Rare 7.3 Powerstroke Expedition Build / FWC Hawk

[4 Corners Expeditions]

One of biggest concerns with this era of truck is the front hub factory bearings. I am planning on converting to Dynatrac Free Spin kit to add serviceable front bearings. I will wait until I have some more miles in the truck. This seems to be a great product with excellent reviews.

 

[4 Corners Expeditions]

Here are some other options and upgrades were are working on for the build. I have spent a lot of time researching. Any feedback and experience with the mods to large truck would be helpful.

Intake - just received the Ford / Dinaldson EIS Severe Duty Intake. Great product and well built. I think this is great for dusty environment of the Southwest where we live. However, the filters would be difficult or impossible to obtain internationally. They are massive.

ARB Front Air Locker - I have Dana 60 on my truck. The plan is to add air lockers. However, I will not be doing any rock crawling in this beast. Mixed feeling about adding

ARB Rear Air Locker - this probably makes more sense as a back up. My plan is to try with factory limited slip differential in loose sand, mud and rocky terrain to see how truck performs with a load in the back.

ARB Differential Breather kit - this will definitely be an upgrade from factory.

Firestone Air Bags with Daystar Air Bag Cradle - from what I have read and seen on threads this is s great add and the Daystar airbags will help prevent tearing of the airbag.

Front bumper - ARB has an option for this year of Super Duty. In addition, I have looked at Buckstop. I saw the Buckstop on the Turtle Expedition truck.

Winch - for this heavy of a vehicle a Warn 16.5 ti.

Lights - I am trying to decide between LED or old school. I have had the Warn combo driving lights and really liked them. I have been looking at 30" Rigid Industry light bar for LED

Tires - did some research and talked to overlanders. I ordered the Cooper ST Maxx in a 285x75x16 to work in factory hub centric rims. This height will help will overall height to fit in a shipping container.

I have been following builds of different types of expedition vehicle builds. I have really enjoyed seeing all of the differ to builds and equipment choices. I am really looking forward to making our build a reality after a number of years of planning.

 

[4 Corners Expeditions]

Nice... I needed a crew cab long bed and felt happy finding one with 80k miles. 46k miles is awesome assuming it was kept up well, which it sounds like it was. Good luck with the build. I have a 6.0 trans cooler on order and will be putting it on mine this fall once camping season slows down. I my mind, if the current trans ever sh!ts the bed, I'll move forward with the manual. Because of the diesel though, the auto is not as bad as I was fearing because I don't have to come out of overdrive very often on the highway unless the road is over 7% grade and I don't want to slow down. Neither of which are very common here on the east coast.

Don

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I have been following your flatbed build thread. Very nice!! The truck, flatbed and camper look amazing! Congrats

 

[sg1]

After 2 years in Africa I am just doing the PanAm (very slowly).
Filters. That is something you will replace often. I suggest you keep the original filters. They are a lot easier to get abroad.
Front Lockers: Not necessary and another piece of equipment that can fail and will be difficult to source internationally.
Rear Air Lockers: Maybe. I would only install them if the factory limited slip really sucks.
Winch. Useless. It is very unlikely that you get stuck with this vehicle and if you do it is even more unlukely that you find a tree or another solid attachment point in the right distance and at the right angle. Solid sandboards got me out of any problem so far and I crossed the Sahara twice on remote tracks in the 80s
Differential breather: ok
Tires and tire size: Good choice. You should be able to get this size internationally.
Air bags: I prefer upgraded conventional springs if the load does not vary much. If you keep your Hawk on the bed all the time you should have a fairly constant load. Air bags are prone to problems ( I have them and would not do it again) and at least mine have a tendency to make the truck vibrate on bad roads especially if the bags are quite short and don´t have a lot of travel. If you take the Hawk off occasionally air bags can of course deal with the changing load a lot better than steel springs.
You should look at your brakes. Those roads are steeper than anything I have seen in North America and this goes on for miles. I have seen quite a few trucks with serious brake problems and overheated transmissions (you hopefully took care of that). Especially older trucks with "soft" torque converters and few gears seem to have that problem. They are not very good at using the engine to break downhill.
Regards Stefan

 

[4 Corners Expeditions]

After 2 years in Africa I am just doing the PanAm (very slowly).
Filters. That is something you will replace often. I suggest you keep the original filters. They are a lot easier to get abroad.
Front Lockers: Not necessary and another piece of equipment that can fail and will be difficult to source internationally.
Rear Air Lockers: Maybe. I would only install them if the factory limited slip really sucks.
Winch. Useless. It is very unlikely that you get stuck with this vehicle and if you do it is even more unlukely that you find a tree or another solid attachment point in the right distance and at the right angle. Solid sandboards got me out of any problem so far and I crossed the Sahara twice on remote tracks in the 80s
Differential breather: ok
Tires and tire size: Good choice. You should be able to get this size internationally.
Air bags: I prefer upgraded conventional springs if the load does not vary much. If you keep your Hawk on the bed all the time you should have a fairly constant load. Air bags are prone to problems ( I have them and would not do it again) and at least mine have a tendency to make the truck vibrate on bad roads especially if the bags are quite short and don´t have a lot of travel. If you take the Hawk off occasionally air bags can of course deal with the changing load a lot better than steel springs.
You should look at your brakes. Those roads are steeper than anything I have seen in North America and this goes on for miles. I have seen quite a few trucks with serious brake problems and overheated transmissions (you hopefully took care of that). Especially older trucks with "soft" torque converters and few gears seem to have that problem. They are not very good at using the engine to break downhill.
Regards Stefan

Stefan I sincerely appreciate you sharing your wisdom and experience. It means a great deal to me. I agree with you. The more I have been researching and getting input like yours the less inclined I am to add lockers, intakes etc. m
My friend who owns company that services severe duty diesel trucks operating in harsh environments felt the same way. From his experience with these trucks he said my truck should do very well with stock four wheel drive and differentials. . I ordered and received some Maxtraxx sand ladders. It is my plan to test in very sandy areas, mud and in the rocky desert here in the four corners area. If there are issues I will only add a rear locker. Thanks for input on tire size internationally. That confirms my research online and input from another international traveler using Ford 7.3 diesel truck and has traveled abroad extensively. Thanks again for your input. I appreciate it.

 

[sg1]

Thanks. I am glad if I can help. One thing you can do do improve your air filtration is a cyclone pre air cleaner. They really help to remove dust and particles before the air enters the filter. Many vehicles in Africa have them. You can combine that with a snorkel.
Stefan

 

[4 Corners Expeditions]

I did some research on tires and I also spoke with Colin at WakeTheDeadDiaries. They ran the same tires on their round trip to Panama. He said a couple other overlanders they met on Pan Am ran the same tire. We ordered 5 Cooper ST Maxx in 285x75x16. The Bilstein shocks were installed at the same time. I really like the new tires. Substantial change in size and appearance from 265's that were on truck.


In addition, Firestone Air bags with Daystar Cradles.

 

[4 Corners Expeditions]

The next step - go to Denver to Rocky Mountain Four Wheel Camper and get the Silver Spur Hawk model installed. Chris has been super helpful. The Hawk is fully loaded with every option except interior cassette toilet and interior shower. The only thing we need to add is solar. We are getting a Zamp 160 watt roof top panel. A Zamp 40 watt controller. In addition, I also decided to an 80 watt portable panel as well. I thought this may come in handy if it is hot and we are parked in the shade for a few days. The folks at Zamp solar have been great and answered all of my questions.

 

[Motafinga]

Nice truck! My previous rig was a 99 psd and I will say after a trip to baja through lots of sand the most annoying shortfall was the air intake. The design of it draws its air from the wheel well and it basically throws dirt and sand down its own throat. I constantly had to open up the air box and clean it out and change or beat the dust out of the filter. I ended up ditching the air box for a large Wix keg shaped filter that was readily available at O'Reilys and it bolted right on.My current rig is a 97 PSD that came with a K&N that works great and is washable on the road and seems to stay pretty clean between washings. Also good call on your tranny cooler but you might want to consider adding an electric fan for steep low speed and or sandy stuff as well as a temp gauge to keep an eye on it. The 99 rocked in the sand btw even with stock size bfg's aired down to 45 psi, no lockers just lsd. The 97 has the 285 bfg and is even better though.

 

[IdaSHO]

I would never run a K&N

IMO the drawbacks outweigh any potential benefits.

For me, no 7.3 Powerstroke is complete without a simple "tymar" type cone filter.

As mentioned the factor airbox is a joke and has the potential to destroy one of the best motors ever produced, in short order.

 

[4 Corners Expeditions]

Nice truck! My previous rig was a 99 psd and I will say after a trip to baja through lots of sand the most annoying shortfall was the air intake. The design of it draws its air from the wheel well and it basically throws dirt and sand down its own throat. I constantly had to open up the air box and clean it out and change or beat the dust out of the filter. I ended up ditching the air box for a large Wix keg shaped filter that was readily available at O'Reilys and it bolted right on.My current rig is a 97 PSD that came with a K&N that works great and is washable on the road and seems to stay pretty clean between washings. Also good call on your tranny cooler but you might want to consider adding an electric fan for steep low speed and or sandy stuff as well as a temp gauge to keep an eye on it. The 99 rocked in the sand btw even with stock size bfg's aired down to 45 psi, no lockers just lsd. The 97 has the 285 bfg and is even better though.

I appreciate your thoughts and input on intakes and your experience in Baja. We are planning a trip to Baja next February - March to San Ignacio Lagoon to see the gray whales and new born calves. Your input on performance in the sand in Baja is very helpful. I hunk the new Cooper ST Maxx in 285's is gong to do great. I will try in the desert in the southwest before venturing south. I also just received a set of Maxtrax. Does anyone have any tips for mounting to Yakima load bars? I would like to lock them in place.

 

[4 Corners Expeditions]

I would never run a K&N

IMO the drawbacks outweigh any potential benefits.

For me, no 7.3 Powerstroke is complete without a simple "tymar" type cone filter.

As mentioned the factor airbox is a joke and has the potential to destroy one of the best motors ever produced, in short order.

Very nice intake!! Thanks for sharing. I appreciate it.

 

[4 Corners Expeditions]

Chris at Rocky Mointain Four Wheel Camper did an amazing job with a custom bracket to mount rooftop Zamp solar panel to slide along Yakima tracks. In addition, a very through setup and install of the Hawk on my truck. Set my airbags at 45 psi to maintain stock ride height. Adjusted rear tire pressure. I am very pleased with the ride. Taking my wife out on Saturday and Sunday for our first overnight in the camper. I am adding a Thule Sonic M rooftop box to FWC.

 

[Motafinga]

I would never run a K&N

IMO the drawbacks outweigh any potential benefits.

For me, no 7.3 Powerstroke is complete without a simple "tymar" type cone filter.

As mentioned the factor airbox is a joke and has the potential to destroy one of the best motors ever produced, in short order.

The intake filter on the intake pictured looks just like the wix I put on the 99 but I used the stock throat and just clamped to that with a pvc adapter/reducer, seemed to work fine. What don't you like about K&N? Just curious..

 

[IdaSHO]

Short end of it... as I REALLY do not want to go down the K&N rabbit hole...

Essentially, a paper element is stupid-proof.

K&N is far from it.

The only benefit I can agree with with regards to a K&N is the ability to clean and re-charge (re-use).


I wont get into the actual filtration ability debate.

Instead, Ill just leave this here for reading.

http://www.nicoclub.com/archives/kn-vs-oem-filter.html



Carry on with the uber clean 7.3 and fresh pop top camper :sombrero: