A few things to know about your 7.3 diesel
1 - do not ! use an aftermarket air filter.
reason - they do not have the "capacity" to hold dirt & dust. for long durations & if you dont clean them ( weekly ) they fold and the dirt now flows freely to the turbo "dusting "your engine !!!! the stock filter flows fine. these filters are for "race cars" & what do we do after a race ??? , rebuild the engine!!!!
so... at 18000.00 a pop go ahead and run that "race filter"
2 - do not !!! tow anything in overdrive !!!!
reason - it overheats the transmission. yes, you can only go 65mph & pass at 70 intermitently out of overdrive. but ! when towing "its not a race!!!"its getting there that counts...... & with out spending 2500.00 for a trans.....if you're lucky!!!!
3 ~ for every degree below +40F wait " 1 " second more after the "wait to start" light goes out.... example (+30 degrees F ) wait another 10 seconds after the " wait to start" light goes out....
reason -" the wait to start " light is timed by the computer ( @ 10- 15 sec )
the glow plugs can stay on for up to 2 minutes at these temps. . . .
4 ~ oil ~~~ 10 w 30 winter / 15 w 40 summer . . . . these moters love synthetic oil, by the way. . . . ( no rotella oil ) great for dodge/bad for a ford
5 ~ block heater . .. . . use it !!! @ +35 degrees & below . . . you only need to plug it in for an hour or so . . . unless you like watching your meter spin ?
at " 800 to 1000 watts " it can get expensive . . ++ its easier on your batterys & starter.
6 ~ change your coolant & transmission fluid at least every 3 years
7 ~change your fuel filter in the fall . . . every year!!!
reason ~ the fuel is thicker when its cold & does not flow well , making it hard to start . . if your fuel is close to gel point, even a partially dirty filter won't flow fuel & no start/no run !!!
8 ~ do not use "ether" to start the 7.3<<< unless you "> like<" flying shards of plastic & taking your moter home in a basket ! ! !
9 ~ chips & programmers are great !!! ( for business & racing )
! ! ! ! ! ! DON'T TOW WITH THEM ! ! ! ! ! ! ! UNLESS YOU HAVE A PROPERLY INSTALLED PYROMETER & WATCH IT LIKE A HAWK !!! i can peg the pyro in a 1/4 mile... chipped WITHOUT A LOAD !!
10 ~ IF YOU HAVE AN EXCURSION ~~~ YOU DO NOT HAVE A HEATED FUEL RETURN TO THE FUEL TANK . . . YOUR FUEL CAN & WILL GEL BELOW ' 0 ' DEGREES
PLEASE ADD AN " ANTI-GEL " DURING THE WINTER @ THESE TEMPS >>
AN INSULATED & NON HEATED GARAGE = " ICE BOX ". . . EVEN IF ITS CONNECTED TO THE HOUSE ! . .
11 ~ THE ONLY DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE 2&1/2 INCH TURBO & THE 3" IS THAT THE 3" DOES NOT WHISTLE . . .
12 ~ THE AUTO PARTS " GUYS " ARE NOT TECHNICIANS, THEY ARE THERE TO SELL YOU PARTS & THATS ALL ! . . .unless your the carquest people"they rock"
13 ~ batterys - yes you have to replace both of them, 'at the same time'
reason ~your batterys only as good as the weakest one in the bunch !!!
the older battery "will kill" the new battery in short order..
.
14 ~ add an " lubricity additive " to your fuel ..( pre 2007 diesels )
the fuel now is practicly 'dry' and does not lubricate the earlier diesel pumps & injectors well . . . good for me . . . bad for you
15 ~ REPLACE THAT ' T-STAT' if the moter runs cool or cold. its not running effectively to
burn all the fuel. costing you money in repairs & wasted fuel...
16 ~ set the parking brake
the 7.3 will "idle up" when cold only if the parking brake is set !
17 ~ these moters will last as long as 450,000 or better miles if properly taken care of . . .
18 ~ remember ~~~ your truck is like a good woman, dont take her to a dinner and a movie and " she gona leave ya" ! ! !
thanks again mike...
!
