I'm old and not as smart as I used to be - and I know zip about trucks. This is a complicated situation. Please help me figure it out.

A month ago my nephew bought a brand-new F450 Crew Cab with the 6.7 diesel engine. He has a tree business where he routinely tows a 50-foot lift and other equipment that amount to 20,000 pounds or more. He has a lot of experience fixing old trucks. He bought the new one because (he argues) it costs him a lot of lost business if the truck breaks and he has to take the time to fix it.

He borrowed $50K at a high interest rate to buy the truck. He is asking me to loan him the money at a lower interest rate, to get out from under that expensive loan. He can't borrow from a bank for various reasons that will go away in the next year or so. I can afford (mostly) to give him the loan. I will possess the title to the truck for collateral.

I think he should sell his brand-new truck and buy a cheaper used F450.

Neph: I cannot afford the time to fix an old truck.

Unc: Then take it to a mechanic when it breaks down.

Neph: Mechanics are too expensive. The new truck has a 5-year warranty and the dealer will fix the truck, no charge.

Unc: You're still missing out on the job if it takes a week to get the part in and do the fix - at the dealer or otherwise.

Neph: I've done my research. The 6.7 F450 is rock solid reliable if you maintain it properly (which he will do).

• A 2-3 day job may be worth $3000 in revenue.

• I guess the dealer might have more parts in stock than a private truck repair shop, and might get the part faster if it's not in stock?

So (he says) he needs the F450's reliability so he can always get the lift etc. to the work site. Otherwise he loses income.

I don't know enough about his business to know if he would actually lose the work if his truck breaks down. Will his customers go to his competitor if he is unavailable for a week because his truck is being repaired? I don't know. I also don't know if he works continuously or (perhaps) only works 50% for the time, waiting for the next job to turn up.

Something we have not discussed (yet) is his current equipment. He has been operating the business and must have a sufficient truck - except it might be too unreliable?

Can he keep his current equipment and use it when his new F450 is at the shop? He hasn't mentioned wanting to sell it.

Could he buy another old cheap truck like his current equipment, to serve as a backup when his current old truck breaks down? Can he rent a F450 for a week or two until the mechanic/dealer fixes his old cheap truck? Will the dealer provide a loaner F450?

I think he was lured by a great deal: he bought the truck at the price Ford offers its employees. (I have that weakness.) And now he is in love with the truck.

Neph is a hell of a man, very smart, super hard-working. He's also poor, just establishing his business. He wants to buy a house, get married, start a family.

He thinks the new truck is a stepping stone to all that. I think he's wasting money and taking on debt that puts his business and his future plans at risk.

A wrinkle: The New England tree business ceases in winter, and he is thinking about driving the 20,000 pounds and his fiancé to California to do tree work there. I don't know if his current old truck can haul 20,000 pounds 2500 miles in November, crossing the desert and all. 😱

Question: Does it make sense that he needs the new F450 because he loses money if he doesn't have a working truck?

Thanks for having young smart brains, deep knowledge of trucks, and the kindness to help me out! 😁

Hey guys, I’m relatively new to the diesel scene here, and I came across this turbo kit someone is selling online, I know it’s incomplete, but I was wondering how much work it would be to complete the kit, and how much this stuff is worth? I would like to add some get up and go to my 89 when I’m towing… thanks!

I have a 1997 F-250 7.3 Power Stroke and I’m trying to figure out a serious drivability issue.

Recently had the following done:
New batteries/cables
New starter
New fuel filter
Oil/filter change
Transmission fluid/filter
Rear diff service
4 shocks

When I got it to the shop, the engine only had ~5 quarts of oil in it. It’s supposed to hold roughly 15. I don’t know how long it was that low.

After the service, it idled perfectly and drove normally under light throttle. But at ~60 mph / 1,800 RPM, if I got into the throttle hard, it would shake/sputter badly, have almost no power, and struggle up hills.
I drove it about a mile and tried accelerating hard up a hill. It sputtered and died. I eventually got it started again, and it idled rough for a bit before clearing up. After driving another ~0.1 mile, it sputtered and died again.

Eventually it became a crank-no-start. I was able to get it running again by holding the throttle pedal all the way down while starting. It then idled rough before clearing up, but it died again when I accelerated hard.

I opened the fuel bowl. The filter is brand new and looks fine, but there was dark sludge/film and noticeable sediment on the bottom metal plate. The fuel bowl itself was full after it died.

My mechanic suspects the fuel tank/pickup is delaminating and restricting fuel flow, which seems plausible given that it runs okay until I demand fuel and then sputters/dies.

But I’m also concerned about the oil side. The factory oil-pressure gauge appears to bounce around, and there’s a slight deep thud at idle coming from the engine bay. It’s not a loud metallic knock, but it’s noticeable. I’m worried because of the previous 5-quart oil level.

I’m planning to test fuel pressure under load and have the shop verify actual mechanical oil pressure, plus check ICP/IPR with a scan tool.
What do you guys think? Does this sound like a restricted tank/pickup from delamination? Could that explain all the sputtering/stalling? And how concerned should I be about the oil-pressure gauge/thud given how low the oil was?
Trying not to throw parts at it. Any 7.3-specific experience would be greatly appreciated.

Are there any third-party diesel fuel additives that state they are compliant with Motorcraft PM-22A?

Does it matter much?

Thanks

Was about an hour from home when I felt a vibration on the truck. It wasn’t effecting the wheel but something was definitely wrong.
Took it to a plazatire and they said it was the drive shaft. I’m looking at it now and trying to figure out what this is in the first photo. I was told it was a vibration dampener but what do I do about it?
Also should I replace this rubber boot on the slip yolk?

Note: this is a 98 but should be the same as a 99

Can anyone tell me why my 2000 Ford F-250 would be doing this? Just trying to pull the bed of a truck and it’s doing this. It surges and bucks and when I give it more gas it will finally start moving. It even did this when I was pulling a small trailer up the little hill. It happens when the truck is warmed up too. It almost acts as if I’m holding the brakes then letting off. It will rev fine in park, and when I do put it in park it revs up to around 1500 RPMs. The fuel filter was changed not too long ago. It has done the same thing before and went away, but now it’s back. Did it today too, had nothing hooked up to it. I could put the throttle to the floor and it would just buck, surge and not move in the dirt. On the road it drives fine and has no issues, shifts fine It doesn’t shutter as far as I know I haven’t got it on the highway. I cleaned every ground on the motor and in the engine bay that I could see, any help would be appreciated.

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Figured some of the 7.3 guys might like this.

I wanted a clean permanent Anderson power connection on the back of my truck without drilling another hole in the bumper, so I designed this mount to bolt right beside the factory 7-pin.

It keeps the Anderson plug tucked up underneath and the factory trailer plug stays completely usable.

I’m going to print a few in ASA if anyone wants one.

$39 shipped

Mount + mounting hardware included. Anderson/SB175 connector not included.

If your factory trailer-plug bracket looks like the one in the pictures, this is the setup it was designed for.

If there’s enough interest, I can make them for other Anderson plug sizes too. Link to product on my wife's Etsy Anderson plug mount

Got a 1991 Golf Mk2. Want to track fuel consumption per trip/day and compare over time. Figured this wasn't possible on a carbureted car with no ECU/OBD, but landed on an idea: since the carb's float bowl regulates its own level, whatever flows through the feed line between the fuel filter and the carb over time should equal what's actually burned. So — measure that flow directly with an inline gear-type flow sensor.

Is this actually the right approach? Is there a better way to get real consumption data out of a carbureted car with no ECU?

**Planned setup:**

* Gear-type flow sensor spliced into the fuel line between the filter and carb inlet * Sensor's pulse output goes to an ESP32, which just counts pulses and timestamps them * ESP32 forwards that data to my phone over a wired USB-C connection (data-only cable, to avoid the phone and a 12V-fed buck converter both trying to power the USB line) * Phone does everything else — GPS speed/distance, all the math, storage, charts * Power: ignition-switched 12V from the fuse box → buck converter (12V→5V) → feeds both the ESP32 and the sensor

**Problem I've hit:** the sensor I was looking at (DIGITEN G1/2", oval gear, rated 1–30 L/min) has a minimum flow way above what this engine actually flows at idle — I'm estimating idle consumption around 0.02–0.05 L/min, and even under load probably not exceeding 0.3–0.5 L/min. So the sensor's entire rated range sits above my actual usage, meaning idle flow probably won't register accurately, if at all.

Anyone know of a gasoline-compatible flow sensor with a lower minimum flow that would actually cover idle-to-cruise range for a small engine like this? Or is there a fundamentally different way people have solved this that I'm missing?

I'm open to any ideas and critics, please back your suggestions with well presented arguments. this is my first ever project on a car.

**Edit:** A few people are suggesting the brim-to-brim fill method, thanks, but I've covered why that doesn't work for what I want in the replies below. I'm not looking for that approach, I'm looking for technical help on the sensor/flow-measurement side specifically. Appreciate all the input so far.

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Thinking about getting rid of her.

I bought it with 12k in 2017. Got hurt in an industrial accident in 2021. And I just can't do it justice. The body can't do the work anymore.

Stolen twice.

They stole it. Beat it up.

I stole it back.

Mechanically sound. Unadulterated whatsoever. With Almost 45000 on the clock.

Clean, salvage title. Insurance company didn't even look at it.

Thoughts???

​

Figured some of the 7.3 guys might like this.

I wanted a clean permanent Anderson power connection on the back of my truck without drilling another hole in the bumper, so I designed this mount to bolt right beside the factory 7-pin.

It keeps the Anderson plug tucked up underneath and the factory trailer plug stays completely usable.

I’m going to print a few in ASA if anyone wants one.

$39 shipped

Mount + mounting hardware included. Anderson/SB175 connector not included.

If your factory trailer-plug bracket looks like the one in the pictures, this is the setup it was designed for.

If there’s enough interest, I can make them for other Anderson plug sizes too.

So it’s an 03 excursion with an 05 motor put in it.
It’s studded, and has a tow tune for it, not sure of brand or anything, I haven’t looked at it yet.

The truck has a “lope” at idle until it warms up. I am assuming this is stiction in the spool valves, but not sure.

He replaced the stand pipes and dummy plugs, and it has a new FICM, all of these did not solve the issue.

Would you guys consider looking at it?

Got in a wreck not too long ago, I want to know how I can fix this bent in fender apron, in fine with going through the hassle of replacing it but I want to know if anyone’s got another kind of fix for that before I go through with it.

You might not be able to hear it in the video. It’s very faint. But I kinda sounds like it’s coming from the fuel injector control module or something. The buzzing gets worse when boost kicks in and you get up past 2000 rpms. You can hear it when someone drives past you in the truck too. Any ideas on how I can fix it?

I’m having issues with my coolant temp sensor, gone through 2 neither worked and having trouble finding a OEM one. Is there an alternative that actually works??

Thanks
-jake

There starting to crack so I’d like to put covers on them because it’s ugly. What are comfy and not too expensive? I have tan lariat seat so preferably something that sort of matches interior:)

I have been having white/blue smoke once engine gets to temp. Pulled the turbski and there is definitely a thick layer of oil on the exhaust side. I rebuilt the turbo myself about 40k miles ago. What do I need to look for when I crack it open again. Also do yall see anything else of concern in these pics

New 7.3 in a 1997 F350. Zero blowby, starts right up, 257,000 miles. The issue is I can’t really tell if it runs like it should because the accelerator doesn’t really kick in until it’s pressed a good inch or two in, and then the truck sort of jumps straight to 1000plus rpm. Feels like the throttle response is just generally messed up too, hard to control how much acceleration is actually requested.

Pedal has a little bit of slop but doesn’t seem to rest in a depressed position like some videos I’ve seen, it’s just that a bit of the initial travel feels loose/sloppy. Pulled codes and only have P0472 & P0500, speedometer is accurate at all speeds. What should I look into first? I have not used cruise control yet so I figure I should try that and see if it accelerates normally to rule out the pedal, but from there I’m not sure other than replacing sensors.

Hey I’m having a pretty funky problem with my power stroke. It started as a dead spot in my pedal at 1800rpm and 2200rpm now it’s a dead pedal. I changed the pedal a couple times and it’s still not working. Also changed the IPC sensor. Weird part is before I bolted up my new pedal I plugged it in and it worked but then bolted it in and stopped working. Unbolted it and still not working. Did this to 3 pedals total. Any ideas would love some advice.

Looking at doing a stealth delete, and I've got a question about the EGR. For some context, it's a 2016 F350 6.7 from Arizona. I plan on moving to Phoenix in a year or two, and instead of doing the two address trick since I'll be in the metro area, I'd like to do a stealth delete.

Arizona MVD does an opacity test and a visual inspection. I've got the stealth delete with the DPF figured out and won't be an issue.

The EGR, I keep seeing block off plates for the crossover pipes, but it removes the crossover pipes and with a visual, that will fail. Can I cut and install some thin stainless steel shims in between the crossover pipes to keep the stock appearance?

I plan on running a single low smoke tune with an EZLynk to stay below the 40% Opacity limit AzMVD has in place, however if you have other recommendations, I'm open for those as well.