2003 7.3 diesel

looking at a few 2003 ford 7.3 diesel trucks, one is a 3/4 ton the other a 1 ton both automatic both right at 150,000 miles, what kind of issues do they have if any with the 7.3 motors and what about fuel mileage

we have 2 trucks at work a 2000 with 276,000 plus miles the only issue we have had on is replaced auto trans a 250,000 and cam senser 2 times,2002 has 227,000 plus miles only changed cam senser 1 time I think the main thing on the 7.3 is the cam senser.My buddy has a 96 f250 4x4 with over 300,000 on it

My 97 has 150K.1 crank sensor,
1 water pump
fuel pump leaking (needs replaced NOW) Thats it fo mine. The wiring harness for injectors under the valve covers will probably need replaced before long. Still a great truck imo.

Winner winner chicken dinner..........

Sorry for the hi jack, but what are the signs/symptoms that the valve cover harness is going bad? Really interested in this.

I have a 2001 crew cab dually 4x4, just turned over 150,000. No problems yet and wouldn't trade it for anything else. I've had my mud truck on a 25ft gooseneck and pulled it up and down WV hills and hollers and could barely tell it was there.
So far I've managed to ward off the urge to chip it but I have done a cold air intake and removed the factory muffler (straight pipe). The only small issue I've had is it got hard to start in cold weather and it turned out the battery terminal needed shined up a little. Really didn't look corroded but shined them up and problem solved.

Good choice for a truck IMHO.
Dave S.

The locking tabs on the harness relax allowing the connector to come undone, when it does the PCM shuts the whole bank down and there you are. I'd do both sides now before it acts up, worse case it takes the IDM out, your talkin a bunch of $$$ if that happens.

I sold my 20 with 7.3 at 428000 miles had always been worked never had any internal problems water pump starters one wiring harness issue and a oil line that runs the fuel pump I think I only sold mime when a neighbor had a 02 crew cab with 62000 miles for sale reasonable he bought a 2010.I bought his.I think these are the best eng and trucks out there.

what kind of miles to gallon are you guys getting

[quote="johndickjr"]what kind of miles to gallon are you guys getting[/quote


About 13. empty, 10 with trailer, not good, mine is a dully with 410 gears.

Mine gets roughly 16 empty and 14 towing.

W/3.55 gears it was getting 17,switched to 4.10's and it got 19.5 until the fuel pump started leaking. 13 pulling my heavy ass 34' enclosed w/car .Its heavy as hell w/o car.

The best thing you can do is get a chip from DP tuner, 4" exhaust and an air intake. I was getting 13 mpg in my 2003 F 350 4x4 4.11 gear and the chip brought me up to 16. Not to mention how much better it feels with an extra 200 ft.lbs of torque. I recently switched to Michelin all terrain tires and picked up 2.5 more mpg for a total of 17.5-18. This is driving 75-85 mph on the highway. I get 9 mpg pulling my 32' enclosed trailer and two cars in stock mode and 13 with the chip in the pulling mode.

A couple other notes on fuel mileage. Tires have a big effect. An all terrain and mud terrain will get 2-3 less mpg compared to an all season tire. For some reason my truck gets better mileage the more north I go. NM, Co, Canada it get 3-4 more mpg then I get in Louisiana and Texas.

i really have no real need for a 3/4 ton diesel but for that truck with a gas motor is a lot higer $$ and get less mpg..so i said hell why not..lol..i get to pick one up this summer

johndickjr wrote:i really have no real need for a 3/4 ton diesel but for that truck with a gas motor is a lot higer $$ and get less mpg..so i said hell why not..lol..i get to pick one up this summer

Besides the mileage when you are pulling an enclosed trailer up a hill that turbo diesel will separate the men from the gas boys.

There must be something wrong with my truck, no way in hell can I get that kind of milage.

Harold,do you have your truck programed Mine is bone stock.

bbf-falcon wrote:Harold,do you have your truck programed Mine is bone stock.

I have one of the super chips in it, I keep it in the tow mode, I have a k&n filter, and the exhaust reworked, with no muffler, I still can't get any milage.

I get up to 21 mpg on my Excursion with a 3:73 gear. Up to means no wind, head or side, flat ground, cruise set. However, my worse city driving while I'm working is never less than 15.5 mpg. That is with a lot of idling and stops. Towing my trailer will take it down to 12mpg but it is a big trailer with a lot of frontal area.

342g wrote:

I have one of the super chips in it, I keep it in the tow mode, I have a k&n filter, and the exhaust reworked, with no muffler, I still can't get any milage.

I have never tried a superchip but on the diesel forums they are not very well liked especially when it comes to the 7.3. I would look at the DP tuner if I were you. Pulling my enclosed trailer my truck gets 4 more mpg in tow mode vs stock. That is a huge difference to me.

I have the Hypertech. Best mileage has been on the highest setting, but only 3 with this programmer. Tow, med, and HP

do you guys keep an eye on your exaust temps?if so what gauge are you useing?

Dually with 4.10s, I get around 16-17 empty, 12-13 with trailer. I did the Tymar intake deal with pre filter and put a straight pipe in place of the mufler and saw no mileage gains at all. It does spool up faster though, not to mention its sounds pretty cool in the winter when the EBPV kicks in for warm up. The above mentioned mileage was when I was running Stanadyne fuel treatment. When I run out (no one locally carries it) and use diesel kleen, it drops by as much as 2mpg.

I am considering a PHP FU chip with utility tunes on it, no performance ones. Like the fast idle, towing, daily driver, economy tunes, and drive through. Plus PHP tunes include tranny shift improvements as well, suposed to be nice for heavier towing.

Dave S.

richter69 wrote:The locking tabs on the harness relax allowing the connector to come undone, when it does the PCM shuts the whole bank down and there you are. I'd do both sides now before it acts up, worse case it takes the IDM out, your talkin a bunch of $$$ if that happens.

Thanks for the heads up. I'll look into these this spring. Right now I have some engine parts to buy!!
Dave S.

Larry T wrote:Do you guys keep an eye on your exhaust temps?

Deffinitely

It's a must if you have a chip & aftermarket injectors installed.

Larry T wrote:What gauge are you useing?

Autometer # 2654