2001 PSD Upgrade Questions

[montanafos]

New owner of a nice 2001 F250 Crew that I don't think has ever really been used as a truck much. My questions are related to some very minor performance mods and am looking for some experienced feedback on my intentions. This truck is completely stock performance wise, with the exception of air bags that were added to the rear. I've got a Dynomax 4" turbo back on its way to me and am hesitantly looking at a new Superchips 1705 programmer and the Ford AIS. The only product above that concerns me is the programmer. On my initial trip with the truck I got 18.75 mpg on the highway with cruise set at 80 mph (250 mile trip). I really don't want to jeopardize fuel economy. More importantly though is a concern of increased power from the programmer and reduced longevity with the drivetrain of the truck. I'll not be doing anything that really requires the increased performance. This truck will see maybe 7,000 - 8,000 miles a year and is primarily a hunting rig and I'll probably end up pulling a 24' or so camper behind it at some point, maybe a boat. Am I throwing good money at bad or I guess wasting money to put a chip in the truck and am I potentially reducing the service life of my truck? Other than the above modifications I probably won't do anything more. I'll end up with slightly larger tires and a leveling kit at some point. It's got 130K miles on it and I've been able to get my hands on the service records for it and it's been maintained extremely well. Open to any thoughts you folks may have. Many thanks!

[cchase]

I would get a custom chip, DP and TW are some good tuners on the forum. Its not really going to negatively effect your truck in longevity, you can just tell them what you want out of it and they can provide it, it will also probably boost mpgs. the AIS is a good choice, i have never used it, i had AFE stage 2, but i hear good things about them both. But if you do get a chip, i would strongly suggest gauges.

[White Buffalo]

Like said, the AIS is a great system. Always shows single digit silicon levels on used oil analysis reports. As far as tuners are concerned, I made that $375 mistake myself. I first bought the predator programmer and now I have a T Wildman chip. Much better fuel economy & power.

Some of the 2001 models had the dreaded diode tranny, which made them prone to problems. Check the build date on your truck and see if you are included on this list. You are correct that increase power can shorten the life of your tranny, but alot depends on driving style.

Definitely need some gauges, like EGT, boost & tranny temp if you plan to add a chip/programmer.

[NCHornet]

First welcome to the world of PSD's. Yep your 2001 has the dreaded mech diode problem. Look on the trans for a rebuilt tag it very well may have been rebuilt already. If not just know if it won't shift out of first or second you will need a rebuild.

I only drive my Y2K truck about 10K per year and you see the money I have spent in mods. The myth about a chip or tuner shortening the life of your powertrain comes from idiots who add more ponies to a stock powertrain that wasn't designed to handle it. You must do the supporting mods first, and then the chip or programmer will actually extend the life of your powertrain if you drive it right. My truck has to work far less to do the same job when it was in a stock configuration, so therefore the less it has to work the longer it should last. First you must have gauges, this will allow you to see how all future mods affect your truck. Sorry you bought the 4" system already as it isn't needed, but it sure doesn't hurt. The restriction in our exhaust is the muffler not the size of the exhaust pipe, I know this goes against the trend, but it is the truth. A $40 BTM muffler would have done your exhaust just fine. The Ford AIS is a great intake, nothing will filter better. But you want to do the Zoodad mod to get more air into the intake. My silicon levels have been as low as 2 and average 5 with the AIS. For the AIS call Bob at Powerstrokeshop.com and tell him Kevin from Mt Airy, sent you. Then if you have a slushbox trans you will want a tuned Valvebody to support the extra power. I used the FTVB, but since then BTS and JW are also making them and have a good following. You can google FTVB for the info on it. Now and only now are you ready to add mnore ponbies. Don't waste your money on Generic tunes like Superchips, Hypertech, Bullydog etc.... go to DP or TW and get some real tunes, you won't be sorry. If you have any ? feel free to PM me.

NCH

[Raul@Stealth Automotive]

Welcome to the Org bud...

these guys seem to have you covered... my suggestion is the TW chip and a set of gauges....

you need a pyro gauge at the very least but since your running an Auto i suggest getting the trans temp gauge as well.. the stock OEM gauge is just a dummy light... very innacurate... also a boost gauge is recommended...

here is the TW chip/ gauge combo we offer: Stealth Automotive. Tony Wildman Chip/ Gauge Combo

please let me know if you have any other questions

-Raul

[strokerguy]

+ 1 on the gauges and tw tune

[montanafos]

Wow guys. Really appreciate your help. I'll take a look for the tranny rebuild info. Can you provide any more details on the location of that information? I have confirmed that my truck falls within the build dates for issues on the transmission (3/8/01 build date for mine and the dates run through 3/23/08). I take my kids on some remote hunting outings in this truck. Do I need to be concerned about being stranded with them with this tranny issue?