What is the 50 cent mod? How easy is it?

 

Very easy. Hope the link works
YouTube - 2001 F350 7.3L Turbo Diesel, UVCH

 

I take it the quarter is too fat to slid all the way down? I also assume you grind just enough off so the valve cover will fit back on?

 

Grind it down to right at the top of Washington's head.It will slip right in and lock the connector in place.

 

Grind it down to the top of Geroge's head to give it the proper clearance for the VC. Top of his head is a good reference point.

EDIT: Barry edged me out on this one. lol Reps for the video.

 

OK, my dumb question of the day. How easy is it to get the quarter out once you got it in there? Do you just grab with a needle nose plairs?

 

It is not an extremely tight fit and it sits in a three sided "pocket". The VC caps it off, to hold it in place, so it there is no worry about it coming out. A little persuasion may be needed with a small screwdriver or pick to remove it. It may be a little slick from the oil.

 

Once you take the VC off and unplug the connector, use your thumb to push it out like you put it in. No tools needed.

 

Cool, thanks. Andrew (87 F-150 I6) gave me one of his plastic connectors that he bought for this mod from Ford but I only have one. This is definitely on my radar once the weather improves some - along with a couple of other things on my workbench.

 

I'm in the same boat here Chris. 2 car garage... not a truck garage... bummer.

 

You're back in Colorado, eh?

I want to pull the v/c's and do that business as well as add my leveling shackles and R&R my sway bar bushings. Stupid weather...

 

I used used tin snips and cut the quarter. Worked well for me.
No grinding.

 

If you have a new set of valve cover gaskets, they are a little different.
You have to cut the quarter nearly in half to get it to fit in there.
The reason is there are these little tabs cast into the plastic now and the quarter won't fit all the way down anymore unless you remove the tabs.

 

Are there other things you should do while you have the covers off? The video mentioned "torque a few things". And do you need to have new valve covers to put it back together? How long of a job is this for the average klutz?

 

Like most things, it's easier the 2nd time you do it, but well within the grasp of the average guy with a decent set of tools. After all, all you're doing is removing the valve covers.

You'll want to torque the lower injector hold down bolts (circled in blue) to 120 in-lbs. Yes that is INCH -lbs.

Then torque the rocker arm pedestal bolts to 20 ft lbs