Honest Reliability of 500hp+ 7.3 Trucks

[Cota]

I second what Charles said.
Learn to work on these things yourself, they are pretty simple, you can do most everything with basic hand tools.
Get good guages so you can see whats going on, including fuel pressure and ICP.
Get some kind of diagnostic tool, scan guage at minimum, AE is better, so you can do some trouble shooting when you do have something go wrong, and you will.
Keep a spare CPS, IPR and ICP sensors handy.
500 RWHP is pretty easy these days.
Start with a forged rod motor, add a tranny that will handle it, 250/100 or 250/200 injectors will get you there.
Get a turbo that will spool well, keep the EGT's and back pressure down and not be out of it's map range when you go WFO.
A drop in GTP38R is VERY marginal and pushing it's absoulte limits at 500hp, but only at WFO. The rest of the time it will work fine but there are better turbo's.
Get supporting mods to get everything to work together, bigger tranny cooler, regulated fuel return.
If your fuel pressure drops at WFO, add a fuel system. If you cant maintain ICP get a bigger HPOP.

Then get lived tuned if you can. You can waste a lot of time and get frustrated trying to get get everything tuned to your likeing over the phone. You will be time and money ahead just getting live tuned ASAP.

My recipe is 250/100, GT4294R, BTS tranny, full fuel system, studs, springs and what ever else was needed. Most of my stuff is old school compaired to whats avalable these days, some new, some used or I built it myself.

PHP tuned it and it drives like a stock truck till you mash it. My Daughter drove it to high school almost everyday.

Things that have broke, injector nozzle, IPR, IDM.
Bent push rods, broke rocker arms, towers and blew a head gasket on the dyno one time with a 38r turbo before studs and springs.
After studs and springs I haven't had a problem.

Also you can learn most everything about these trucks on good forums like this one, lots of good people and knowledge.
Have fun.

 

[skew12]

That sounds like a damn fine setup

 

[Cota]

It's fun and I still get a big grin just crusing around. My daughter bugs me to let her drive it when she's home from college.

 

[silverpsd_06]

How high of horsepower are you wanting to get out of your zf5 its going to be really tricky doing anything too high and that type of driving, it will spend most of its time under the charger which equals hot and smokey pig

 

[Smokin6-0]

I am looking to build the 500 or so horsepower that we are discussing in this thread. I think that the steep first gear and option to use 4 low might allow me to keep it from being too smokey with the exception of initial take off. Thoughts?

 

[Big Bore]

I'm going to go for the quad digit DD when I get my shop done.

7.3?

 

[Big Bore]

Also, Trey is running well over 500HP in a DD/farm work truck that tows heavy a lot, and he's running a 38r.

 

[lincolnlocker]

i know its not the 500-600 mark that your looking for. but my setup seems to work pretty well as long as you know when to let up on the skinny pedal so it don't over rev because i don't have springs or pushrods.... ive dyno'd 404hp to 492hp.... 492 was at beans and everything was working properly with no leaks and live tuned.... been on two other dyno's and one was 404hp out in california on total performance diesels super flo with major up pipe leaks... and ive done 408hp on a dyno from here in mi witch was a dyno jet 248c with up pipe leaks and a torn boot leaking... but other then a couple rocker arms broken and a couple bent push rods and the typical sensors giving some fits its done well in the last 60k miles ive put on her... i also drive the sh!t out of it on a daily basis... does well hauling too... have a fifth wheel and other trailers i haul around...

 

[PowerstrokeJunkie]

My truck seems to be pretty well set up now as a 500-550hp daily driver capable of doing anything still. When you're on a normal budget there is a level where you start to sacrifice practicality and 'peace of mine' of reliability and I think im right at the top end of that but still confident it's reliable. Out of the 30k miles or so on the setup I haven't had a single issue related to the performance mods i've done. Also I can still tow with my truck, hooked up to approximately 18,000lbs and it loved it, I rarely needed more than half throttle in my tow tune where my nearly stock 6.0 work truck would be singing along with my pedal buried in the floor

 

[MadDiesel73]

I would do forged bottom, springs, pushrods , studs, Gearhead Stg1 cam, 250-300/200 , gtx4294 or compounds with a 38r / s483-s488 or gt47, srp 1.1, full fuel system from irate and driven diesel, Bts trans, traction bars and lots and lots of live dyno tuning.

 

[Bigsexy]

I'm aiming for the exact same setup. From what I'm learning doing research the key to a happy setup is live tuning.

 

[sniper_101]

Awesome help so far guys, has given me a lot to consider. Really appreciate the detailed info, add as much as you feel like.

One of the things I'm starting to ponder is a turbo setup that will reliably support such a power level without being a smoke machine down low with a ZF-6. Time to do some some research on a useable and properly matched turbo(s) setup...

 

[MadDiesel73]

Compounds... Gated 63-66mm high pressure .83-1.15 t4, 80-91mm low pressure 1.24-1.42 t6

 

[TyCorr]

Do what the cummins guys do and run a small set.of.compounds. Or.a.38r . Im not.familiar.with the feeling.of.falling.off.boost all the.time.

 

[DocBar]

Charles nailed it, as usual. There will be bugs to work out and it's extremely frustrating if you can't fix it yourself. It's great and wonderful once the bugs are worked out, though.

 

[sniper_101]

Charles nailed it, as usual. There will be bugs to work out and it's extremely frustrating if you can't fix it yourself. It's great and wonderful once the bugs are worked out, though.

That's one of the biggest obstacles the other members on here near me, and I face; the lack of local aftermarket Powerstroke experience and/or tuners in the area. Hence the reason I have to turn to sites like this for experience on subjects like this. It's working out those bugs that can be a major headache without a tuner or parts supplier near by.

 

[PowerstrokeJunkie]

Keep in mind you can easily attain your goals with 80% nozzles, no NEED for 200% and you won't really be benefitting by going to a 200% at this level, just an honest opinion with having a truck finally set up perfectly.

 

[Lowdown89]

i know enough to replace parts, and trouble shoot minor stuff but im not gonna lie, this is my first time owning anything with some decent power and i know i will have issues that will arise and there's always the odd thing that pops up here and there. if i had to do it over again i would certainly have gone with a t4 setup to begin with so im not running the 38r so hard... i really think the key to building something reliable is to not piece it together but get a plan together and stick with it. i will be the first to admit at first i was only planning for 400 and that was it then i decided i wanted more and ultimately its gonna cost me double if not more to reach my end goal one day than if i had just made a plan from the get go and stuck with it. im just lucky i have bill to help/wrench on my truck whenever i need it

 

[silverpsd_06]

I can speak first hand on the turbo setup from one extreme for a zf6, right now gt4094r and a pt106 as the primary... It is smokey down low in a hot tune manageable for daily driving i can make it not smoke at all in my lowest tune. My injectors are super old 5 hole nozzle turds take that into consideration as well, it is hot hot hot when you mash the skinny pedal waving at 1400 as it goes by within eight to ten seconds. The 40 is starting to build boost right around 1400-1500 rpms in the hot tune and won't come on til 1800 or better in the low tune. Im not happy with it at the moment mainly because of my injectors their just about as old as they come for performance wise. I'm also lifted turning 37's. I'd go with 200%'s they are well known and every tuner pretty well has them down to an art by now or 100's for less heat. Go with charles' first setup if you do compounds and gate the holy piss out of the 38r if i could do it over that would be my best advice, sit back smile when that 88 hits and your gonna need a clutch for sure mine held for about a half a second once lol

 

[PowerstrokeJunkie]

Why does everyone say that "every tuner pretty well has them down to an art by now" that is certainly NOT the case. If so everyone would be in love with the way their trucks run with mail order tunes and 200% nozzles. That is only the case for the people who have 0 experience actually running/driving these said trucks and just repost what the few people who have actually done it have said.