New guy checking in

[jcorkin]

So i just picked up my new to me 97 xlt f250 yesterday, its extended cab 4x4 previous owner did a lot of work to it but she does have high miles at 389k but she runs and drives great, some of the recent work includes new ball joints, rebuilt front hubs, new brakes, rotors, and drums all around, fuel filter, tie rod ends, injectors were all replaced 60k miles ago, glow plugs and relay, and some other things im sure im forgetting. ive done a couple little things to it like clean it out, replace dash pad, installed an indash tv, replace drivers side door panel and drivers side door hinge pins(still sags) and im looking to do some performance upgrades without spending a ton i already ordered a donaldson air filter and i will be doing the tymar diy intake as soon as it comes it and im looking at doing a couple other things dont wanna do too much to as it does have higher miles and im not looking to kill but free up some power so im thinking of doing the exhaust next is there any other mods i should be looking to do? any maintenance things i should be checking on? also previous owner owned a shop and oil was changed every 4k-5k miles and trans flushed every 30k and as far as i know they are both 100% original never been torn into other than a trans pan gasket. thanks in advance for any help

[jcorkin]

I guess the biggest thing is im looking to add some hp 40-50 provided you guys dont think extra hp is going to do any real damage to a motor and trans with this many miles on it. i like the sound a turbo spooling up so i would like to hear the whistle a bit more but im thinking between the open filter and an exhaust i should be good there i also plan on adding a boost and egt gauge.

[TxAG'97]

It sounds like you are on the right track with the intake. I would suggest a down pipe and a cat delete with your exhaust. A custom tuned chip is also another option that is easy that would give you some good results.
Intake
exhaust
chip
all easy to install and won't break the bank and most of all these are dependable mods that you will be happy with.

Good luck with your truck and welcome to the addiction.

[jcorkin]

Yep those were the exact mods i was thinking of doing just hoping its not too much for the mileage. i must say i did miss the sound of the diesel, i sold my 1994 f350 cc drw 3 years ago and ive regretted it ever since, it was an idi with a banks sidewinder kit not a powerstroke but i still loved her glad to have another diesel and very happy to have a powerstroke always wanted one.

[jcorkin]

also it took me awhile to actually find the donaldson b085011 filter online but i finally found it on everythingtruckparts.com and it was only $36 shipped which is half of what napa wants for their lower grade version of it so just a fyi for anybody looking to do the tymar mod that the filter is available for cheap through them.

[351fifty]

i vote custom tunes when you go that way lol, way better than canned tunes anyday of the week, DP cat delete and the intake your going for you will be very happy, good luck and welcome to the org bro

[jcorkin]

So I crawled under the truck today and was pleased to find it has a nice straight piped exhaust on it already appears to be 3-3.5 inches and fairly new so im gonna toss in a dp and call it good for now and not worry about 4" for the time being. Im thinking of going with a 6 position chip what are my options? Whats recommended?

[erics diesel]

the stock pipe is 3.5 inches so they probly got the test pipes for the cat and muffler. for chips alot of people use tw, php, beans, gearhead etc as long as they are custom and not generic canned tunes you will be fine. I would also sugest getting gauges for it exhaust temp, boost and trans temp if its an auto.

[jcorkin]

the exhaust is one solid run no pipes welded in, im gonna guess its 3.5" then i will measure tonight when i get home or in the morning. also i already planned on getting the egt and boost gauges as mentioned before and i was considering getting the trans temp gauge as well i guess i will look into a trans temp gauge as well.

[blatallic]

Post pics... I would love to see how it looks.

I'm in the market for one as well.