Fordracer

I ordered a def heater/sender assembly a couple weeks ago and they said it would be the middle of March or later before we get one.

Here's a good reason not to use WIX filters. The pictures below are from filters out of a 6.4. The last three complete fuel system replacements I did came in one right after the other with filters that looked exactly like these. Two of them were trucks from the Kansas Department of Transportation. They called their supplier and they called WIX and two days later WIX had a rep come out and look at the filters but they refused to help pay the bill. This secondary filter has a lip on the bottom of it that gets scrapped off on the fuel pressure regulator bolts during installation. I don't know if these pieces plug any passages in the fuel system and starving the pump causing it to destroy itself. This is the top of the primary filter. This is the bottom of the primary filter. This is a side view of the primary filter. This filter doesn't have the vent hole in it causing the top half of the filter housing to be full of air and not fuel. This might cause the fuel to aerate with the air and cause damage to the high pressure pump.

After I became a SM I didn't get a raise. I asked the Ford rep if the dealer gets any browny points from Ford by having a SM in the shop and he said they get no benefit from it so the dealer has no incentive to have anybody as a SM except that you can do any warranty work they need done. He told me recently that Ford is thinking about dropping the cerification requirments to do warranty work and just go off the dealers scores. If fix it right is down they will look into that dealers training and push it then. I guess that's their solution to closing schools and not having enough classes to get anybody certified in a resonable period of time.

It was pulling a vacuum with the engine off.

We just had another cold snap with temps dropping below zero and had the usual gelling trucks coming in. I had a 6.4 come in and for shits and giggles I put a pressure gauge on it and running it would stay above 6 lbs, even under a load but with koeo it would start out at 4 psi and slowly drop to 4 inches of vacuum. With the key turned off it would hold the vacuum until you turned the key back on and it would go the 4 psi and drop to a vacuum again. After sitting in the shop for an hour it would go to 6 psi koeo and stay there. I don't understand how it would create a vacuum when you check the pressure down stream of the electric fuel pump.

Interesting video. What did they do for a heater?

The IDM came in Friday and I installed it and all tests pass. I guess from now on if I need a 7.3 IDM I'll go with that company even though I don't like going aftermarket, especially with electronics.

IDM instead of IDS would make more sense.

I have a 2002 F-550 with 129,000 miles and the following problem. Here's what I sent to the hotline describing the problem. Description of Vehicle Concern:Check engine light flashes when under heavy acceleration.Diagnostics Performed:KOEO self test and KOEO injector electrical test and had codes P0475 and P1276. When the codes are cleared the P1276 won't come back until after it is driven and you make the CEL flash by driving at full throttle up a hill. Pulled valve cover and checked injector harness connector and ohm tested injector, all okay. Engine doesn't miss at any time, even when the light is flashing. I installed a test IDM and went on a long test drive and the CEL never came on. Insalled an OEM rebuilt IDM and now the CEL comes on after you start it and let it idle for 10 seconds and it stays on. The P1276 comes back and now I have P1274. When I clear the codes and run the KOEO self test and KOEO injector electrical test the codes don't come back until you start it and make the light come back on.Parts Replaced:IDM Here's my question. Before I try another IDM is it possible the software in the new IDM is more sensitive to set a light for the codes listed than the older IDM's and it's picking up a problem with injectors 4 and 6 when it is running and not on KOEO? Now get ready for it, here's their reply. We have actually determined that the internal hardware in the IDS is too sensitive causing the P1276 codes to set. Since the code does not set when you use your test IDM and the code is now setting at idle where it was only under a load before. We do recommend replacing the IDM again. But we would like you to get the IDM from an outside source. We will want to contact Website: http://remanautoelectronics.com and order (Part number listed on their site as Ford PN XC3Z12B599AA)Sales Ph: 855-723-5755. We will want to change this part out as a SPW warranty and OSP (outside part). Ford warranty does know that we are making these recommendations for this type of repair. What would the internal hardware in the IDS have to do with the CEL coming on? Why are they still selling the IDM if they know there is a problem? Bruce, have you heard of this company? I looked on their website and the IDM cost $165 but the customer paid $930 for the Ford one. I think Ford should just buy back their IDM and let the customer buy the aftermarket one.

I pull the cooling stack out in one piece with the cherry picker on trucks like that.

I looked on the list that came in the box and it does list the 2 o-rings but they weren't in the box.

I'm doing a short block on one right now for spun rod and main bearings and I just opened this kit and it doesn't come with the oil filter, dip stick o-rings, valve cover gaskets, or the above mentioned 9G478. The service manual says to discard and replace these parts. I don't know if a long block comes with the valve covers installed so you might not need to get them if you're doing a long block.

While I was on vacation in July the back up diesel tech replaced a DEF pump on a truck and Ford called the part back. Now three months later they kick back he claim because the part was built in October of 2011 and the truck was built in January of 2012. They say there is no way that part came off of that truck. A three month old part put on a truck on the assembly line doesn't sound out of reason. I could see it if the part was newer than the trucks build date. Since this tech only works on diesels when I'm gone and this was the only pump he has done there is no way there was a part mix up on his end since there is no way he had any other pumps laying around that might have been returned instead and I don't have pumps laying around either because they are all warranty. I'm getting very sick and tired of Ford's shit. I keep getting raises over the years but my pay hasn't gone up because of declining warranty times. When the diesels finally get out of warranty the customer cries because of the high cost of fixing them so we give them an AWA and I still have to do it under warranty time. It's about time to get out of the business after 32 years.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wXN38z3rBx8&feature=player_embedded Here's an interesting video Ford supplied to Motor Age about how Ford designs vehicles so they are easier to work on. I guess this justifies their reason to cut labor times since cars are so easy to work on now. NOT!

Local bracket racing and NHRA Super Gas. I'm .05 of a second to slow for Super Comp. It runs 8.95 in the 1/4 at 155 mph with a 557 big block Ford, I haven't raced since my boy was born 8 years ago and so far he's not interested in a junior dragster but he does want me to get my car going again. I need to do some upgrades on my chasis before I can run again since NHRA is always changing the rules.

Jet Hot coating is the only way to go. It will keep the underhood temp down, it's amazing how cool the pipes are. My race car is a Mustang roadster and the front end comes off to work on it and I have to make my own headers and I have them Jet Hot coated. After making a pass one day I was changing the timing on it and the timing light wires were laying on the header for a while, with the engine running, before I noticed it and it didn't even do anything to the wires. Sometimes I will accidently lean on the header with my leg and won't feel anything, but of course that's with a fire suit on.

Must of been the big power outage in the eastern US and Canada. Our paper just ran a article about it being 10 years ago and that not much has been done to keep it from happening again. I remeber where we were even though it didn't affect us in Kansas. We were in Salida Colorado doing some white water kayaking and we heard about it on the news in the motel room.

Thanks for the replies. The customer decided to try stop leak since he doesn't drive it much he doesn't want to put very much money in it.

I built a 800HP 557 BBF for my car 15 years ago for around $7,000 from Shannon Engineering using an OEM block and everything else is aftermarket. It uses Blue Thunder heads and they said I can get 1500 horse out of this set up with some port work. They said they have guys running these at 8,000 rpm with no problems but I use a 7,000 rpm chip in mine. I ran it over 8,000 on the dyno and it doesn't loose or gain HP over 7,000. You can build a Ford motor for about the same price as a Chevy. I'm glad to see you're not going the Chevy path. I get tired of the race track announcers calling my engine a Chevy even when I put it's a Ford on the tech card. I even have guys at Ford only events looking through my wheel wells in the staging lanes to see if it's Ford powered.

I have a 1994 7.3 IDI non turbo with 164,000 miles on it. The customer says while driving it everything is fine but when it sits for three months the coolant level drops a quart and the oil is a quart overfull with coolant but there is no oil in the coolant. He has pulled the heads and had them checked for cracks and none were found. I haven't seen this truck yet so I haven't verified it. The only thing I can think of causing this might be the oil cooler seals that seal up when the oil pressure is pushing on them but when there is no oil pressure the coolant pressure causes a leak into the oil or a cracked cylinder. When he had the heads off none of the cylinders showed signs of coolant wash. Has anyone seen this happen on these older 7.3's?

I buy mostly Snap-On also but when it comes to cordless impacts you can't beat Matco Infinium power tools. I love their 1/4" ratchet and use it all the time. I have their 1/4" ratchet, 1/4" and 3/8" impacts, screw gun, and 1/2" impact. The 1/2" impact is the strongest on the market and I can crush a rearend crush sleeve with it.

Come on down Aaron and I'll let you stay at my place and get you some tickets. I live 5 miles from the track. Friday night qualifying under the lights is the best time to go.

Look who's in town this week for the NHRA Nationals. The NHRA Safety Safari. 2012 F450 with a check engine light and codes P20BD and P20BE. While checking DEF line for damage per SSM I found this. DEF crystals coming out of the heat wrap on the DEF fluid line on the outside of the frame near the injector. And this Stalactite of DEF crystals. And this mound on the reductant injector. Here it is off the vehicle. Now if I can just get free tickets to the races this weekend for fixing their truck.

On the PTS web sight if you go under the Tech Hotline tab and click on "Hotline Assistance Request Form" you will be able to contact the hotline for vehicles older than 10 years old. It's hard to clear injector codes on 7.3's even after you have made the repair. I've had to clear CMDTC and KOEO self test codes even if no codes show up before the injector electrical test will pass.

I use a Matco socket.