Well......... My engine of course, but it is not for sale!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Yes there is, look at this click me I had to bump my starter 5 times to see the nut on the stud. And I used a magnifying mirror to look in the little hole.

 

IMO, an early 2000 is going to be best, with forged rods and trans cooling in the radiator. But, that doesn't make the newer 7.3's bad either, as long as you watch the mods and keep up with the maint.

You read my mind.

True...well, I'm getting there anyway. The 7.3 is a solid motor, but I wanted more out of it than what it wanted to give. I should be headed in the right direction now.

Assuming you're talking about the rods, yes, you can. There is an inspection plug in the side of the block that you can take out. Have someone rotate the engine by hand until you can see the fastener on the bottom end of the rod. If you see a nut on a stud, they're forged rods. If you see a bolt head, they're PMR's.

Or, check your serial numbers. From the Hypermax site:
"Here is the engine serial number break down for the forged and powdered connecting rods. Check you engine serial number on the valve cover build sticker or you need to look at the block where the oil cooler is bolted to it .
Start of production thru 1425746 are Forged Rods
1425747 thru 1440712 are Powdered Rods
1446713 thru 1498318 are Forged Rods
1498319 thru final production run are all powdered
Or you can break them then you know what you have-Ha Ha-Just kidding
The reason for the break in serial numbers is a "test" run to be sure there were not any issues with the powdered rods. Once the process was production tested the powered rod process was used until the end of production. "

 

A more expensive, but easy way to check your rods, is to floor it, run it on the dyno or something. Then drive home a few days later and when it blows up, look in the side of the engine and see if you can see a bolt head, or stud and nut.

 

Kris, you missed your calling in life. You should be living in or near Burbank, California writing material for Jay Leno. Or you could make prank calls every now and then to jtharvey.

 

I don't think Kris would do that to me. I'd be pretty suspicious if a strange call came from MD...and I don't answer unidentified/blocked ID calls.

 

I don't either, I was just trying to make a light hearted post as I am having a hard time elsewhere today. Sorry if anyone took me seriously.

 

No worries. That was more of a pot-shot at Kris than anything. Hope your evening goes better than your day has gone.

 

 

Late 99 to early 01

 

Springerpop,
My wife and I own Automated Weather Specialties. We maintain Automated Weather Observation Systems (AWOS) in TN, PA, OH, IN, KY, MD, FL and TX. Obviously, the vast majority of the miles on my truck are highway miles. I put 100k on it the first year and since then I average 85k a year. I don't pull a trailer very often. Mostly a rented backhoe when I'm doing system installations. The truck is loaded down with spare parts, tools and test equipment.

My maintenance schedule is as follows:
oil and filter every 5k. (usually every 2-3 weeks)
fuel filter every 15k
transmission: flush, fluid change and filter every 100k
rear diff fluid change every 200k.
Half a bottle of Stanadyne at every fill up. The only additive that I have found that I can actually feel the difference.

The weakest link has been the front brakes. I have had 3 calipers lock up and a lot of warped rotors. Most of the problems came from the drift pins. I now have the newer style. I also installed a set of slotted rotors and ceramic pads. Rotors still get turned around 50k.

I'm on the 4th set of front wheel hubs. They seem to have a lifespan of 150k.

I had a '96 that had 450k on it before a guard rail stopped it. I could get 19 mpg on a regular basis. This truck does mostly in the 17 mpg range unless I get lucky. I guess that's the difference between 3.55 and 3.73 gears. As you can tell mileage is a big deal with me. Fuel costs cut in to the profit margin considerably. I tried a hypertech program with the other truck and wasn't impressed so I left this truck mostly stock. Since then I finally learned about DP Tuner which will be my next purchase.

I will not buy one of the new trucks. I don't like the 6.4. Ford has decided that we need more power. I have more than enough power. The reason that I bought a diesel in the first place was that I could get a full size truck and get decent mileage. Besides that they cost as much as my house and with today's fuel prices a new one is out of the question.

I have heard that International has quit making the 7.3 block. I guess my only option at this point is a rebuild. I have a friend that works at an International dealer so that's where it will most likely go. It will never go back to a Ford dealer if I can help it.

I have heard of 7.3's going to 700k so that's what I'm shooting for. As long as I take care of it I should be able to do that and more.

Kevin

 

I think Jet's (SolidGround) current truck has twice that!

And he still badmouths the 7.3

FWIW, I think any PSD 7.3 (when maintained properly) would be a sufficient choice.

 

Is it 6.0L is so bad vs 7.3L?I have 2006,30K, 6.0L Powerstroke and so impressive with it.It's so fast,more powerful engine.Or I make a wrong choice?

 

if you're happy with it, and you've had no problems with it.....I'd say you made the right choice

 

No, you have made a good choice with the 2006. A mid-year 2003 with a 6.0 might have been a bad choice, but it appears that Ford and International have got the initial "bugs" worked out pretty well.

Then, they replaced it with the 6.4!

Pop