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  #1  
Old 10-15-2006, 06:18 PM
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Ford diesel?

I'm looking at a low-miles '94 F-350 for my biodiesel biz and wondered if anyone has some insight/opinion regarding the 7.3 LITER TURBO DIESEL non-powerstroke indirect-injection of that vintage.

Thank you

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  #2  
Old 10-15-2006, 06:38 PM
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the 7.3L turbo is the most reliable of fords diesel. Its a good truck, it was the earlier 6.9 and the new 6.0 engines that were troublesome.
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  #3  
Old 10-15-2006, 08:33 PM
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Yes Great engine. I have the Powerstroke and it runs WVO and it does just fine as a DI. But IDI is an extremely easy to work on engine as well and if you want to make some extra power it is easy as well. If you decide you want to go further than your bio-d and to WVO it will be better off than my DI.

Edit here: Also thought you could use this. I use this website for my truck...Great guys on the forum. There is a section just for the 7.3 IDI and at the bottom a link to another site oilburners.net. If I remember right there is a site out there just for the IDI guys they don't let us DI guys in their club but they have a lot of good information.

Good luck with your bio-d business I hope it takes off.

http://www.superdutydiesel.com/forums/index.php
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Last edited by Addicted; 10-15-2006 at 08:46 PM. Reason: adding info
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  #4  
Old 10-15-2006, 09:18 PM
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http://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/forum170/
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  #5  
Old 10-15-2006, 10:29 PM
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Those are good engines but you also should be aware that they are the ones that can have cavitation issues if not taken care of.
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  #6  
Old 10-15-2006, 10:34 PM
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7.3 is the best

i buy and sell diesel cars and trucks, and the best one i ever owned was a 99 f250 with a 7.3 that had 486,000 miles, and sold it to a contractor that still ownes it, best truck i ever owned. and very little problems, most just have issues with fuel lines in the head, only have a powerstroke tech fix it if not youll have nothing but more issues.

good luck!
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  #7  
Old 10-15-2006, 11:00 PM
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Y'all are comparing two different engines.

THe original poster is asking about a Turbo IDI 7.3L that was available on late 93/early 94 Ford Trucks. This is the same engine as the 88-93 7.3L with a turbo slapped on it. This truck had an injection pump and a pokey turbo. Which has a turbo kit that had design assistance from ATS. This engine was known to be a dog and quite troublesome.

The 94.5-97 Ford Powerstroke Diesel had HEUI, and virtually the same thing as the T444E Engine by International/Navistar.

The later 99-03 7.3L Ford Installed was also a T444E except with double pop injectors, and a factory installed intercooler.

Unless you're being given this truck, I'd stay away. Either look for a 92-93 non turbo, or a 94.5-newer truck.

Note if you buy a 99 or newer, be aware on the early 99's the torque converters were prone to fail, often making a 'marbles in a coffee can' noise at idle. That was a small problem of the early 99 Trucks with the 4R100 Transmission.

I've owned and 86 Super Cab with the 6.9, a 96 Super cab 4x2 with the 7.3L, a 97 Supercab 4x4 with the 7.3L, a 99 4x4 crewcab, 99.5 Crewcab Dually, 2001 Supercab 4x2, and 2004 Crewcab 4x4 with the 6.0L .

Cavitation issues are present only if the coolant wasnt changed and the FW15/FW16 additive wasnt put in the engine coolant.
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  #8  
Old 10-15-2006, 11:14 PM
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or you could just buy the best small truck diesel

A Cummins IMHO.
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  #9  
Old 10-15-2006, 11:15 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Bio300TDTdriver View Post
A Cummins IMHO.
92.5-94, too.
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  #10  
Old 10-15-2006, 11:16 PM
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Opps

Needed to update my signature.
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  #11  
Old 10-15-2006, 11:35 PM
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Thanks!

Thank you all for your advice and expertise!
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  #12  
Old 10-15-2006, 11:49 PM
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Due to what I would consider to be misinformation , go to thedieselstop.com , these are the guys with the most experience on this matter . The IDI engines are generally considered to be far more reliable than their electronic counterparts . I say check the coolant for additive , (you can buy test strips) , if it has it and appears to have been maintained , go for it . Anything that hasn't been maintained can be ruined rather quickly . Early cummins are great engines , unfortunately the truck around them really didn't come around until a few years ago (arguably, but , all the auto's are weak).

Last edited by BiodieselLuke; 10-16-2006 at 05:23 AM.
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  #13  
Old 10-16-2006, 08:03 AM
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Cavitation Problem!!!

G'mornin' Folks,

As someone stated earlier in this thread.......there was/is a cavitation problem involving some of Ford's diesels during this era.....and I don't remember which ones, exactly.......however, as I remember, Ford's Diesels required the use of a specific coolant/antifreeze...or the warranty would be voided....at issue was....as the engine ran, the internal vibrations caused cavitation on one side of the cylinder liners....looks like little pinholes on the outside of the liner....and eventually these pinholes would continue to form and eventually hole the liner.....thus allowing coolant to enter the combustion chamber and exhaust to enter the coolant.....there is a tool set, Snap-On has one....that will allow you to check your coolant for exhaust gasses......if you know "for certain" that the proper coolant has been used during the lifetime of this vehicle.....go for it....you should be able to locate more info on this problem at your local Ford dealership......

btw....this is a relatively common problem on diesel engines....to the point that it is well covered in Marine Engineering schools......and the Germans use "Soluable Oil" (makes coolant look like chocolate milk) as a corrosion inhibitor on their larger diesel engines.....

SB
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  #14  
Old 10-16-2006, 09:09 AM
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If you used the green coolant, you would dump a can of FW-16 every 15000 miles. Gold coolant came later and then you were set for 100K.
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  #15  
Old 10-16-2006, 10:23 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BiodieselLuke View Post
Due to what I would consider to be misinformation , go to thedieselstop.com , these are the guys with the most experience on this matter . The IDI engines are generally considered to be far more reliable than their electronic counterparts . I say check the coolant for additive , (you can buy test strips) , if it has it and appears to have been maintained , go for it . Anything that hasn't been maintained can be ruined rather quickly . Early cummins are great engines , unfortunately the truck around them really didn't come around until a few years ago (arguably, but , all the auto's are weak).
TDS is a great place for information. I do agree the IDI engine are more reliable than the HEUI PSDs of later years. But the 94 Turbo IDIs were quite troublesome.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Shorebilly View Post
G'mornin' Folks,

As someone stated earlier in this thread.......there was/is a cavitation problem involving some of Ford's diesels during this era.....and I don't remember which ones, exactly.......however, as I remember, Ford's Diesels required the use of a specific coolant/antifreeze...or the warranty would be voided....at issue was....as the engine ran, the internal vibrations caused cavitation on one side of the cylinder liners....looks like little pinholes on the outside of the liner....and eventually these pinholes would continue to form and eventually hole the liner.....thus allowing coolant to enter the combustion chamber and exhaust to enter the coolant.....there is a tool set, Snap-On has one....that will allow you to check your coolant for exhaust gasses......if you know "for certain" that the proper coolant has been used during the lifetime of this vehicle.....go for it....you should be able to locate more info on this problem at your local Ford dealership......

btw....this is a relatively common problem on diesel engines....to the point that it is well covered in Marine Engineering schools......and the Germans use "Soluable Oil" (makes coolant look like chocolate milk) as a corrosion inhibitor on their larger diesel engines.....

SB
Caviation affected all 83+ Diesels last time I read the TSB Ford issued.
You could buy the additive and test strips from the dealer, or get them from the Navistar/International Dealer.

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