I have a question about my truck. 00 F350 PSD auto 122k miles. no mods (as far as I know), stock size tires...

I have thought since I bought the truck that my engine (not exhaust) was a little louder than it should be. I was close to two other 00 trucks this weekend and they definitely sound different than mine.

My truck doesnt sound like something is wrong with it necessarily - no odd knocks or rattles - it just sounds louder than it should (IMO)from inside the truck and outside. Both other trucks had nice smooth injector sounds while idling and standing next to the truck. To avoid using the wrong term established for diesel engine sounds, Ill just say mine makes a louder racket than the other trucks

Tho both owners of these trucks complain that their trucks dont start for s@#$ in cold weather, while mine starts and runs perfectly as cold as its gotten this winter in michigan so far - in case this may be an indicator of something...

Ive also suspected that my engine was slightly sluggish - like the engine made too much noise for the power I was getting while accelerating. I kind of marked this up to my 3:73 gears - but I wonder now if it has something to do with the way the engine sounds. Like an injection timing issue perhaps?

When I floor it the truck from a roll it seems to have plenty of power - never enough to scuff the tires on dry pavement, but I dont exactly expect it from a truck this size with no mods... My power lacking feeling comes in a part throttle - again, perhaps this is due to my gearing.

Ive been searching this site and was reading a bit about some air infiltration issues and something called a 'hutch' mod perhaps? Is there any way to diagnose air infiltration?

Am I looking for problems where there arent any?

Im planning a 2000+ mile trip at the end of Feb. Im trying to go over every little thing on this truck before I leave.

Thanks!

 

For power issues I would go ahead and check the 6 boots on the IC piping to make sure you don't have a boost leak. Also check the up pipes for any signs of soot where they connect to the back of the turbo.

If the up pipes are leaking, this could add to the noise your engine makes. The hutch mod will help cut down the amount of air in the fuel which may quite down your engine also. You can also pull your valve covers and re-torque the rocker arms and injector hold down bolts. That made a difference in mine. You can also try simple things like changing the brand of oil you use. A synthetic oil may help some.

 

I have listened to / noticed multiple 7.3's and they are all loud, some in slightly different ways. Having recently changed my injectors, I can tell you that a worn / bad injector will rattle more noisily that one in good shape. That's not to say that you have that problem or that it is a problem worth fixing right now...but diesel's are noisy and the 7.3 design makes it the noisiest of all. With that said, as F350-6 mentioned, there are a couple of cheap mods and maybe changing to Synthetic oil that can help a little. You would also be amazed at what B20 bio diesel can do to quieten those injectors down...but that is a little hard to find sometimes. I tried a tank and i swear my truck was instantly quieter as soon as that fuel hit. It was amazing.

 

Almost forgot...as for the sluggish performance, cold will do that for sure. I never though my truck was so sluggish until I got a chip installed (DP-Tuner). now I cannot stand to run with stock tuning any more...feels like it might never move. Amazing what pouring a little more fuel in the system will do for performance. That same truck, with practically no additional mods, will have no problem scuffing the tires.

 

that is very true with a stock truck feels like the damn thing won't even move after driving one that has been tuned. Also another vote for cold mine don't like to even move til its warmed up.