F250 question

[Guy400]

Never owned a Ford truck but looking to pick one up as a toy. It will not be driven daily. It's a 2002 F-250 crew cab 4x4 with the 7.3L Powerstroke and auto. Anything I should be looking out for with these trucks?

[bbender85]

one of the most dependable years for the powerstroke SD's. if it has the ESOF (electronic shift on the fly) transfer case, the hubs often lose vaccuum to operate them, not a huge deal... if it's a shifter on the floor, it's obviusly not an issue.

i grew up in a strictly-GM family, but after owning my SD for 4 years now it's the only heavy pickup i'd own.. i think it's the best out there as a whole.

[Guy400]

It has a 2H, 4H and 4L rotary knob on the dash but then appears to also have manual locking hubs on the front.

[400exrider707]

The two major things to look for on that truck (besides normal truck stuff...). Check the oil pan. They are known to rot away on those trucks and the motor HAS to be removed to replace....
Also check the hubs out well, if you go to look at it and the hubs are in the "lock" position, they could be bad. They will still work, but when you put them in the "auto" position they will rattle your teeth out going down the road. They're not cheap to replace either.

How many miles on this truck? Injectors and glow plugs are usually things to replace on high mileage 7.3's, other than that and normal truck stuff, very dependable trucks. My buddy just got a 99.5 7.3 with 248k miles on it.

How much are they asking for this? Get some pics.

[Guy400]

I'm sorry, I got this mixed up with another truck I was looking at. This is a 2000 with 116k on it. They're asking 16 for it.

[bbender85]

Originally posted by Guy400
It has a 2H, 4H and 4L rotary knob on the dash but then appears to also have manual locking hubs on the front.

yeah those hubs are selectable, but instead of lock and unlock, they have lock and auto (auto locked by the vaccuum system i mentioned). if the vaccum system fails you can lock them in like a traditional hub. most guys just replace them with Warn manual hubs. yeah you lose the auto feature, but it not being a DD for you i'd think it wouldn't be too much of a hassle.

i run the Warn premiums on mine. i've had issues with corrosion on the inside of them and not wanting to turn, but with a good cleanin and liberal application of grease they've been fine since.

[quadrcr161]

great trucks, ive got a 2000 2wd supercab with 180,000 miles on it, gets about 22 mpg.

one more thing to look for is the water separator valve on the back of the fuel filter bowl, with the new low sulfer diesel it will eat that seal and you will loose fuel out the back of the fuel filter. not an expensive fix and ford sells a kit to redo it but its a P.I.T.A. to get to. I am probably going to take mine down soon and replace a lot of the seals that are in the fuel system like the injectors.

oh yea, the cps sensor, there was a recall on it but you either had a good one or a bad one, my local dealership just gave me the replacement to have on hand if the orginal one went.

[deathman53]

I have a 97 f350 7.3 diesel. It has 187,000 miles. I had to replace the water pump, vacuum pump/brake booster, brake line, that separation valve thing, alternator, turbo, accelerator pedal sensor and front brake caliper. Ford replaced the cam sensor under a recall. Thats not bad for a 14 year old truck. I didn't really have to replace the turbo, it was nice upgrade w/ addition of exhaust brake. I have a bully dog exhaust, K&N cold air intake, Hypertech programming, BD turbo(supposibly better), Exhaust temp/turbo boost/trans temp guage and BD exhaust brake. Its a auto, Trans fluid was replaced ~2 years ago(~30kmiles), oil is changed every 10,000 miles and fuel filter is changed every 5-6 months. It gets 15mpg(4:10 rear). Great truck, some things went wrong, but not bad considering the mileage and age of it. I have to replace the front rotors(can't grind them down), replace pads and same for the drum brakes.

If I was to get another truck, it would be another 7.3, low miles, 4x4, f250 or f350 single rear wheel. The same upgrades w/ addition of inner-cooler would be done(if it wasn't already).

[CJM]

7.3L is the only way to go. About all that really goes bad are the auto hubs (ones that are vac operated iirc), cam position sensor (5 mins to replace) and the injectors usually need to be changed around 75-100k-its costly at like 100 per injector and labor but then your good for another ton of miles.

Other than that theya re reliable trucks. Personally I would go for one that has the manual transfer case lever, much more dependable.

OH-make sure when you get it you take a can of fluid film (can pick up at any place that has plows or heavy equipment or online) and spray into all the actual hoels int he bed rails that go intot he body-the rear fenders wont rust then.

[400exrider707]

16k sounds a little high to me, but it looks clean. Not a steal, but not a rip-off either. Probably worth the money as long as it's 4x4.

Again, I can't stress this enough, make sure the oil pan is in good shape. The motor HAS to come out to replace it... it's common for them to rot away.

My buddy just picked up a 99 1/2 for $4k, it has 248k miles, but runs like a top. Deals are out there. Look on the forums for trucks, usually they're already "fixed up".

www.powerstrokenation.com
www.powerstroke.org

Those are the two biggest and best powerstroke forums IMO.

[Ruby Soho]

I paid 5k for my late 99. 170k when i bought it.

check oil pan, oil level, see how she starts. ask when the fuel filter has last been replaced (can just look) feel the tranny. the 4r100 is the weak point in the truck for sure. does it have a tune or any mods?

not much goes wrong with these trucks.. i absolutely love mine to death.. wouldn't trade it for any other truck.

PM me if you have more questions.. 99.5 and 2000's are almost identical, and i know my truck like the back of my hand

[BEN10]

I'm sorry but I have to disagree with some of you , We have 2 1999 f-250's and a 2001 all with the 7.3 liter at work and their all automatic transmissions and everyone thats drives them seem to think their junk. They got no power I had trouble just today I pulled our 16ft job trailer up a hill and I was doing 40MPH at the bottom of th hill and by the time i got to the top it was doing 25MPH and I had to floor it all the way up , and you almost have to floor them to get them to start moving. Their steering radius is terrible it's alomost impossible to back a 40ft trailer up with one when I have no trouble doing it with one of our dodges. But there is some good things about them to they never seem to break down and we're pretty hard on them and their 4WD is alright to.But they are really cold blooded starters in the winter time.

[Guy400]

Originally posted by BEN10
I'm sorry but I have to disagree with some of you , We have 2 1999 f-250's and a 2001 all with the 7.3 liter at work and their all automatic transmissions and everyone thats drives them seem to think their junk. They got no power I had trouble just today I pulled our 16ft job trailer up a hill and I was doing 40MPH at the bottom of th hill and by the time i got to the top it was doing 25MPH and I had to floor it all the way up , and you almost have to floor them to get them to start moving. Their steering radius is terrible it's alomost impossible to back a 40ft trailer up with one when I have no trouble doing it with one of our dodges. But there is some good things about them to they never seem to break down and we're pretty hard on them and their 4WD is alright to.But they are really cold blooded starters in the winter time. I'm clearly not an expert with the 7.3 Powerstroke but sounds like you got a serious problem with those trucks if they can't pull a 16ft trailer. Back when my grandfather was building his house we towed a trailer with 3000lbs. of cement blocks on it with an S-10 with a 2.2l diesel 5-speed through the hills of Stuebenville, OH. We didn't set any speed records but it wasn't a struggle either.

[Guy400]

On a side note, is the 6.0 Powerstroke really that bad of an engine? These trucks are seemingly being given away and make up about 90% of the used Ford diesels that I see. I did some searching on them and they sound like they are nightmares.

[CJM]

Originally posted by BEN10
I'm sorry but I have to disagree with some of you , We have 2 1999 f-250's and a 2001 all with the 7.3 liter at work and their all automatic transmissions and everyone thats drives them seem to think their junk. They got no power I had trouble just today I pulled our 16ft job trailer up a hill and I was doing 40MPH at the bottom of th hill and by the time i got to the top it was doing 25MPH and I had to floor it all the way up , and you almost have to floor them to get them to start moving. Their steering radius is terrible it's alomost impossible to back a 40ft trailer up with one when I have no trouble doing it with one of our dodges. But there is some good things about them to they never seem to break down and we're pretty hard on them and their 4WD is alright to.But they are really cold blooded starters in the winter time.

Something is definitely wrong there, it sounds like they are getting no power for some reason. At work we have an OLD beat up 93 non turbo 7.3L flatbed tow truck that can haul 2 cars, trucks, most anything just fine.

As for the 6.0, the engines dont hold up, the cast/powder connecting rods break down. The 06-07 models are much more reliable, but still not as good as the 7.3L

[bens250ex]

Originally posted by BEN10
I'm sorry but I have to disagree with some of you , We have 2 1999 f-250's and a 2001 all with the 7.3 liter at work and their all automatic transmissions and everyone thats drives them seem to think their junk. They got no power I had trouble just today I pulled our 16ft job trailer up a hill and I was doing 40MPH at the bottom of th hill and by the time i got to the top it was doing 25MPH and I had to floor it all the way up , and you almost have to floor them to get them to start moving. Their steering radius is terrible it's alomost impossible to back a 40ft trailer up with one when I have no trouble doing it with one of our dodges. But there is some good things about them to they never seem to break down and we're pretty hard on them and their 4WD is alright to.But they are really cold blooded starters in the winter time.

deff a problem with the trucks/trailer brakes or somethin cause i can gain speed up a hill in stock tune pullin a 30ft 10000lb rockwall......sounds like the truck didn't down shift or somethin.

[quadrcr161]

yep something dosent sound right, as as far as turning radius my f250 turns tighter then my dad chevy 1500 ext cab, which i gave him when i bought my diesel, the chevy couldnt hardly tow a single quad without feeling like it had a boat anchor tied to it.

[Ruby Soho]

i can pull a 16ft trailer loaded up a hill no problem with my egts under 600 with my tow tune on.

maybe the workers who drive the work truck, treat the work truck like garbage, making the work truck a **** truck.

[06typeS]

Originally posted by Guy400
On a side note, is the 6.0 Powerstroke really that bad of an engine? These trucks are seemingly being given away and make up about 90% of the used Ford diesels that I see. I did some searching on them and they sound like they are nightmares.

its hit or miss with the 6.0's, i have freinds that haven't had a problem with them, then i had others that got so fed up they tradded thier truck in for something else

[Ruby Soho]

if you do the studs and egr delete 6.0s aren't all that bad. i still probly wont ever buy one

[HondaRacing83]

i figured id add my advice-i havnt heard many things bad about the 7.3 engines,they seem pretty good,but the 6.0s are fairly junk,and i know the new ones(dodge and chevy are doing this also with their diesels)they have a seperate tank where you have to add an additave thats like $8 a gallon so it keeps that emisions and pdf stuff happy in the truck,now theres no black smoke with new diesel!all that comes out of the new diesels is hydrogen,i heard you could suck the tailpipe on these new ones while its running hope it helps

[deathman53]

a good amount of the diesel guys out there add fuel additive, something like anti-gelling/cetane boost/ULS additive to make the new properties of the diesel fuel wear and run like they should in 06 and past motors. That stuff is more than $8/gallon, its something like $30/gallon, but it goes awhile. Thats awesome news to hear the diesels now require 2 fuel additives to run right and pass emissions.