Broke Down 7.3 (also in Bozeman)

[maxswasser]

Thanks for all the input. It’s a painful bill - especially at 90,000 miles, but I think this will keep me on the road for a long time.

For some reason the $700 labor on my slightly leaking up pipes feels like a sticking point. It looks easy enough to do myself - has anyone done it?

[REF]

Yes, replacing up pipes isn’t too terrible, I did mine several years ago, one side is a bit more difficult to access, but doable for a DIY driveway project, get a few extensions for the wrench

[rescuejg]

I might be a little late to this discussion.

Any reason you are putting in NEW injectors? Why not just have them put in new orings? The injectors should be good for at least another 75-100k if not more. I surmise the oil is getting past the orings and the injectors themselves are not the issue. New injectors are $275 each from Riff Raff. Riff Raff sells the Alliant injectors which are the OEM original.

When it comes to parts for the 7.3. Pretty much most parts that are Motorcraft, Alliant or International are going to be OEM.

I am not sure if the van 7.3 oil filters are the same as the trucks, but the truck oil filter FL1995 (OEM) is under $10 at Walmart. I realize that shops need to make some profit on parts, but that is a bit much what he is charging for an oil filter.

The price for the serpentine is also outrageous. You can definitely get one for cheaper.


I don't see glow plugs on the invoice. You want to ONLY use Motorcraft for the glow plugs. They will be made by Beru.

As someone else mentioned the under valve cover harness is a good idea to replace as well. 90k is a bit early to replace this, but vans are typically a lot harder to work on compared to a truck.

Also a good time to replace the glow plug relay. I recommend upgrading it to WESTERN SNOW PLOW RELAY 56131K-2. It will fit in the stock location and is much more rubust than the original Ford (or any replacement) unit.

In your initial post you mentioned replacing cups. I don't see that on your invoice. 90k is kind of early to replace cups. Most folks don't replace until there is a problem with one. But I do understand preventative maintenance. Most would argue that 90k is too early for preventative maintenance for cups. If you had 150k or more I would agree. Many others would say, don't mess with them unless you are over 200k. Some folks say don't mess with them unless you have a leak. There are many 7.3s that go 500k or more without ever needing cups.

Again, I will note that vans are a bit different different bc of the difficulty of the labor. I will also note that when you use a van or truck for exploring remote areas, our preventative maintenance may look different from someone who uses their truck on the road and is usually close to "home."

[kbeefy]

Also late to the show, but I have quite a bit of 7.3 experience.
Burning oil is typically the o-rings, as @rescuejg mentions.
And if the oil and fuel filters are changed regularly, 90k is silly for injector replacement. 200k is more reasonable, and I have also seen 500k on original injectors.


It's likely too late, but maybe a future reader will see this. Bitteroot Diesel sells new Alliant injectors that are balanced and have a good warranty for under $300. You can upgrade to larger nozzles and/or single shots for a very minimal upcharge.


Also a +1 for Riff-Raff, I have bought many, many parts from Clay. Good business, good prices. And very close to Bozeman.

[bisonthecruiser]

You're getting charged a lot of money to have work done that I think is a prerequisite to driving an SMB anywhere remote. Serp belt, fuel filter, etc. Looks like the guy is hunting to get you near $7k.

Have they pulled the valve covers to see if the o-rings are pissing oil? $300 should at least gotten one valve cover off. Did they do a buzz test on the injectors. If not a lot of what I'm saying is making sense, that's where I was 1.5 years ago. On these older 7.3's you'll need to be pretty familiar given the robbery and lack of familiarity people increasingly have around them.

Swapping your fuel filter is a 30 minute job for a drunken hack.
Serpentine belt is a 5 minute job to install or uninstall. You should be comfortable doing that on the side of an Alaskan highway.

Originally Posted by maxswasser

I do have the Hydra Tuner and a pyrometer. I work hard to keep EGTs under 1250.

So I'm burning more oil than diesel, and feeling pretty confident that injectors need to come out. Any good reason not go with stock motorcraft injectors @$330 each? Does that seem reasonable?

Up pipes are also leaking, so they're going to replace those as well. Wicked wheel upgrade while they have the turbo out? Anyone have experience with that?

Here's my quote from the shop. Does this look reasonable to everyone?

Thanks,
Max