7.3 IDI

[farmallcubkid]

I am looking at a real nice 7.3 IDI. It is a 2wd crew cab long box f350. I believe it is a 91 or a 92. It has the manual 5 speed and it won't go into reverse. You can feel the edge of the teeth mesh when you put it in reverse but as soon as you let out the clutch it pops out. It only has 175,000 miles on it so I don't think it would be worn out. Bent shifter fork? Worn out? I don't know I haven't really been around these pickups before, just throwing some guesses. Thanks for the help.

[Powered by IH]

Any pictures? I like pictures😁

[farmallcubkid]

If you insist. 😁

[Dirt_Floor_Poor]

That is for sure not a 1991. It’s at least a ‘92. Reverse synchro is out. I can almost guarantee that the plastic bushings on the clutch pedal are worn out, or have been, and someone roughed it around getting it into reverse until they tore it up. It happened to a lot of them. When the pedals were worn out, reverse was the hardest gear to get it in and people got too rough. Good memories. Some of our trucks back then had no usable reverse well before 200,000 miles. I have a 1992 right now that needs a trans rebuild for this exact issue. If the pedals are really bad, fixing them may reduce the issue for a while. It could also be a very worn clutch master cylinder rod pivot where it attaches to the clutch pedal shaft, but likely both. There is no adjustment, only replacement. 

[Powered by IH]

Here is a great DIY video if you decide to do it yourself.

It looks to be easy once the tranny is out!

Getting it out is another problem though. Grr.

[acem]

Looks like a Shagging Wagon beside it!

[Shell1066]

1 hour ago, Dirt_Floor_Poor said:

That is for sure not a 1991. It’s at least a ‘92. Reverse synchro is out. I can almost guarantee that the plastic bushings on the clutch pedal are worn out, or have been, and someone roughed it around getting it into reverse until they tore it up. It happened to a lot of them. When the pedals were worn out, reverse was the hardest gear to get it in and people got too rough. Good memories. Some of our trucks back then had no usable reverse well before 200,000 miles. I have a 1992 right now that needs a trans rebuild for this exact issue. If the pedals are really bad, fixing them may reduce the issue for a while. It could also be a very worn clutch master cylinder rod pivot where it attaches to the clutch pedal shaft, but likely both. There is no adjustment, only replacement. 

X2. reverse is out.

[int 504]

Why is there a synchro on reverse?

[Dirt_Floor_Poor]

1 hour ago, int 504 said:

Why is there a synchro on reverse?

So people who don’t know what they are doing can still drive it. Shifting into first or reverse on a ZF5 is nothing like driving an old 4 speed with no synchro on 1st or reverse. You have to be at a dead stop or there will be gear clash with them. I love those old 4 speeds. I guess it just reminds me of what I thought were simpler times, even though they probably weren’t. 

[Shell1066]

10 hours ago, int 504 said:

Why is there a synchro on reverse?

German inspired overbuilt 5 speed from what a ford engineer told me years ago. Very reliable transmission if you know how to take care of them. I've put 160000 on my current one with no troubles. But it is getting tired.

[Lars (midessa)]

Have you got it home yet??????

[farmallcubkid]

No, not yet hopefully soon though.

[Lars (midessa)]

Just for giggles, would you mind sharing the asking price?

[farmallcubkid]

I ended up buying it. It is a nice pickup. It will go into reverse, it is just kind of a process. You have to roll it forward and then let it roll backwards while you put it in gear and let out the clutch and it will stay in. It rides really nice and turns surprisingly short for a crew cab long box. Hopefully I can fix everything and use it.

[jass1660]

The 2wd’s turned shorter than 4 wd. 

[farmallcubkid]

1 minute ago, jass1660 said:

The 2wd’s turned shorter than 4 wd. 

I'd say it turns just  as short as my 4wd regular cab long box chevy does.

[Lars (midessa)]

6 hours ago, farmallcubkid said:

I ended up buying it. It is a nice pickup. It will go into reverse, it is just kind of a process. You have to roll it forward and then let it roll backwards while you put it in gear and let out the clutch and it will stay in. It rides really nice and turns surprisingly short for a crew cab long box. Hopefully I can fix everything and use it.

That’s great news.

Go over to ‘Ford Trucks.com’ and sign up, they are a wealth of knowledge.

First thing you should do is CHANGE THE ENGINE OIL!!  Personally, seeing as Autumn is here, I would use a synthetic blend(at the minimum), if you feel comfortable go with a full synthetic Diesel engine oil, after 800-1000 miles change the filter again. God only knows when the last time that motor had some t.l.c.

Hopefully the selector switch and solenoid works for the dual fuel tanks. Chances are those tanks ‘will suck air’ between 1/4 and 3/8 on the fuel gauge. On my ‘91 the rear tank hold 19 gallons, the front one holds 16 gallons.

[farmallcubkid]

3 hours ago, Lars (midessa) said:

That’s great news.

Go over to ‘Ford Trucks.com’ and sign up, they are a wealth of knowledge.

First thing you should do is CHANGE THE ENGINE OIL!!  Personally, seeing as Autumn is here, I would use a synthetic blend(at the minimum), if you feel comfortable go with a full synthetic Diesel engine oil, after 800-1000 miles change the filter again. God only knows when the last time that motor had some t.l.c.

Hopefully the selector switch and solenoid works for the dual fuel tanks. Chances are those tanks ‘will suck air’ between 1/4 and 3/8 on the fuel gauge. On my ‘91 the rear tank hold 19 gallons, the front one holds 16 gallons.

Yes, I got the stuff to change the oil and both tanks work! I filled them both up in town yesterday and brought it home. I did find one problem though, it doesn't charge. I put the battery charger on it over night so it should start. It was being an absolute pain to start and on some further inspection I found that the glow plug solenoid is shot because it gets power into the right terminals but it won't send any to the glow plugs. We also got a little surprise last night too.

[searcyfarms]

51 minutes ago, farmallcubkid said:

Yes, I got the stuff to change the oil and both tanks work! I filled them both up in town yesterday and brought it home. I did find one problem though, it doesn't charge. I put the battery charger on it over night so it should start. It was being an absolute pain to start and on some further inspection I found that the glow plug solenoid is shot because it gets power into the right terminals but it won't send any to the glow plugs. We also got a little surprise last night too.

just helped a neighbor put in the updated glow plug heater assembly on his 7.3idi, 65bucks i think he said online - its quite smaller too!!!!

hope she serves you well, you being a farm kid dealing with farm stuff will find the perfect combo to getting it into reverse and also learn to park where you dont need reverse as much until you have time to dig in and fix it if desired. Solving problems and living with quirks are a great advantage in life you are learning already and will serve you well. 

enjoy your time/efforts making it your own 

 

[farmallcubkid]

Well I did an oil change, the old stuff was nice and black. I tested the alternator and found out it was bad so I got one and put it on it. It charges now. The new solenoid for the glow plug relay kind of fixed it, I put it on and it is just stuck on all of the time. I just disconnected it and did some reading on the ford truck enthusiest (thank you Lars Midsea) and found that most of the guys said forget the relay and go to a manual push button to run the glow plugs. I would try starting it today but 17 degrees and no glow plugs don't go together to well so it might have to wait. This thread is almost becoming a project thread( probably because this is becoming a project) so hopefully I can fix it up and use it. Thanks for all the support and answers.

[Dirt_Floor_Poor]

I still have glow plug controllers on all of ours. I don’t see any reason not to keep them. Glow plugs and controllers are best replaced together. The oil on mine is black as coal five minutes after an oil change. 

[farmallcubkid]

Forgot the pictures.

[Dirt_Floor_Poor]

My 1992 did not have a serpentine belt. 

[farmallcubkid]

Don't know if I said this but I read the registration papers and it is a 1993.

[Dirt_Floor_Poor]

My 1993 had the factory turbo.