New to PSD world!

[atgreene]

hey guys! just bought me a lifted 99 f250 7.3. love it!

had a few questions because this is my first diesel truck after all...

first of all: boost gauge only reads 2-3 pounds at WOT. shouldnt this be at least 18-20? turbo sounds like it spools up fine, and doesnt feel low on power (not that id know what a good 7.3 drives like) lol
should i look for a boost leak somewhere? if so where is most probable source of leak?
or could it be my boost gauge has a kink in the line or something?

secondly: the steering is very sloppy, figured it would be with 35s and 8-10 inch lift. is there any way to tighten it up? new gear box?
it has duel steering stabilizers, i should probably make sure those are still stout.

Thanks Guys!

[2000-7.3L]

Let me know if you need any parts for your truck! Any pics of the rig!

[LakiPolitis]

Originally Posted by atgreene

first of all: boost gauge only reads 2-3 pounds at WOT. shouldnt this be at least 18-20? turbo sounds like it spools up fine, and doesnt feel low on power (not that id know what a good 7.3 drives like) lol
should i look for a boost leak somewhere? if so where is most probable source of leak? or could it be my boost gauge has a kink in the line or something?

I think your gauge is most likely off. I would check the turbo pressure by monitoring the turbo pressure through the PCM stream. If that's working just fine, then you should look into replacing the tubing or the gauge itself. Either one could be busted. These guys on here will be able to tell you exactly how to do that, I haven't done it yet. But I'm sure the Auto-Enginuity OBD2 Scan Tool should be able to do it.

Originally Posted by atgreene

secondly: the steering is very sloppy, figured it would be with 35s and 8-10 inch lift. is there any way to tighten it up? new gear box? it has duel steering stabilizers, i should probably make sure those are still stout.

You'll get use to this. The steering is really loose. REALLY loose. I can shake my wheel while driving at 45 and not move an inch. That's just the way it is on these big trucks. You'll get used to it, and you'll actually like it down the road. But you should get your tie-rod ends checked, make sure there isn't anything wrong with your hubs or ball-joints. But the steering in these is sloppy.

[atgreene]

found out the gauge gets its reading through the MAP sensor location. im going to buy a new gauge and tap it into the manifold and see if that way works, if not then ill look into leaks.

thanks for the info on steering, figured i cant expect much with a lift and 35s, will check TREs and hubs.

[cadd]

You can tighten up the steering with the adjustment nut on top (a little at a time) there are good write ups on web and here and there on ford diesel forums. If you can't get it at least "ok" a lot of folks go with a Redhead rebuilt unit, I will one of these days.... Search redhead+steering on forums and google.

[AgTires4295]

Early or late 99?