Coast Resorts Open Roads Forum: Who’s still using a 7.3 diesel truck

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Topic: Who’s still using a 7.3 diesel truck

Posted By: burningman on 02/21/21 12:06pm

Elk_traveler wrote:

A new Ford diesel the 6.7L engine is and old gasoline converted block that was put in the Ford 392 cu-ft engines in 1962. The International 7.3L diesel was designed from scratch as a diesel engine. The torque delivered is sustained power even under max load whereas the new Ford engines only deliver instant and temporary power and cannot be sustained which is whats make the old 7.3L a better engine to begin with for diesel power.

There’s no much misinformation and outright lies in this post I can’t believe my eyes.
Ford did not make a 392, in 1962 or ever. The 6.7 diesel has literally nothing to to with any ‘60s Ford. They are not derived from any old gas engine at all.
Ford built a 391 FT starting in ‘66. That’s the closest thing to your fictional 392 cubic FOOT (LOL) 6.7 ancestor.
can tell you more about FE and FT Ford engines than you wanna know.

I can only imagine you’re assuming that since the 6.4 was 390 cubic inches, it had anything to do with the old 390 gas Ford, which it did not.
And the 6.7 isn’t even based on the 6.4 it replaced, it’s a clean-sheet ground up new engine.

And it can sustain full power for extended periods every bit as well as a 7.3.
The main reason a 7.3 can do that is it came detuned for low power, so it was understressed. A 6.7 at half throttle will make what a 7.3 did.

Don’t get me wrong, I love the 7.3, it’s relatively simple and reliable. You’re just saying things about it that are absolutely not true.

2017 Northern Lite 10-2 EX CD SE
99 Ram 4x4 Dually Cummins
A whole lot more fuel, a whole lot more boost.
4.10 gears, Gear Vendors overdrive, exhaust brake
Built auto, triple disc, billet shafts.
Kelderman Air Ride, Helwig sway bar.

Posted By: Kayteg1 on 02/21/21 12:48pm

burningman wrote:

And it can sustain full power for extended periods every bit as well as a 7.3.
The main reason a 7.3 can do that is it came detuned for low power, so it was understressed. A 6.7 at half throttle will make what a 7.3 did.
.

When I had the engines in different truck configurations, I used 7.3l in F450 for heavy hauling.
I had it at WOT for about 1/2 hr climbing long I-15 grades with 100F outside.
When my 6.7l would haul 7500 lb of cargo at 1/3 of the throttle, the coolant temperature was raising. Still at safe levels, but again 1/3 of the throttle.
Would I use 6.7l at WOT, per my calculations it would pull 25,000 lb on 6% grades at 90 mph, but I doubt it would do it without overheating.
So final conclusion, when 6.7 has so much power, that WOT is seldom possible, the radiator in it is undersized for available HP.
The low power in 7.3l is self-inflicted safety net.
Since Adamis has his 7.3 chipped for more HP, it would be interesting to hear his engine cooling experience?

Posted By: specta on 02/21/21 01:52pm

So someone posts that they still run and love their old 7.3 and it turns into a bashing and comparison to the new 6.7.

Seems like just about every thread goes south for some reason. [emoticon]

Kenny
1996 Jayco 376FB Eagle Series TT
1997 Jayco 246FB Eagle Series TT
1976 Ford F-250 4wd Mercury Marauder 410 - 4V
Regular cabs. The best looking trucks.

Posted By: rjstractor on 02/21/21 02:13pm

burningman wrote:

I’ve got a Gear Vendors OD. It’s awesome but it won’t give you twelve gears.
You have to be going almost 20 mph to use it, so it’s oil pump is operating.
You only use it with the upper gears.
I have 4.10 gears and the GV drops my 60 MPH cruise from 2000 RPM down to 1500.
It makes 4.10 effectively 3.20.

That's good info to know. I doubt I would need or want to split the lower gears anyway. I know it also doesn't work in 4WD, but that's not going to be an issue.

Posted By: NRALIFR on 02/21/21 03:00pm

The 7.3 Powerstroke was first available in mid-year 1994, so it is usually said to have started in 1994-1/2. I remember there was a period of time when you could order a new truck with either the old 7.3 IDI, or the new 7.3 PS. I was so envious, because I was still driving a 1984 F250 with the original IH 6.9L Diesel. And when I say “IH” I mean it was still International Harvester then. It even had the IH logo cast in the intake manifold somewhere.

I liked my 1995 F350 a lot, and dumped a bunch of money into it making it a pretty decent camper hauler. I thought it was fairly reliable, but like a lot of long-term 7.3 owners I got good at recognizing a CPS failure, and then replacing it on the side of the road, learning to hate the dual-mass clutch in the ZF tranny (not Getrag unless you swapped it out of some junky old Dodge), finding out the hard way that LUK clutches were junk, deleting the back pressure valve that would stick closed, adding pillar gauges and 4-way flip chips, ........and......and........and

And just for old-times sake, this was taken the day I sold it.

[image]

Posted By: Jtime on 02/21/21 05:14pm

Yeah there’s some fishy info being thrown out in here... I appreciate all the good answers and info. Also don’t be shy post a pictures of your 7.3’s camp ready! And how heavy was your setup?

Posted By: ticki2 on 02/21/21 06:00pm

And almost none of it has anything to do with a truck camper

'68 Avion C-11
'02 GMC DRW D/A flatbed

Posted By: Kayteg1 on 02/21/21 06:57pm

ticki2 wrote:

And almost none of it has anything to do with a truck camper

So is about 90% of this forum replies.
At least less trolling than usual and I'd say the topic was pretty constructive.

Posted By: Jtime on 02/21/21 07:53pm

Kayteg1 wrote:

ticki2 wrote:

And almost none of it has anything to do with a truck camper

So is about 90% of this forum replies.
At least less trolling than usual and I'd say the topic was pretty constructive.

I agree lol. Which tires does everyone run on your duallys or which would you recommend?

The 7.3’s came with 16” inch rims is it worth the extra coin to jump up into a 18 or 20?

Posted By: Rscconrad on 02/21/21 08:34pm

I have a 97 350 auto. Still stock with the exception of helper springs and air bags. 180k.

Thinking about a new one but even with 25 years, still wonder if I will regret it. Recently switched from a real lite truck camper to a fifth wheel. That truck is rock solid. At 150k I replaced all the bolt ons with a bearing as a preventative measure after I lost the original alternator.

Most likely going to get a 2022 and an arctic fox to go with it. We will see.

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