7.3 Diesel what should be replaced

[gtbensley]

As some as you may know, we toss the idea around of selling our van and then decide we like it too much and hang onto it. In that light I think I would like to do some maintenance to her as she is a 95 with 160K on the clock now. I believe I am starting to get a few glow plugs that are not working correctly and should be replaced. I figure if I am pulling the VC I might as well go farther and pull the injectors and replace all the O-Rings on them. Here are my thoughts.

Injector O-Rings
Glow plugs
VC gaskets because of the wiring
Oil Cooler reseal
New high pressure oil lines and seals

What else should I do. The goal would be to replace what I can to keep this thing from leaving me on the side of the road, not that I have any reason to believe it would but I want to be proactive. I am not made of money, nor do I have a ton of mechanical skill so keep that in your mind with the suggestions please.

My rig is a 95 E350 quigley 7.3

Thanks for the input.

 

[4x4pair]

I would also recommend replacing the UVCH and the "pigtail" it connects to. I know the ones on my 7.3 were trashed and caused issues.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N910A using Tapatalk

 

[shenrie]

small list of the stuff ive had to do recently. rig has 180k ish on it. mines newer (2003), but never bad to check... most all these things were identified trying to isolate a leak.

service plug underneath hpop was leaking. replaced with this: http://www.dieselorings.com/1999-20...l-pump/serviceable-replacement-hpop-plug.html
ipr pigtail


head plug oring
turbo pedestal orings
icp sensor went bad. still worked, but developed a leak. the replacement oring was garbage. use an oem one if you don't get an oem sensor.

check the passenger side fuel line as well. the little metal bracket that holds it in place needs to hold it snug or it starts working its way through it due to vibration.


also good to check up pipe gaskets. they seem like small leaks but I could definitely tell a seat of the pants difference replacing them. went with a bellowed kit this time since the stock replacements didn't even last a year before they started leaking again.

ive recently developed a power loss as well. still runs fine and all but don't have that a$$hole button im used to having to get by slowpokes up hills. after checking ipr percentages and icp pressures it appears I have a leak somewhere. the gent that wrenches on my rig keeps a fleet of 7.3 vans going and said its either a bad oring on one of the injectors or the hpop is going bad. going to him this Saturday. need it fixed. haven't camped in weeks and im getting pissy.

 

[gtbensley]

Great info thank you. Yeah mine seems to have a couple of tiny leaks that I ignore. Runs great and has good power but I want to do a couple thousand mile trip up to Newfoundland next year and figure its just time to replace seals and such. I might have an injector O-ring thats leaking some, get a slight blue cloud when starting after the van has been sitting for a couple days. Go away in about 1-2 minutes though.

 

[Bikersmurf]

Stancor (Monster) Relay to replace Glow plug Relay
Fuel Filter and Fuel bowl O-Rings
Shrader Valve on side of fuel bowl (12/96 has... don't know about 95)

All are available from DieselORings.com

Also check idler, tensioner, and waterpump bearings. Rad hoses. Serpentine Belt.

 

[gtbensley]

I dread pulling the fuel bowl for some reason, how bad is it? How about the valve covers?

I have a new water pump and glow plug relay already, but maybe I should upgrade to the Monster one as I am running stock Ford ones.

 

[Bikersmurf]

Fuel bowl wasn't fun. The worst part was cutting the fuel lines from the fuel pump and getting them back on. The rubber lines between the fuel pump and the fuel bowl were cracked on the outside when I did mine. Reaching the bolts that held the bowl down was awkward. Mostly it was time consuming. If you live in a really cold area, I'd replace the fuel bowl heater at the same time... mine was broken, but I just removed it since most of what I've read indicated that by the time it's cold enough to do much, the fuel in the tank will start to have issues... Don't know, but we rarely see freezing... and don't plan on any Arctic adventures.

All in all, I likely spent 8 hours pulling, cleaning, replacing bits, reassembling, and reinstalling. I did it over a week or so. Access was the hard part... on a truck it'd be a 2-3 hr job.


Haven't removed the valve covers yet... access is again the hard part. Getting to anything under the hood seems to start with an hour of removing unrelated stuff that's in the way. Chris aka UJoint, has said doing the Glow Plugs on a 7.3 while the body is in place isn't a lot of fun. He recommends pulling a seat and the doghouse for easier access.

I was just about to do the glow plugs till I decided to replace the relay first... The old relay was cracked and non-functional. A 'fog' would roll in if I had to start it in cool weather without the block heater being plugged in. Now, with the Monster Relay, I get a smallish puff if I start it in cold weather. I expect it'll be better once I replace the glow plugs... just haven't had a day to commit to it (and a week or so to recover after).

 

[djbonsu]

Like Bikersmurf said, If you are going to do anything in the valley, definitely pull both seats and the doghouse. After that, you can pull the turbo and have at it! I re-sealed my HPOP, fuel bowl, turbo and IPR a few months ago and added new intake plenum inserts, Silicone boots, an FRx and HPx while in there. Took me about 20 hrs to complete it all. A lot of work but I broke it up over 3-4 days. If you are going to remove the HPOP, remove the alternator and the bracket holding it as it will give you a bit more room especially once the fuel bowl is out. It seems daunting at first but it really isn't all that bad. If you do remover the HPOP, DO NOT drop that washer in the front cover as you will have to dis-assemble the front of the motor to retrieve it. Just becareful when removing it. Re: the valve covers, the drivers side isn't bad at all but the passengers side can be tough. A good trick is to loosen the passenger side motor mount and carefully lower that side down a few inches. Good luck with it all!

 

[Bikersmurf]

Like Bikersmurf said, If you are going to do anything in the valley, definitely pull both seats and the doghouse. After that, you can pull the turbo and have at it! I re-sealed my HPOP, fuel bowl, turbo and IPR a few months ago and added new intake plenum inserts, Silicone boots, an FRx and HPx while in there. Took me about 20 hrs to complete it all. A lot of work but I broke it up over 3-4 days. If you are going to remove the HPOP, remove the alternator and the bracket holding it as it will give you a bit more room especially once the fuel bowl is out. It seems daunting at first but it really isn't all that bad. If you do remover the HPOP, DO NOT drop that washer in the front cover as you will have to dis-assemble the front of the motor to retrieve it. Just becareful when removing it. Re: the valve covers, the drivers side isn't bad at all but the passengers side can be tough. A good trick is to loosen the passenger side motor mount and carefully lower that side down a few inches. Good luck with it all!

Fun... lowering the motor to pull the valve cover... makes me really want to pull them now. It started with no glow plugs, so having a few tired ones shouldn't be that big a deal.

 

[Bbasso]

As much as you can physically and financially do.
It's a very broad statement but that is what it comes down to inho.

 

[gtbensley]

The dog box I can have off and out in about five minutes. Passenger seat comes right out too but drivers has wiring and switches and won't be moving.

I thought there is room to pull the valve covers without moving the engine? I thought it's #3 injector you need to pull the solenoid off to get it past the firewall. Guess I'll find out. Going to wait a month or two before I tackle it.

 

[Bikersmurf]

Not to HiJack... but pics of Glow Plug or under the cover work (or links) on a van would be great.

 

[Bbasso]

If you are unable to pull the driver's seat then under the hood will be a daunting task....

 

[gtbensley]

If you are unable to pull the driver's seat then under the hood will be a daunting task....

Why? I can still work past the seat as I always have.

I will take pictures as I go gladly.

 

[gtbensley]

I am ordering all sorts of stuff in the next couple weeks and have found a garage at a friends house he is building that will be large enough to get the van inside and warm enough to work on for an extended period of time. The hope is to have it torn down in a weekend, injectors shipped out for bench testing and back together the following weekend or two. The goal will be to replace worn items and items that leak only. No performance mods besides a high pressure oil cross over....which isn't performance really.