Rare 7.3 Powerstroke Expedition Build / FWC Hawk
- Thread starter 4 Corners Expeditions
- Start date
locrwln
Expedition Leader
The Ford/Donaldson AIS is a great upgrade for 7.3's. I ran one on my '02. I ran it for over 60k miles on the same filter which included two trips to Baja and one to Prudoe Bay Alaska. I was still on the original Donaldson filter when I sold it. I just took an air compressor to the filter and blew it out when I changed the oil. The other thing I would recommend for long travel with a 7.3 is a bypass oil filter system. Pick your style from a DIY (the one I did) or a commercial version. 15 quarts of oil every 5k miles sucks. I also did the fuel rail and oil crossover systems on mine, really quieted the motor down.
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Also, the rear LSD in the Ford's is worthless. They only work for about 5k miles at most. I bought mine new and believe me (and you can find many who agree), they don't work...at all. I would recommend a tru-trac in the rear axle and possibly an ARB. I needed a tug (could have gotten myself out if I had a winch) in Canada.
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I've also stuck my current truck (in a snow drift of course before adding the winch) and again, could have gotten myself out, but had to wait for a tug. The rear LSD actually works in the GM, but I added a front Eaton E-Locker to the front and have used it.
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Great platform and a great truck.
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Jack
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Also, the rear LSD in the Ford's is worthless. They only work for about 5k miles at most. I bought mine new and believe me (and you can find many who agree), they don't work...at all. I would recommend a tru-trac in the rear axle and possibly an ARB. I needed a tug (could have gotten myself out if I had a winch) in Canada.
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I've also stuck my current truck (in a snow drift of course before adding the winch) and again, could have gotten myself out, but had to wait for a tug. The rear LSD actually works in the GM, but I added a front Eaton E-Locker to the front and have used it.
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Great platform and a great truck.
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Jack
4 Corners Expeditions
Observer
I appreciate the input on the Ford Donaldson EIS intake and use up to Prudhoe Bay and Baja. In addition, the input on Ford LSD. We will be testing truck in a variety of conditions prior to Pan Am. I am planning a long backcountry trip on the way to Overland Expo West through Moab, Alstrom Point at Lake Powell, valley of the Gods, Muley Point, Zion, Toroweep and around North rim to Flagstaff. We will also spend a lot of time in Siuthwest Colorado. I may decide to add ARB to rear if we have some issues.
Thanks for input on oil and engine.
4 Corners Expeditions
Observer
Mounted Thule Sonic M Box on Yakima load bars. Wow that is high up even when camper is in the down position. I plan on carrying my Jackson Kayak up there as well. Now I know why Colin from WakeTheDeadDiaries always had a tall step ladder in their photos. I am 6'4 and need a ladder. Headed out on first trip tomorrow to favorite hot springs to try everything out 
4 Corners Expeditions
Observer
Thank You.....,
This is especially true since the 6.0L is much cheaper and the body/suspension is better. I know when I was looking at trucks, a 2003 7.3L truck was more money than a 2006 6.0L, by thousands of dollars. The market had begun overvaluing the 7.3L and undervaluing the 6.0L.
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That has changed now... people have realized 6.0L's are decent and the prices have gone back up, and so you can't get as good of a deal these days.
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Videos like this helped a lot:
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4 Corners Expeditions
Observer
I agree with both of you that the 6.0 is another great truck with numerous upgrades over my era of truck. There are so many great options from Land Cruisers, Land Rovers, Jeeps, Tacomas, Sportsmobiles to Unimogs. I love reading about all of the builds and seeing all of the different rigs people build. It inspired me to go through along process to select what appealed to me. I really think the diesel pickup truck / camper option is the best option for us and our overlanding needs. Gary and Monika Wescott were my inspiration for our build. I really enjoyed reading about their experience with the Ford 7.3's as a long term overlanding vehicle.
4 Corners Expeditions
Observer
We just returned from our first trip to test out the truck build to date and tryout the Hawk. i wanted the first trip to be somewhere that my wife would enjoy with amenities versus dry camping in the country. I chose the Ojo Caliente Mineral Springs and spa in Northern, New Mexico. They have some great RV spots along the river. We had day passes to the hot springs. It was a great weekend. We lived out of the FWC other than gong to the Hot Springs. Thougths on first trip
Truck Build:
Firestone Airbags with Daystar cradle - I set the psi at 45psi to match the stock ride height before the FWC. The airbags did a great job of providing a smooth ride.
Copper ST Maxx - set front pressure at 60psi and rear pressure at 70psi. I was amazed at how quiet the ride was for this aggressive of a tire. I had read this in reviews. I agree super quiet tire. This obviously may change with tread wear and mileage. Ride was great.
Bilstein 5160 remote reservoir - nice dampening. However, the real test will come on miles of dirt road testing.
Mileage
Fuel Mileage - I set the cruise at 70 mph on freeway and then followed speed limits on two lane roads. We drove home with 20-35 mph headwinds and cross winds. The average fuel mileage was 14.94 mpg
Four Wheel Camper Hawk Silver Spur -
Solar - we added a Zamp 160 watt roof top panel and a Zamp 80 watt portable panel. we did not hook up to power. I wanted to see how solar would perform. We only used the rooftop solar. It was cloudy day. We ran the refrigerator, water pumps, water heater, interior and exterior lights and the central heat. No issues with enough power.
Central Heat - the overnight temps were in the mid to high 30's. We have the Arctic Pac option. I set the temp at 65 degrees. It was nice and warm. The heat did not cycle on that often.
Glass top appliances - great option. It was super helpful to have the increased counter space when cooking and preparing food.
Fromt dinette - I am 6'4. I tried this option with my son who is 6'3". We both fit really well in the dinette. My wife and I were by ourselves on this trip. It worked really well for my wife and I on this trip.
Grey water tank - we set up a nice 7 gallon tank that I purchased from REI with a hose into s fitting on the top of tank. Perfect fit and worked great.
110 liter refrigerator - love the size. It performed great with tons on space.
Fiamma Awning - I really liked this option to set up outdoor living space with chairs and REI Camp Roll Table.
LED Option - our camper has the full LED lighting package. The interior and exterior LED's were vey bright and provided excellent light.
2 Bottle Propane System - I really like this set up. We just purchased the Camp Chef Everest two burner stove and are ordering the adapter to use with full sized tank. We can leave one tank hooked to the camper and pull out the other tank for cooking outdoors. We have
FWC new cushions - I never tried the old cushions to compare. However, I slept great. My wife thought it was too firm. We ordered the 2" ventilated memory foam that TwoHappyCampers recommends and added to their FWC. I am looking forward to trying the memory foam option.
Storage - we do not have have the cassette toilet. We have additional cabinets. There is a ton of storage in a variety of compartments. I was very impressed. We had tons f room to spare. I had added a Thile Sonic M Box. We did not use it.
Seeing you have one clean Superduty. Figured I'd share a cool product that a buddy found. Pre drilled super wide and long mud flaps!
He is running a set of Dura Flaps . There is also another brand that has one similar called Husky Liner.
They have kept his 2500 ram clean all winter long. Puts my weather techs to shame! Thinking about getting a sent also for my Ecodiesel.
He is running a set of Dura Flaps . There is also another brand that has one similar called Husky Liner.
They have kept his 2500 ram clean all winter long. Puts my weather techs to shame! Thinking about getting a sent also for my Ecodiesel.
4 Corners Expeditions
Observer
Very nice, thanks for sharing. I definitely need to add mud flaps for extended back country driving and wider more aggressive tires
4 Corners Expeditions
Observer
Build Update: We just completed a 5 day backcountry trip to Overland Expo West through Colorado, Utah, Arizona & New Mexico. We encountered the worst greasy sticky mud, off road tracks, miles of dirt roads and long highway miles. Great opportunity to test out the build and the FWC. We started out in Durango, Colorado camping on the Animas River. It was in the upper 30's at night and 60' in the day. The FWC was super warm and comfortable with the forced air heat and Arctic Pac.
We left Durango and headed to the Valley of the Gods. We aired down and drove the 19 mile loop enjoying the epic scenery. The new Bilstein 5160's, Cooper ST Maxx's with the Firestone Airbags and Daystar airbag cradles to protect the airbags during articulation performed very well. Great ride and handling.
We exited Valley of the Gods on the West side and headed up the Moki Dugway to set up camp at Muley Point. Great climb to a 2,000' overlook of Monument Valley. Love the FWC to set up a comfortable camp in such amazing locations.
Next we drove to Page, Arizona for a trip through Antelope Canyon. Our goal after Antelope Canyon was to drive from Page to the Alstrom Point Overlook on the westside of Lake Powell. Alstrom Point is 30 miles of dirt roads from the highway. We aired down and headed for Alstrom Point. I was super pleased with the ride quality and articulation of the truck with the FWC over a variety of road conditions. We made it as far as the Grand Staircase Escalante. The weather was building and we decided to turn around and get back to the paved roads. We encountered a very light sprinkle the last few miles before payment that turned the surface of the dirt roads into greasy slick mud The Cooper ST Maxx tires were amazing. We made it to the pavement with no issues.
Just before the pavement we stopped to remove all of the mud and aired back up and headed back into Page.
The next day we headed to the Grand Canyon and on to Flagstaff, Arizona to get set up in the Four Wheel Camper booth area with other FWC owners. Tom, Stan and Terry were amazing hosts. I met some other great FWC owners who love exploring the backcountry. The Overland Expo was amazing. Loved the classes and meeting new people.
I am very pleased with the truck performance both on-road and off-road. Especially with the off-road performance and ride on miles of dirt roads, washboards and mud. The truck has great articulation with the FWC. The transmission ran super cool with the upgrade to the larger 6.0 cooler. The mpg on the highway was 16.25 mpg. There was tons of wind for a lot of the driving. We lived in the FWC for a week. It was super comfortable and worked very well. I am working on some other truck mods and upgrades. I hope this update helps someone else who is building their truck or considering a FWC.
We left Durango and headed to the Valley of the Gods. We aired down and drove the 19 mile loop enjoying the epic scenery. The new Bilstein 5160's, Cooper ST Maxx's with the Firestone Airbags and Daystar airbag cradles to protect the airbags during articulation performed very well. Great ride and handling.
We exited Valley of the Gods on the West side and headed up the Moki Dugway to set up camp at Muley Point. Great climb to a 2,000' overlook of Monument Valley. Love the FWC to set up a comfortable camp in such amazing locations.
Next we drove to Page, Arizona for a trip through Antelope Canyon. Our goal after Antelope Canyon was to drive from Page to the Alstrom Point Overlook on the westside of Lake Powell. Alstrom Point is 30 miles of dirt roads from the highway. We aired down and headed for Alstrom Point. I was super pleased with the ride quality and articulation of the truck with the FWC over a variety of road conditions. We made it as far as the Grand Staircase Escalante. The weather was building and we decided to turn around and get back to the paved roads. We encountered a very light sprinkle the last few miles before payment that turned the surface of the dirt roads into greasy slick mud The Cooper ST Maxx tires were amazing. We made it to the pavement with no issues.
Just before the pavement we stopped to remove all of the mud and aired back up and headed back into Page.
The next day we headed to the Grand Canyon and on to Flagstaff, Arizona to get set up in the Four Wheel Camper booth area with other FWC owners. Tom, Stan and Terry were amazing hosts. I met some other great FWC owners who love exploring the backcountry. The Overland Expo was amazing. Loved the classes and meeting new people.
I am very pleased with the truck performance both on-road and off-road. Especially with the off-road performance and ride on miles of dirt roads, washboards and mud. The truck has great articulation with the FWC. The transmission ran super cool with the upgrade to the larger 6.0 cooler. The mpg on the highway was 16.25 mpg. There was tons of wind for a lot of the driving. We lived in the FWC for a week. It was super comfortable and worked very well. I am working on some other truck mods and upgrades. I hope this update helps someone else who is building their truck or considering a FWC.
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Sisyphus
Adventurer
Great truck and write-up!
I'm mostly echoing previous posts by saying that I would test extensively, as you are doing, before you commit to lockers or a winch. I've traveled much of the Pan-am (Mexico to Puerto Natales, Chile) and never have needed either. Quality tires at the right PSI, a basic recovery kit, and maxx tracks will get you out of most, if not all, situations. This is assuming that you are willing to work to dig yourselves out on occasion.
+1 for the diff breathers, though.
And if you haven't purchased a bumper already, consider aluminess to save some weight up front.
I'm mostly echoing previous posts by saying that I would test extensively, as you are doing, before you commit to lockers or a winch. I've traveled much of the Pan-am (Mexico to Puerto Natales, Chile) and never have needed either. Quality tires at the right PSI, a basic recovery kit, and maxx tracks will get you out of most, if not all, situations. This is assuming that you are willing to work to dig yourselves out on occasion.
+1 for the diff breathers, though.
And if you haven't purchased a bumper already, consider aluminess to save some weight up front.
akmedic77
Member
This build is amazing! Looks like you're going to have a lot of fun.
For the mud flaps, you might look at the OEM HD Mud Flaps from Ford. I've used Dura Flaps on my truck and they started to have a permanent bend backwards after the first winter. I'm now running the HD Flaps (non weighted version) and love them. My father runs them on both his and moms truck as well.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
For the mud flaps, you might look at the OEM HD Mud Flaps from Ford. I've used Dura Flaps on my truck and they started to have a permanent bend backwards after the first winter. I'm now running the HD Flaps (non weighted version) and love them. My father runs them on both his and moms truck as well.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro