New to the Powerstroke Diesel

[sbarber]

I am looking at buying a 1997 F250 4x4 crew cab with a 7.3 powerstroke with 178,000 miles. The owner has a exhaust brake and a 5th wheel hitch he just put a new trasmission in it. My guess is he has been pulling heavy trailers. I don't know anything about diesel engines. Can anyone tell me what to look for so I do not buy a truck that needs a lot of repairs. Thanks Steve

[jwiger]

look for obvious leaks, and blue/gray smoke out the exhaust. The biggest thing with diesels is oil pressure/quality. these engines are built heavy and run low rpm's. which means as long as they have have good pressure and don't burn oil ( a sign of cylinder wall/piston ring wear, valve steam/seal wear, oil bad turbo bearings.

One thing i recomend doing is pulling the turbo intake hose the (largest pipe coming from the air cleaner) off and spin the turbo by hand, it should spin easy, and have only a slight side to side play if any.

If it's the original turbo and it's in good shape then chances are the rest of the engine is too.

[sbarber]

Can I move the turbo fam with my finger?? Steve Thanks Again

[jwiger]

yes the Compressor wheel should move when you turn it, and it should be smooth too.