talk was out there when I bought mine, didn't even slow me down, the 7.3 ten speed is a great combination in these trucks. It is a far better choice than the Ram 6.4 and I think better than the GM 6.6. It pulls better than either for sure.
Lead Driver
Joined: Oct 2014
Posts: 5,957
Likes: 1,362
From: NY/Canada border
No matter the motor or the brand all you're going to see if you search online are the problem children. Not many are going to post about their miles and miles of trouble free service. Look for trouble online and you'll find it in seconds.
That being said, last fall I sold a nice 2005 Lincoln LS for the same reasons. Kept reading of how finicky they are, hard to work on many aspects yourself, limited parts availability, etc. That started nagging thoughts in the back of my mind that I was driving a ticking time bomb. So I sold it while everything was working perfectly.
But at that point I'd already replaced all 4 spring/shock units myself along with upper control arms. To change the transmission fluid and filter was a very convoluted process that I took it to a dealer for just to have peace of mind.
That being said, last fall I sold a nice 2005 Lincoln LS for the same reasons. Kept reading of how finicky they are, hard to work on many aspects yourself, limited parts availability, etc. That started nagging thoughts in the back of my mind that I was driving a ticking time bomb. So I sold it while everything was working perfectly.
But at that point I'd already replaced all 4 spring/shock units myself along with upper control arms. To change the transmission fluid and filter was a very convoluted process that I took it to a dealer for just to have peace of mind.
Trending Topics
Lead Driver
Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 7,975
Likes: 2,670
From: The Great State of Texas
Hello,
I’m a first time poster but wanted to seek some opinions or advice on here from people with more experience and knowledge than me. I’m in the market to buy a 3/4 or 1 ton truck for our families travel trailer. I’ve talked to many friends and read quite a bit about gas vs diesel and decided I wanted a gas 3/4 as I’m not pulling often enough or heavy enough to justify a diesel. I mostly want a safe tow vehicle that’s reliable and can get the job done, I don’t need to tow 20k lbs.
I ordered a 2023 7.3L gas f250 and it’s basically ready to be picked up at this point. Over the last month I’ve seen so many problems online, especially YouTube, with engine failures with the 7.3 (especially under 30k miles). I’m starting to second guess the decision. I had a suburban previously and had to replace the engine at 100k miles due to lifter issues and a few other things which made me swear off buying a GM product again. Now I’m reading the same thing with ford at even fewer miles. Is everyone else seeing these same things or experiencing engine problems with the 7.3? I honestly don’t know what truck to buy
I’m a first time poster but wanted to seek some opinions or advice on here from people with more experience and knowledge than me. I’m in the market to buy a 3/4 or 1 ton truck for our families travel trailer. I’ve talked to many friends and read quite a bit about gas vs diesel and decided I wanted a gas 3/4 as I’m not pulling often enough or heavy enough to justify a diesel. I mostly want a safe tow vehicle that’s reliable and can get the job done, I don’t need to tow 20k lbs.
I ordered a 2023 7.3L gas f250 and it’s basically ready to be picked up at this point. Over the last month I’ve seen so many problems online, especially YouTube, with engine failures with the 7.3 (especially under 30k miles). I’m starting to second guess the decision. I had a suburban previously and had to replace the engine at 100k miles due to lifter issues and a few other things which made me swear off buying a GM product again. Now I’m reading the same thing with ford at even fewer miles. Is everyone else seeing these same things or experiencing engine problems with the 7.3? I honestly don’t know what truck to buy
FTE Stories
Ford Trucks for Ford Truck Enthusiasts
Top 6 Best Deals Available on New Fords & Lincolns Right Now
Brett Foote
This Hennessey Takes the Expedition Tremor's Off-Roading Capability to the Next Level
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Fords at 2026 Carlisle Ford Nationals
Joe Kucinski
3 Best / 3 Worst Parts of Modern Ford Ownership
Brett Foote
10 Amazing Upgrades That Solve Common Ford Truck Owner Headaches
Pouria Savadkouei
Every 2026 Ford Engine Explained
Brett Foote
10 Ugly Ford Trucks That We Still Kinda Love
Joe Kucinski
10 Things Every Truck Owner NEEDS (2026 Edition)
Michael S. Palmer
Rezvani's Latest Post-Apocalyptic Monster Is a Ford F-150 Raptor Underneath
Verdad Gallardo
Fleet Mechanic
Joined: Mar 2021
Posts: 1,654
Likes: 1,340
They pooched the fuel pump design on the 6.2 after 2016 when they bumped up the power.
You can only hope that it’s an improvement!
They hit a home run with the 2013 brake upgrade.
Cargo Master
Joined: Apr 2021
Posts: 2,592
Likes: 1,671
From: NW Wyoming USA
The only 7.3 failures I’ve heard of have been from big box trucks and fleet work trucks F-450 and larger on YouTube. I think they had high idle hours that caused oil starvation that lead to cam and lifter damage due to the variable displacement oil pump going into a lower oil pressure mode. None of the few failures I’ve heard of have been on F-250 & F-350’s.
I haven’t seen any thread on here about a FTE member having that problem.
Just don’t idle a 7.3 excessively and at least change the oil as recommended and everything will be fine.
I’ve had two 2022 7.3’s, I only put 5,3k on the first one and now 5,2k miles on the second one and no problems.
The 7.3 is solid, buy with confidence.
Hotshot
Joined: Oct 2015
Posts: 19,722
Likes: 12,865
From: Wyoming
Hello,
I’m a first time poster but wanted to seek some opinions or advice on here from people with more experience and knowledge than me. I’m in the market to buy a 3/4 or 1 ton truck for our families travel trailer. I’ve talked to many friends and read quite a bit about gas vs diesel and decided I wanted a gas 3/4 as I’m not pulling often enough or heavy enough to justify a diesel. I mostly want a safe tow vehicle that’s reliable and can get the job done, I don’t need to tow 20k lbs.
I ordered a 2023 7.3L gas f250 and it’s basically ready to be picked up at this point. Over the last month I’ve seen so many problems online, especially YouTube, with engine failures with the 7.3 (especially under 30k miles). I’m starting to second guess the decision. I had a suburban previously and had to replace the engine at 100k miles due to lifter issues and a few other things which made me swear off buying a GM product again. Now I’m reading the same thing with ford at even fewer miles. Is everyone else seeing these same things or experiencing engine problems with the 7.3? I honestly don’t know what truck to buy
I’m a first time poster but wanted to seek some opinions or advice on here from people with more experience and knowledge than me. I’m in the market to buy a 3/4 or 1 ton truck for our families travel trailer. I’ve talked to many friends and read quite a bit about gas vs diesel and decided I wanted a gas 3/4 as I’m not pulling often enough or heavy enough to justify a diesel. I mostly want a safe tow vehicle that’s reliable and can get the job done, I don’t need to tow 20k lbs.
I ordered a 2023 7.3L gas f250 and it’s basically ready to be picked up at this point. Over the last month I’ve seen so many problems online, especially YouTube, with engine failures with the 7.3 (especially under 30k miles). I’m starting to second guess the decision. I had a suburban previously and had to replace the engine at 100k miles due to lifter issues and a few other things which made me swear off buying a GM product again. Now I’m reading the same thing with ford at even fewer miles. Is everyone else seeing these same things or experiencing engine problems with the 7.3? I honestly don’t know what truck to buy
If I were to downsize my trailer or go to a slide-in camper, I would have no qualms about using the 7.3L engine.
Thread Starter
|
2nd Gear
Joined: Jun 2023
Posts: 2
Likes: 2
Please post links to these “problems online” and “YouTube engine failures”.
The only 7.3 failures I’ve heard of have been from big box trucks and fleet work trucks F-450 and larger on YouTube. I think they had high idle hours that caused oil starvation that lead to cam and lifter damage due to the variable displacement oil pump going into a lower oil pressure mode. None of the few failures I’ve heard of have been on F-250 & F-350’s.
I haven’t seen any thread on here about a FTE member having that problem.
Just don’t idle a 7.3 excessively and at least change the oil as recommended and everything will be fine.
I’ve had two 2022 7.3’s, I only put 5,3k on the first one and now 5,2k miles on the second one and no problems.
The 7.3 is solid, by with confidence.
The only 7.3 failures I’ve heard of have been from big box trucks and fleet work trucks F-450 and larger on YouTube. I think they had high idle hours that caused oil starvation that lead to cam and lifter damage due to the variable displacement oil pump going into a lower oil pressure mode. None of the few failures I’ve heard of have been on F-250 & F-350’s.
I haven’t seen any thread on here about a FTE member having that problem.
Just don’t idle a 7.3 excessively and at least change the oil as recommended and everything will be fine.
I’ve had two 2022 7.3’s, I only put 5,3k on the first one and now 5,2k miles on the second one and no problems.
The 7.3 is solid, by with confidence.
it isn’t too hard to find online which has had me worried.
Cargo Master
Joined: Apr 2021
Posts: 2,592
Likes: 1,671
From: NW Wyoming USA
I’ve seen the first two videos. First one was of a 7.3 bought used that didn’t actually have a failure just high iron levels. The second was of a box truck. The third one is new to me. Well based on those three videos, if you have second thoughts about buying a 7.3 you should buy something else.