7.3 and Hills

[ert01]

I'm going through the same issues with my 02 7.3 van right now too...

Was towing my Jeep XJ (approx 4500lbs) and the van felt like a dog going up the hills. I'm running 285's and 3.55 gears.

Exhaust is on my immediate todo list and so is re-gearing to 4.10's.

But now that you guys are mentioning fuel issues, maybe I need to look into that too? Is there any simple way to test the injectors and the fuel system? I really don't like throwing money around and replacing parts and hoping that solves an issue... I like to KNOW the issue before jumping in.

Gears and exhaust will still get done but what can I do to check my fuel delivery?

[shenrie]

our 7.3 has no issues up hills at all. we arent going to pass any newer diesels if they dont want us too, but for the most part ours does just fine up most hills regardless of being loaded down or if we have a trailer in tow.

our van has 4:10's, 285/75/16 tires, a diamond eye 4" turbo back exhaust, and a ts tuners adjustable "chip" that i leave set on the 75 hp setting. oh, and a transfer flow 46g tank. so no delam issues for us.

[E350]

ert01 and maybe TexGX: Start with the link in post # 7 here:

http://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/13872 ... iesel.html

And read the rest of the above thread to see pictures of what he found when he pulled his in tank fuel pickup foot screen and mixing chamber screens.

[TexGX]

E350,

I remember when I first bought The Yeti you warning me about that. I have them change the filter every other oil change. So far it looks good. I hope to get a new larger tank soon.

I was told that I will need to change gears in both axials. Is that true? It seems logical, but doubles the price.

TexGX

[ert01]

Yes both axles must be done at the same time (or you could do one at a time but you'd want to pull the front driveshaft so it NEVER goes into 4wd while the gearing is different)

[ert01]

I also do the fuel filter on every oil change and it's looking fine to me too. I do want a fancy aluminum tank but I don't think Ujoints tank will work with my Quigley.

[E350]

I would trust carringb's advice over mine. But changing the fuel filter will prevent delamination particles from clogging your injectors, but it won't prevent delamination particles from clogging the fuel pump nonserviceable screen or the screen in the fuel pickup foot from clogging - either of which will result in low fuel pressure and a failure to fill the fuel bowl fast enough for the injectors to drink from while under load.

[TexGX]

E350,

I agree it is a huge concern. If I was not able to do hills when it was cold outside, then I might think fuel issue. When it is cold, it's hold my beer time up hills. My issue is heat tripping gauge causing me to slow down. If I had no gauge, I would be able to drive faster.

TexGX

[KTMRIDER]

I installed the diamond eye 4" exhaust on my previous 2000 7.3 van along with the Edge tuner. It flowed better and had much better power but the EGTs still hit 1250 pretty quick in the mountains, especially if left in overdrive. It did also have an annoying drone around 60-65 mph under load.

Later I had exhaust wrap installed from the turbo back past the transmission. Leaving overdrive off and keeping the RPMs around 2450 with 3:55 gearing and 285s would keep it in the sweet spot around 1100 degrees. The exhaust wrap really helped on my van and dropped the EGTs a good 150 degrees based on what I saw on the Edge display. I would recommend trying the exhaust wrap.

I would also recommend another tuner over the Edge. I liked the display but the shifting was way to hard on level 2 so I always let off before it shifted. I am sure 4:10s would have been better but having changed gearing on a previous truck I didn't feel that was worth the money and hit to MPG. I felt it was better to spend money on a tuner and the rest on gas for trips.
Eric

[BajaSportsmobile]

Originally Posted by TexGX

I am running 285/75/16, so not super large. I will look up rear gears.

I'll bet you already have 4.10 gears in your Quigley.

Does anyone here have 3.55 gears in their Quigley?

I've only seen a couple without 4.10s.