The Care and Feeding of the Ford 7.3L Diesel

[bussymcbusface]

Thanks Christopher! I think I've been watching your YouTube videos haha. I found the screeners for $5 on Amazon here: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B074P...Z1YEWYUX&psc=1

Assuming they'll work for the T444E even though they're listed for the PSD but I'll let everyone know once I try installing them next week.

[roach711]

The International fuel pickup may be different from the Ford pickup and yours may not have the strainers at all. On mine, you have to pull the fuel pickup out of the tank to get at the strainers.

[bussymcbusface]

Thanks Christopher and Roach for the replies! I ended up buying the strainers on Amazon for $5 delivered. If they fit, great! If not, just $5 : )

Here's the link in case anyone else wants it:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B074PZ6LMG

-Andrew

[cadillackid]

there is a fuel pre-strainer up under the hood near the fuel inlet.. it is a pointed shape up next to the main fuel filter.
-Christopher

[ChrisHieronimus]

Originally Posted by roach711

These are generally red coolants with operation lives of 300K-750K miles/6-8 years, depending on brand. They are very robust and require no maintenace or additives.

I'm buying a 2001 Ford 7.3L at ~144k miles. Am I correct assuming I won't need to worry about the coolant for quite a while? Thanks! Awesome thread!

[roach711]

Your 2001 should have the red stuff which is long life coolant. IIRC it's recommended to replace it every 8 years or so.

[PigPen]

Does anyone know how to do a compression test in these? I've found many people across the internet talking about doing so for the f-series, nothing at all for the vans. I'm planning on going with the cheap-o modified harbor freight setup to do it, but was hoping someone else has tried before me and can report back with their struggles.

If you recall, our bus had a shattered air box and resonator box, letting dirty air into the turbo and engine for who knows how long. It shows strong signs of needing new injectors, but I don't want to do all the work (and $$$) of replacing injectors unless I'm confident that there aren't bigger underlying problems.

[roach711]

I did a cooling system refresh on my 2000 E-450 with the 7.3L Powerstroke diesel today. It has about 130K miles on it now and I had the time AND the cash so I went for it. If the bus was an around town daily driver I would wait until the parts went bad before replacing them but we’re regularly far from home and way off the beaten path so any breakdown is a big problem. The new parts give us a little peace of mind too.

I replaced the radiator, upper and lower hoses, water pump assembly, fan, pulley and fan clutch. My fan had been chewed up when a belt idler pulley broke off a few years back and it’s recommended to replace the clutch with the water pump. I’m glad I replaced it all at once because we live in the rust belt and even with a hammer assist I couldn’t get the fan & clutch off the old water pump.

Parts


The water pump assembly includes the water pump itself (O-ring gasket included), a heater nipple w/ O-ring, a coolant temp sensor, a thermostat (gasket included), an upper outlet pump extension (the thermostat is the gasket) and a lower pump elbow w/ O-ring. The water pump came from International (cheaper than Ford but the same part). I got a used pulley off Ebay and the rest came from Ford.

I assembled the stat, elbows, sensor, heater nipple and pulley to the water pump on the bench. I bolted up the fan and fan clutch but didn’t attach them to the pump yet.

There are two ways to remove the water pump: 1) leave the radiator in place and separate the fan & clutch from the water pump while the pump is still attached to the engine (special tools are available from many parts stores) then remove the water pump, or 2) pull the radiator first then take out the water pump, pulley, clutch and fan as a unit. I went with #2 because my clutch nut was rusted tight and refused to unscrew.

So here’s the drill:

> Drain the coolant. The radiator drain plug is on the bottom of the radiator on the driver’s side. It’s white plastic and can be easily broken if it’s old so be gentle. An O-ring seals the drain so no need to reef on the plug when tightening. Snug is fine.

> Remove the air filter housing. Loosen the big radiator-hose type clamp at the back of the filter housing, undo 4 bolts and a bunch of those plastic clips on the front part of the assembly, then twist out the air temp sensor on the lower left side of the filter housing. Piece of cake.

Here’s the air filter housing


> Move the fan cowl back away from the radiator. Two bolts hold the fan cowl to the back of the radiator at the top. Remove the bolts and lift the cowl up to unclip it from the bottom of the radiator then push the cowl back over the fan and away from the radiator. The fan won’t let you remove the radiator and cowl together.

> Separate the fan/clutch from the water pump (if you’re not pulling the radiator). Borrow the Ford fan clutch tools from one of the big parts stores to do this. Put some cardboard between the radiator and the fan to avoid damage to the radiator core. The clutch nut is huge (1 7/8”) and my big crecent wrench wouldn’t fit. There’s a special tool set that includes the big wrench and a tool that slips over the pulley bolts to hold the water pump pulley. The fan nut is a right hand thread so “lefty loosey”.

Ford water pump tools


Here’s the big fan clutch nut hidden behind the fan. The big square wrench slides over the pulley bolts and the smaller wrench goes over the clutch nut.


OR

> Remove the radiator (if you’re pulling the pump and fan as a unit). Disconnect three coolant hoses (upper & lower radiator hoses and a small hose going to the degas bottle) and two transmission cooler hoses at the bottom back of the radiator. Remove the two steel radiator hold down brackets at the top of the radiator and it will now lift up and out. Note that there are rubber pads on the top and bottom of the radiator. You’ll need them when reassembling. Once the radiator is out you can lift out the fan cowl.

> Remove the serpentine belt. The belt tensioner has a square hole for a ½” breaker bar. Insert the breaker bar and pull like hell to the passenger side to untension the belt then slide the belt off the tensioner pulley. Note how the belt routes over the pulleys for later reinstallation then remove the belt.

The tensioner with the square hole


> Remove the water pump. Take the heater hose off the nipple on the top of the pump. Unplug the coolant temp sensor next to the nipple. The cam position sensor (CPS) pigtail support plugs into the lower left of the pump body. Just pull it free. There are nine 10mm bolts (IIRC) holding the pump to the engine. I live in the rust belt but all of my bolts were pristine. Not a speck of rust. If you didn’t remove the fan the bolts can be an adventure to get at but with a bit of contortion you can get them all. A long 12 point 10mm box end wrench came in real handy for me.

> Clean the gasket surface on the front engine cover. The gasket is a rubber O-ring type and doesn’t leave a lot to clean up. I used a piece of crocus cloth to get a nice clean gasket surface.

The gasket surface


The back of the water pump with O-ring gasket installed (old pump)


> Install the new pump and pulley without the fan. Make sure the new O-ring gasket is securely mounted in the gasket slot. It’s recommended to tighten the pump bolts in a cross pattern to factory specs. Torque spec is 15 ft lbs. I started from the center and worked my way out, tightening each bolt to TTE (that’s tight enough). Basically, about as tight as a 5” ratchet could get them.

> Plug the camshaft position sensor cable support into the hole at the lower left of the pump flange. The CPS is a known weak point on this engine so now is a good time to replace it. It’s pretty cheap.

Camshaft position sensor


> Reattach the heater hose and coolant sensor connector at the top of the pump.

> Reinstall the serpentine belt. If it’s old, now is a good time to replace it.

> If you’re installing a new lower radiator hose (which is actually three hoses cobbled together) it’s easier to snake it up to the pump and degas bottle before the radiator goes in.

> Install the fan & clutch. Spin the fan/clutch assembly onto the water pump (right hand thread) and snug it down with the big special wrench. If you didn’t remove the radiator, slip the fan cowl over the fan and lower them both in place together. You can’t install them separately with the radiator in place.

> Slide the fan cowl over the fan if you haven’t done it already.

> Install the radiator. Make sure the rubber pucks are in position on the lower body mounting points and just slide the radiator pegs into them. Place the top rubber pucks over the radiator pegs and reinstall the radiator hold down brackets. Attach all three coolant hoses and the two trans cooler lines.

> Bolt up the fan cowl. The cowl clips into the bottom of the radiator with two tabs and bolts to the top of the radiator with two bolts. The medium sized hose going from the lower radiator hose to the bottom of the degas bottle connects to the side of the fan cowl with a push-in connector like the one used on the CPS pigtail. Plug it into the hole in the side of the fan cowl.

> Bolt up the air filter assembly. Don’t forget about the band clamp at the back and the air temp sensor on the side.

> Refill the coolant by pouring it back into the degas bottle. Now is a good time for a coolant flush and some fresh SCA.

> Start it up and watch for leaks. Turn on the heater to fill the heater lines. Mine filled right away and didn’t need repeated heat/cool cycles to get the air bubbles out.

> Check the trans fluid levels if you lost much of it when pulling the trans cooler lines. I lost about a half quart doing mine.

You’re done!

[BajaBoundSquad]

registered here to figure out exactly what i need to do. i'll start off by explaining the situation. I bought a 1999 E350 7.3 short schoolie to convert and have had a blast so far. Drove the bus down through baja california, unfortunately had a blow out after the mud flap bend back up over the tires and popped one. after we got that fixed and back on the road we finished the trip and pulled into camp. I thought it odd with all the miles we drove the fuel gauge didn't go down past the 3/4 mark. I tried to take it into town the next day and it died on the drive there. Turns out the fuel sensor had malfunctioned and i ran her out of fuel. We ran a couple guys up to the gas stop for diesel. we put some in and after about 10 minutes of cranking and priming it turned over and we drove it straight to the station for more diesel then back to camp. It stayed there the next 3 days with a full tank. I was able to start it no problem every day to keep the batteries fresh. However, The last day we were set to go home i had to jump the bus to get her going in the morning and as soon as i took off about 50 yards after she died. I remember the bus rolling and no response from the pedal. We turned it over again after a few minutes of priming and this time it was about 10 yards before it happened again. It is currently stored at my buddies house down there but i'm going to make a trip and i need to bring everything i need with me for the fix down there. did i blow my fuel pump? Do i need to be concerned with more than just a blown fuel pump? Any Special tools i'll need to fix this and get her back on the road? Thanks for any help!

[dazdconfsd]

Originally Posted by BajaBoundSquad

registered here to figure out exactly what i need to do. i'll start off by explaining the situation. I bought a 1999 E350 7.3 short schoolie to convert and have had a blast so far. Drove the bus down through baja california, unfortunately had a blow out after the mud flap bend back up over the tires and popped one. after we got that fixed and back on the road we finished the trip and pulled into camp. I thought it odd with all the miles we drove the fuel gauge didn't go down past the 3/4 mark. I tried to take it into town the next day and it died on the drive there. Turns out the fuel sensor had malfunctioned and i ran her out of fuel. We ran a couple guys up to the gas stop for diesel. we put some in and after about 10 minutes of cranking and priming it turned over and we drove it straight to the station for more diesel then back to camp. It stayed there the next 3 days with a full tank. I was able to start it no problem every day to keep the batteries fresh. However, The last day we were set to go home i had to jump the bus to get her going in the morning and as soon as i took off about 50 yards after she died. I remember the bus rolling and no response from the pedal. We turned it over again after a few minutes of priming and this time it was about 10 yards before it happened again. It is currently stored at my buddies house down there but i'm going to make a trip and i need to bring everything i need with me for the fix down there. did i blow my fuel pump? Do i need to be concerned with more than just a blown fuel pump? Any Special tools i'll need to fix this and get her back on the road? Thanks for any help!

Start with replacing the fuel filter(s)

[WARGEAR]

I know the go to answer is always fuel filters, but if the bus was running until you ran it out of diesel then it’s clearly air in the system. Keep priming the fuel system. Your batteries might be weak from cranking to start the engine. Keep priming, you got this.

[roach711]

Your 99 E-van should have an electric fuel pump. If you turn the key to accessory you should hear a humming down under your driver's door step. It will run for 30 seconds or so without starting the engine and will self-prime the fuel bowl on top of the engine.

Changing the fuel filter is always a good idea after running the tank dry but what you may be experiencing is air in the fuel lines down stream of the fuel filter and that may take a few miles to clear the air in the fuel rails. Once you get it started keep the revs up so it's not so likely to stall out.


There are 2 fuel strainers in the fuel pickup/fuel level sending unit that may get plugged up. There should be an access hatch inside the bus that will allow you to get at the top of the tank to remove the unit. You'll need a set of Ford fuel line quick disconnect tools to get the unit out. Fortunately the tools are quite inexpensive and available at any auto parts store. I cleaned my strainers with some brake cleaner then reinstalled them good as new. You'll need to pull the unit in order to repair the fuel level sending unit anyway.

[Bronk]

Hi, I've got a 2001 7.3 and a huge problem. It's leaking brake fluid running or not. Drip drip drip. I popped the hood res was empty. Added fluid and drove the 4 miles to a walmart and it's empty again. The puddle is under the transmission about even with the doors. Took the inner hood apart and no drip to be seen. I can't find where the leak is coming from. I could really use a few pointers. TIA

[roach711]

You likely have a rusted through brake line. Assuming you have a Ford based bus the rear brake line runs along the driver's side on top of the frame rail near the fuel line (IIRC). If the leak shows up under the trans I'd guess the brake line is spurting fluid toward the center of the bus.

[WARGEAR]

Originally Posted by Bronk

Hi, I've got a 2001 7.3 and a huge problem. It's leaking brake fluid running or not. Drip drip drip. I popped the hood res was empty. Added fluid and drove the 4 miles to a walmart and it's empty again. The puddle is under the transmission about even with the doors. Took the inner hood apart and no drip to be seen. I can't find where the leak is coming from. I could really use a few pointers. TIA

Rusted brake line in where the fluids exiting. Master cylinder might be shot too if it’s just letting fluid out without touching the pedal.

[mc11237]

Any insights on the rear diff drain and change process?

[besterfe]

glad to find this post I have a 2005 e450 a smaller diesel engine, but I imagine a lot of this info is valid for me. corrections welcome.

I am converting this to food truck, my second one. first was a unreliable mobile home. needed something dependable.

it has a starTrans shuttle, any info of finding info on that would be appreciated .

thanks

[EastCoastCB]

Originally Posted by besterfe

glad to find this post I have a 2005 e450 a smaller diesel engine, but I imagine a lot of this info is valid for me. corrections welcome.

I am converting this to food truck, my second one. first was a unreliable mobile home. needed something dependable.

it has a starTrans shuttle, any info of finding info on that would be appreciated .

thanks

Dude you've got a 6.0 powerfstroke. Get it bulletproofed ASAP. That engine put plenty of folks out of business.
The 7.3 and 6.0 are totally different animals. The 7.3 has a fine reputation.

[besterfe]

Yikes. My brother in law worked on my mobile home. He is unable to help me out now ( chemo). I am getting ready to get it inspected. Have them change oil and look it over. Anything else should have done? I’ll search for threads on the 6.0.

Thanks

[EastCoastCB]

Originally Posted by besterfe

Yikes. My brother in law worked on my mobile home. He is unable to help me out now ( chemo). I am getting ready to get it inspected. Have them change oil and look it over. Anything else should have done? I’ll search for threads on the 6.0.

Thanks

If you're not familiar do some extensive googling and research. If its not been bulletproofed its like a time bomb. They're some of the least loved diesel engines in history.