I sold my CR and buying my old mans 97 7.3 auto. it has 249k on the clock. the tranny was rebuilt at 175k. I am just seeing what all wears out on them. I am thinking it needs glow plugs cause if its below 45* out, you have to cycle the plugs atleast 4 times to get it to start and she puffs blue smoke when it starts. But being summertime is peeking right around the corner i might just leave them alone unless it becomes a PITA. It is comletely stock. I was just curious if there was some DIY mods that can be done to get a little more out of it as it doesnt have the power it used to when it had 100k on it. I noticed it has a catalyic converter on it. What kind of advice do you guys have for what should be done? what are some things that could be wore out that could rob power out of it? Thanks in advance.
high mileage 7.3 question
- Thread starter JTProuhet
- Start date
The Hill Billy
New member
First thing I would do is get rid of the stock downpipe. The way it flattens out to get between the tranny and firewall is horrid. I got a 3 inch MBRP downpipe for about $80 if I remember correctly. It was a PITA to put in, but well worth it. Just get a BFH and beat the hell out of the firewall until it slips in place. The other common (or so Ive heard) problem that I had to change was the shifter linkage that runs down the column. It sheared off at the end near the cable and I had to relpace the whole tube and plunger ($100). Ive heard that mostly just the bolts come loose at the end of it. The plastic door handles kept breaking on me until I hit the linkage and mechanism with PB Blaster and then they started opening up real nice for me. Somebody else on here told me to try the handles off of an 80's Bronco cause they were aluminum. Let me know if youve got questions about the glowplug change. I did mine about 3 weeks ago.
Last edited: