F450 Running Problems
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More Turbo
Joined: Apr 2003
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F450 Running Problems
My cousin has a F450 with the 7.3 in it. He uses it for work pulling around his skid steer and as a service truck. It does not run right. It will start fine and run fine while he pulls out onto the road, but about 30 seconds later it loses all power and wont rev up. It will start missing and idling very rough. The motor will also get noisy too. Like the injectors are getting loud because they are running out of fuel. Where should he start. He changed fuel filter, and drained the bowl, and checked the connectors going into the valve covers. Any help would be great thanks.
Please no acronyms please, I don't know what they are.
Please no acronyms please, I don't know what they are.
Fleet Owner
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 25,090
Likes: 1,111
From: Rio Rico, AZ.
99% chance of the fuel pickup screens being clogged.
Removing the fuel tank on a 450 is a 30 minute job using a tranny jack.
Drop the tank, pull out the fuel pickup, and clean the screens inside the white housing.
Removing the fuel tank on a 450 is a 30 minute job using a tranny jack.
Drop the tank, pull out the fuel pickup, and clean the screens inside the white housing.
Snowboard season cometh..
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 5,406
Likes: 1
From: Gulf Coast of Florida
Kwik & Nick have your best advice, and Kwik has an F550 and is a (hell of a) mechanic. Start there, especially with getting the codes read. Unfortunately with our trucks, the readers at Auto Zone can't access many of the functions and don't do a thorough job. There might be someone local to your friend that can fully read the codes if you let us know your location.
Also, learning acronyms will help you as you hang out more on this board, and hanging out here will definitely help save you money.... well, CAN help. PMS will be the first. Powerstroke Modding Syndrome, meaning that you'll start making mods to improve the truck, and not be able to stop!
Here is a link with a TON of acronyms, but like anything else, the more you use them, the more proficient you will become.
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...finitions.html
Welcome to FTE!!
Also, learning acronyms will help you as you hang out more on this board, and hanging out here will definitely help save you money.... well, CAN help. PMS will be the first. Powerstroke Modding Syndrome, meaning that you'll start making mods to improve the truck, and not be able to stop!
Here is a link with a TON of acronyms, but like anything else, the more you use them, the more proficient you will become.
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...finitions.html
Welcome to FTE!!
Posting Guru
Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 2,447
Likes: 1
From: Northern Idaho
Sounds accurate to me. The last time I had symptoms like that I had gas in my diesel, well more gas then diesel in the tank. 30 gallons of gas, 8 gallons of diesel and my truck would not move above 25mph, sounded horrible, like it was about to break something, wouldn't rev, just plain sounded broke. I realized later it was a gas problem, pumped all the fuel out, refilled with diesel and WAM! all better. There was a positive side to it though. I cleaned my fuel lines out and found out that my wife's van can get 30mpg with a little diesel in it 
bottom line: Sounds like a fuel pickup/feed problem as long as it does NOT have gas in the tank. Take a sniff of the fuel tank with the gas cap off and see if it smells like gas, if not then time to drop the tank and while your in there you might as well do some mods.
bottom line: Sounds like a fuel pickup/feed problem as long as it does NOT have gas in the tank. Take a sniff of the fuel tank with the gas cap off and see if it smells like gas, if not then time to drop the tank and while your in there you might as well do some mods.
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More Turbo
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That would make sense he is on his third inline fuel pump since he has had it, about a year. That may be why they are burning up, its working too hard to pull fuel from the tank. Or maybe even the pump in the tank is bad. Hmm. That would be nice if that was it. Next he wants to do some mods. His truck weighs 13k and he regularly weighs mid 20ks pulling trailers. It just doesn't have the power he wants. Any advice to start with. I am from the 95-97 section so I dont know much about the newer ones other than they have the same basic motor.
Fleet Owner
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 25,090
Likes: 1,111
From: Rio Rico, AZ.
That would make sense he is on his third inline fuel pump since he has had it, about a year. That may be why they are burning up, its working too hard to pull fuel from the tank. Or maybe even the pump in the tank is bad. Hmm. That would be nice if that was it. Next he wants to do some mods. His truck weighs 13k and he regularly weighs mid 20ks pulling trailers. It just doesn't have the power he wants. Any advice to start with. I am from the 95-97 section so I dont know much about the newer ones other than they have the same basic motor.
Your engine will have all the fuel it will ever need.
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/4...-the-tank.html
I pull 24k with ease. Only have to shift down once on 6% grades.
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Fleet Owner
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From: Rio Rico, AZ.
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Posting Guru
Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 2,447
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From: Northern Idaho
Well, get a hold of Clay (RiffRaff Performance) and he'll set you up with quite a few of the things that you need to make these babies run better but here's a list I started.......
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/8...ml#post7572843
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/8...ml#post7572843
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More Turbo
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Well it wasnt thd fuel system at all. It was the injectors. He took it in to a diesel shop and had them test it. I guess the injectors are leaking bad, the computer is saying there is a high persentage of oil leaking threw the injectors. Its kinda crazy to me, the truck only has 120k on it! Seems like most guys get AT LEAST 200k out of injectors. Heck my 95 has 193k on it and it runs great. So now he is going to have the injectors rebuilt into stage 1s i think. Anybody know a good place to get injectors. This is a work truck and is heavy, and pulls heavy stuff, so they need to be good ones. I still have a hard time believeing the injectors went bad at 120 k though. What do you guys think?
Cargo Master
Joined: Mar 2008
Posts: 2,975
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From: Archdale,N.C.
Well it wasnt thd fuel system at all. It was the injectors. He took it in to a diesel shop and had them test it. I guess the injectors are leaking bad, the computer is saying there is a high persentage of oil leaking threw the injectors. Its kinda crazy to me, the truck only has 120k on it! Seems like most guys get AT LEAST 200k out of injectors. Heck my 95 has 193k on it and it runs great. So now he is going to have the injectors rebuilt into stage 1s i think. Anybody know a good place to get injectors. This is a work truck and is heavy, and pulls heavy stuff, so they need to be good ones. I still have a hard time believeing the injectors went bad at 120 k though. What do you guys think?
Fleet Owner
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 25,090
Likes: 1,111
From: Rio Rico, AZ.
Well it wasnt thd fuel system at all. It was the injectors. He took it in to a diesel shop and had them test it. I guess the injectors are leaking bad, the computer is saying there is a high persentage of oil leaking threw the injectors. Its kinda crazy to me, the truck only has 120k on it! Seems like most guys get AT LEAST 200k out of injectors. Heck my 95 has 193k on it and it runs great. So now he is going to have the injectors rebuilt into stage 1s i think. Anybody know a good place to get injectors. This is a work truck and is heavy, and pulls heavy stuff, so they need to be good ones. I still have a hard time believeing the injectors went bad at 120 k though. What do you guys think?
All eight injectors taking a dump at the same time?
I got a bridge for sale too.
Posting Guru
Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 2,447
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From: Northern Idaho
I wonder if the fuel pump is not sustaining pressure as it should. I wonder if it starts to tire when it gets warmed up.
If it was me I'd go through the whole fuel system, do the tank mods, pull the pump and if possible test it for an extended period of time with a flow meter on it, clean the fuel bowl, check the lines and/or blow them out from the bowl to the block, anything and as much that you can think of. Heck if you have the money replace the fuel system with some upgrades, that'll eliminate most the problems.
If it was me I'd go through the whole fuel system, do the tank mods, pull the pump and if possible test it for an extended period of time with a flow meter on it, clean the fuel bowl, check the lines and/or blow them out from the bowl to the block, anything and as much that you can think of. Heck if you have the money replace the fuel system with some upgrades, that'll eliminate most the problems.