2002 7.3 F250 just died on me

[bigcountrysg]

Originally Posted by lance125

Ok so after what SuperCruty and others that I talked to have said it looks like I need to start with getting a PCM. I kinda have an in on getting one from Oreilly's for a good price and have been told I can change this myself so I guess that what I will do. Any other thoughts before I dive into this tom. Thanks Super and others for the advice.

Yes make sure you need the PCM. Last I checked the PCM is not cheap. I would have a dealer scan for codes and see what they say. To me paying 100 dollars to verify a problem by a certified tech. Is much better then paying the price for a part that may not fix the problem.

[SuperCrutyPS]

Originally Posted by lance125

Ok so I read your shop visit and the issue you had sounds like what I was going through. I just talked to a diesel mechanic and he said that even with a bad PCM my truck should start, will run like crap but it should start. Thanks for linking your issue for me. I guess thats what I need to start with, and see what happens from there.

There must be different conditions the PCM gets into. When mine went bad, as stated in my other post, mine didn't start, no "Wait-to-start" light, no fuel pump, couldn't read codes. My PCM was $470 + labor. It had to be programmed with whatever + the VIN. A little over a week now and it's been running great!

[bigcountrysg]

Another thing is some scanners are not compatible with our trucks. So sometimes they say no codes found or error, or unable to read codes.

I say this because the code scanner that was used may not have been compatible with our trucks. There for it gave you a false reading like pcm error.

[lance125]

Again Thanks guys for all the help. I just spoke to a ford mechanic and he told me something about a ( please forgive me ignorance ) a fuel line/tube towards the bottom of the engine that tends to break down over time and will cause the diesel to shut down and not start once the truck gets to a 1/8 of a tank or lower. Anyone have a clue as to what he is talking about.

[lance125]

Ok guys now I am really confussed. I spoke with two more ford diesel mechanics and one said that it is most likely the PCM and the other said there is no way it is the PCM as he has never seen one go out in it my year and make.

[Dirk]

EVERYONE needs to STOP guessing.

Do PCM's go out? Sure. But this case, is very random. I would look at the GEM module/fuse first if you truly believe the PCM isn't getting power.

What caused this problem? Most likely out of fuel and now she's a hard restart due to unknown causes.

If she did run out of fuel....

Air in the line.
Pump got hot and is now having issues keeping pressure.
batteries are low. IDM isn't getting proper power to fire the injectors.
Battery(s) cables aren't properly snug.


There are tons of reasons, but guessing will only make the repair more expensive.

[nccatfan]

It doesn't happen often, but PCM's do go bad. They'll spike internally and short out other circuits. Just one of those things that microchips/processors are prone to.

[lance125]

Thanks again guys for all the help. I changed out the CPS before I dove into the PCM and well It works great now. Starts no problem and ran it yesterday for about 45 miles and it didnt have a single problem.

[Hank]

Super! Glad it was an easy fix. I was going to start guessing too!