ford 7.3l mileage

[scully36]

Hello all, im brand new to the forum and this is literally my first post. We are a family of 5 and im really considering an f250/ excursion with the 7.3l diesel. i know this motor is considered very reliable and capable of a ton of miles. I live in southern California and these trucks average between 150xxx and 370xxx miles give or take. As far as price goes they range between 12k to 24k depending on mileage and amount of previous owners. what is everyone's opinion on how many miles are too many for building an overland rig. i know that mileage and preventative maintenance go hand in hand. i have a hard time paying 24k for a truck 20 years old. any opinions on the matter would be greatly appreciated. thank you for your time

 

[Skies The Limit]

Hello all, im brand new to the forum and this is literally my first post. We are a family of 5 and im really considering an f250/ excursion with the 7.3l diesel. i know this motor is considered very reliable and capable of a ton of miles. I live in southern California and these trucks average between 150xxx and 370xxx miles give or take. As far as price goes they range between 12k to 24k depending on mileage and amount of previous owners. what is everyone's opinion on how many miles are too many for building an overland rig. i know that mileage and preventative maintenance go hand in hand. i have a hard time paying 24k for a truck 20 years old. any opinions on the matter would be greatly appreciated. thank you for your time

Scully36, your first post and my first response..... I owned a 2000 single rear wheel F350 with the 7.3l. It was a great truck and I miss it very much. I bought it to tow a 32ft travel trailer but would still own it if I didn’t get stationed in Germany for 4 years with the Marine Corps. Big trucks don’t fit on those narrow European roads! The engine was near bullet proof but there are some unique aspects that are specific to the 7.3l diesels. If you go over to some of the 7.3l Ford sites, there is a lot of good information to be had. You will learn little things like to keep a spare Cam Position Sensor in the glove box along with the wrench to change it. A cheap fix that will save you from getting stranded somewhere. It is literally a $20 part and a single bolt to replace it. Routine maintenance is also important as the turbo is very hard on the oil. The only major problem that I had was that the transmission and TQ converter went at around 250k miles. I bought an aftermarket transmission from BTS and never worried about it again. I recommend for a Single Rear Wheel (SRW) F350 vice the F250 or Excursion. The other two are the same vehicle and were equipped with the twin beam front axle. That thing is a pain to keep aligned compared to the solid front axle of the F350. One modification that I made was to replace the pneumatic locking front cartridge hubs with the older style manual locking hubs with serviceable bearings. They are far more reliable although you have to lock them by hand. I am not sure I would pay $24k for one but these engines are said to go well over 500k miles with routine maintenance. I had almost 300k miles on mine when I sold it and it was still going strong. Parts are quite plentiful as this engine was in emergency vehicles, motor homes, and busses in addition to the fact that it was an International designed/made engine put into industrial farm equipment as well. I hope that helps a little! Cheers!

 

[Tyhaines421]

First of all welcome to the group! Secondly if looking to buy a 7.3 they are great! I absolutely loved mine! It was an absolute work horse that took everything I threw at it. At the time I was farming and off roaring with mine. They are very reliable and super stout platforms and mine was definitely my favorite vehicle I’ve ever owned, BUT the price on them is ridiculous anymore. I’d say if it was in the budget I’d look for a 6.7 Powerstroke (2011+) they have been outstanding in reliability plus tons of modern updates like coils on the front instead of leaf springs. But if you are set on a 7.3 they are great! I averaged between 17/18 on 35s after I put on a tune. The 7.3s got updates in 1999 and the interiors on the super duty’s updates in 2002 for what it’s worth. Here was mine, 2002 f-350 with a 4in lift and 35s along with some other odds and ends.

 

[Dakota Houligans]

I daily drive a '03 f250 4 door 4x4 with 7.3. It has 224,000 and runs like a champ. About half in town and half highway I average 16 mpg. Oil is critical on these engines. They are hard on it. Oil pressure to the injectors is over 1000 psi. Just understand diesel maintenance and repair is much more expensive than a gas engine. Doing an oil change will run you $80-100 if you do it yourself. I put 20,000 miles on it in the last 9 months trouble free. We love it. But the ride can be rough when it's empty.

 

[Daryl 32]

I simi drive my E99 F250 7.3 daily. I say simi because it is cheaper to drive my old 81 BMW 320i - but not as comfortable!

Ours has 273,000 miles on it with 4:10 gears. I plan on keeping this truck till the wheels fall off and I am too old to fix it!!!
So I just put about $4,500 into new parts and rebuilding others. Still much less than buying something newer.

Our 250 is loaded always to about 8,500 lbs or so, I do not drive it easy so I average lower mpgs because of it - around 13 on average. It is a work horse and does everything we ask it to.

 

[Uberland]

Hello all, im brand new to the forum and this is literally my first post. We are a family of 5 and im really considering an f250/ excursion with the 7.3l diesel. i know this motor is considered very reliable and capable of a ton of miles. I live in southern California and these trucks average between 150xxx and 370xxx miles give or take. As far as price goes they range between 12k to 24k depending on mileage and amount of previous owners. what is everyone's opinion on how many miles are too many for building an overland rig. i know that mileage and preventative maintenance go hand in hand. i have a hard time paying 24k for a truck 20 years old. any opinions on the matter would be greatly appreciated. thank you for your time

Scully36, your first post and my first response..... I owned a 2000 single rear wheel F350 with the 7.3l. It was a great truck and I miss it very much. I bought it to tow a 32ft travel trailer but would still own it if I didn’t get stationed in Germany for 4 years with the Marine Corps. Big trucks don’t fit on those narrow European roads! The engine was near bullet proof but there are some unique aspects that are specific to the 7.3l diesels. If you go over to some of the 7.3l Ford sites, there is a lot of good information to be had. You will learn little things like to keep a spare Cam Position Sensor in the glove box along with the wrench to change it. A cheap fix that will save you from getting stranded somewhere. It is literally a $20 part and a single bolt to replace it. Routine maintenance is also important as the turbo is very hard on the oil. The only major problem that I had was that the transmission and TQ converter went at around 250k miles. I bought an aftermarket transmission from BTS and never worried about it again. I recommend for a Single Rear Wheel (SRW) F350 vice the F250 or Excursion. The other two are the same vehicle and were equipped with the twin beam front axle. That thing is a pain to keep aligned compared to the solid front axle of the F350. One modification that I made was to replace the pneumatic locking front cartridge hubs with the older style manual locking hubs with serviceable bearings. They are far more reliable although you have to lock them by hand. I am not sure I would pay $24k for one but these engines are said to go well over 500k miles with routine maintenance. I had almost 300k miles on mine when I sold it and it was still going strong. Parts are quite plentiful as this engine was in emergency vehicles, motor homes, and busses in addition to the fact that it was an International designed/made engine put into industrial farm equipment as well. I hope that helps a little! Cheers!

On this...the Ex and -250s also came with a solid front axle if 4WD, although the Ex’s aren’t as beefy (a smaller Dana 50 versus a one-ton on the -250/-350).

As for fuel mileage...I get anywhere between 12-15 mpg (if I keep it below 65), but that’s with a truck riding on 35s with a big brick of a RTT. I’ve invested more moolah than I’d care to admit into the truck in the form of new injectors and other maintenance, but I wouldn’t hesitate to drive The Beast anywhere.

Good luck...happy to field any other questions.

 

[MidOH]

Keep in mind that a brand new gas 6.2l makes the same amount of power, and will last just as long. I've owned both trucks.

My point is, $24k for a 20 year old truck, is too much when the new one is $38-40k. You'll find that the only thing that a 2001 Lariat has that new XL doesn't, is a power seat. (I prefer faster moving manual seats anyways)

That being said, any decent looking Superduty can be rebuilt, and is ten times the truck that the old FJ's and Landy's are. And people still travel with rebuilt classics like those.

 

[Atc210]

Nothing but love for my 02 Excursion 7.3. Has 230,000k on the clock and running like a top. I also have many mods not because it needed them, because the 7.3 addiction is real. lol Anyway I have 35" tires and 4:10 gears, seeing anywhere between 13 - 17 mpg pending driving conditions. Winter diesel you will loose MPG. Best I have seen in stock configuration was 27 on a 2500 mile trip. Its recorded in IOS Fuely App. so not making it up haters. Lift, tires, loaded down and now a roof rack and mpg is not something you worry about. A shuttle company in my town has new sprinter vans and hates them. They keep 2 7.3s and they both have over a million miles. Both have had 1 transmission replaced and 1 set of injectors. 6.0s are good if the person bullet proofing them knows what they are doing. As for pricing, no way in hell I would sell mine for 24k. Have had offers way north of that! Mine is insured for 40k through American Collectors

I wouldn't worry about mileage if the owner has really good service records. There is plenty of videos on what to look for when buying a 7.3.

Change the oil every 3-5k with Rotella T6, run Arch Oil in Diesel and after oil changes. Upgrade to a 6.0 trans cooler. replace the damn degas bottle with a billet aluminum one and drive it. I give you a few months before you starting wanting a tuner, turbo upgrades and so on. Mine will soon be getting a KC turbo and new injectors. New diesels are crazy expensive, require DEF and depending on your state modifications are a EPA fine waiting to happen. This is my opinion, I think we still get those. Haha For the price of a new truck you can purchase a old one and with the extra cash get to perform almost as good if not better. Depending on your budget.

 

[Trickster]

Nothing but love for my late 1999 F350 Dually, ZF6 Manual. Moving up to an F550.

I got 18 MPG highway 4:10 gears driving from North Dakota to CA in 2015 while working in The Bakken Oilfield. Mostly avg 15 MPG mixed driving.

 

[cortttt]

Keep in mind that a brand new gas 6.2l makes the same amount of power, and will last just as long. I've owned both trucks.

My point is, $24k for a 20 year old truck, is too much when the new one is $38-40k. You'll find that the only thing that a 2001 Lariat has that new XL doesn't, is a power seat. (I prefer faster moving manual seats anyways)

That being said, any decent looking Superduty can be rebuilt, and is ten times the truck that the old FJ's and Landy's are. And people still travel with rebuilt classics like those.

Agreed. I've been looking for a heavy duty and have found used prices so high that I've concluded the most economical thing is to bite the bullet and buy new.

 

[Flying pig]

Welcome, I have two 7.3s an 03 Ex and I inherited my dad's 03 SD. Love them both and I echo what I read here. The Auto tyranny is a weak link in the EX the manual in the SD is solid. Mpg is 18ish in stock SD and 14-15 in EX wth 35s stock 3.73 gearing loaded down in gear. I paid $20k for my EX in 2008 it had 120,000. It's a great family rig and I got it to haul my high school kids and friends back then. Daughter drove it to college and I finally got it back 5 years ago. I can't afford anything newer that will do what it does. Heck my Tacoma friends don't get better mpg. All the 7.3 trips and quirks are online.