Desert Sled, I'm gonna bet on something *simple* as a head gasket, but quit taking it to a regular mechanic, take it an actual diesel shop they will be cheaper and know what they are doin, as I've learned just because someone is the worlds best wrench turner on a gasser, they can't do squat for a diesel.

 

Well the last IDI was built in 1994, so new is going to be impossible to find.

As for remans, good luck, I blew three up in 28,000 miles.

Find an 86 or 87 6.9 and rebuild it yourself.
You can do it better and cheaper than you can buy a reman.

 

Has he checked for compression in the coolant? just because your compressions low and you have coolant oil swap issues dosen't neccesarily mean they are related the oil cooler can leak oil into the coolant and in some cases put coolant into the oil once you shut the engine of. You also said you have a clicking noise wich,with out hearing for my self, could be a stuck lifter that isn't opening the valve all the way causing the low compresion. Also generaly when you have compresion in the coolant the truck will overheat very quickly. If the truck is not still with your mechanic you can check for compresion in the coolant your self just fill the rad to the top put a funel in it fill the funle 3/4 full then have some one start the truck and watch for bubles in the funle if you don't see any have him reve the engine up if you still dont see any bubles it dosen't have compresion in the coolant. Be careful when doing this as some times if you are getting enough compression in there it will shoot the coolant pretty high into the air.

If you do have compresion in the coolant I would pull the head and find out why befor replacing the motor a blown head gasket could cuase the same issues as cavitation damage. You just have to decide if its worth spending the money to to pull the head or if you rather start over. I know how much it sucks to pull the head on one of these to find out the blocks junk, i was kinda leaning twards that on mine as i had mo compresion in the coolant and sure enough I had cavitation holes in the bottom of the cylinder wall.

Besside in the time I've been a member of this forum I have only heard of one guy haveing this issue durring that time so it would be pretty messed up if the second case was in NV as well.

 

Must be the water...

Jason

 

Heck I just found a junk yard 85 6.9 or rather a front yard 6.9 guy had all kinds of junk vehicles in his yard put my externals and rocker arms , oil pump and pan as the 6.9 was an industrial engine. droped it in tuned my IP and its running great of coures it will probly be hard to find one with 79,000 original miles on it like I did.

 

Thats a relief since I couldn't for the life of me find any regular green antifreez when I got it together and had to use the prediluted stuff in my 6.9. Why dose it cost more when you are getting half the antifreez?

 

Because the guy with the measuring spoon to add the water to the jug makes minimum wage. He's gotta get paid.

Do like I do and "borrow" it from work

Jason

 

Thanks again for the responses. I am going to have a Diesel Only Ford mechanic that i also know take a look at it. I will suggest the head gasket problem as well as a valve issue that may be going on. Unfortunately,the cost of pulling heads is expensive and there doesnt seem like any clear cut answer to this. I am so suprised that i am having this issue with such low mileage. Hopefully I can get this resolved, summer camping is on its way. Boy, this thread got long.

 

What is low to him, It would be helpful to see the compression test numbers.

-Enjoy
fh : )_~

 

When I see someone post "Find a new engine" I am thinking new as in new crate motor.

Yes the 85 is new to you, but far from new.

Most of the machinists I know consider the 7.3 non rebuildable because of cylinder wall thickness and the sleeve issues.

 

Here's a recommendation that will probably REALLY get me in trouble.
IF you are going to spend a bunch of money on your truck/motor get a used Dodge with a Cummins in it.
They are EXTREMELY reliable.
There are NO glow plugs hence no glow plug issues.
The return lines virtually never go bad.
There are TONS of people all over the world that know how to work on them.

I know what's coming: the old "yeah but the Dodge with melt down around the motor!"
BULL CRAP!

I'd get one with a 12V motor as it's mechanically operated and cheaper to work on ('89-early '98).

BUT I don't think you're going to have that much wrong with your motor so more than likely you'll just be fixing it and all will be well.

I'm sure this advice will not be popular but it is good.

I love tinkering with my IDIs and wouldn't be afraid to take them anywhere or do anything with them I would with my Cummins powered Dodge BUT for someone who doesn't work on their own rig I'd ALWAYS recommend the Cummins.

 

We don't expect nothing less from traitor!

-Enjoy
fh : )_~

 

Or, buy the Dodge with the Cummins, scrap the truck and put the engine in your Ford.

I don't understand all the fuss about finding a mechanic that is familiar with these engines. They aren't exotic by any means. The fuel and glow plug systems are pretty basic. You might have better luck at a shop that works on medium and heavy trucks instead of strictly an automotive shop.
I can't count on my fingers and toes the mechanics in this area that I would take my IDI to. Before the PSD came out, every farmer, logger, rancher, etc seemed to own one of these. Weyerhauser had a fleet of them. And I know Uhaul used them beyond 2000. So there should still be plenty of mechanics capable of diagnosing and repairing them.

Jason

 

So you're going to put your '08 Cummins in your Ford and throw the rest away?

The reason I put the emphasis on the mechanic is because I only know one mechanic around here that knows more about these trucks than I do and I wouldn't even think about calling myself a mechanic. That ONE guy is a diesel specialist and he is still somewhat lacking in knowledge about them. You put a Cummins, PowerStroke or Duramax in front of him though and chances are he's already seen the problem you have with your's. He's an old 6.2L/6.5L specialist so a lot of that knowledge spills over to the IDIs somewhat.
Any GOOD mechanic can probably get one running but how much extra time are you paying them for as they "hunt" and partswap until they get it right.

 

If anything the Dodge/MOPAR boys should be calling me a traitor as I have always been one of them.
I've only been owning Fords that I wasn't ashamed of for 1 1/2 years or so.

I'm a MOPAR guy at heart but I own 5 Fords, 3 Chevys, 1 GMC, 2 Internationals, 4 Jeeps and 8 Dodges. All trucks, no cars.
I don't show that to show off as I know people who have two or three vehicles that are worth more than ALL of mine put together. I just like all of them, some better than others of course.