[Groesbeck Hurricane]

I did some additional reading and took another test drive.


No smoke from anywhere.

I do not see any fluids draining out. But, burning the transmission fluid twice in about six months is NOT a good thing and could have driven the transmission south.

Fuel filter has ~300 miles on it.

Problem started today, Truck has basically just been sitting between tow jobs. Wife uses it in the winter to go to work when the weather turns bad. Outside of the Subaru we have been having such good luck with our vehicles these past many years.


Fast Fred: Green is the color of grass, Kermit, and the anti-freeze. Smells like anti-freeze (sickly sweet) not rancid like transmission fluid. I wonder if I boiled some transmission fluid off two weeks ago?


HD: Gosh, I really hope NOT! But this shows as a possibility. My thought is that even without the turbo I should still be able to gain speed going uphill when the pedal is floored.


Vincent: I have never checked fuel pressure. This seems to be another possibility. But there are no codes and this is supposed to throw a code if the lift pump goes bad or if there is an ignition issue or so I read.


Denis: You could likely be correct! Hate to think that one! Expensive possibility! at least five quarts low, 17 required. Yep original, no re-builds. It has been a GREAT truck!


Jared: Interesting thought! Fixed with a re-build or remanufactured unit. Darn it!


Transmission cooler runs in the front of the radiator but they are close together. This model has the intercooler and a pump for moving the transmission fluid, as I understand it.


John: I did try to run around the engine when doing the glow plugs and did not find anything else with issue. The dealer had it about 14 months ago. I carry spare sensors as well but I will not buy them from Ford. Those go bad too quickly. I go onto the big truck guys and use theirs. They last longer and Ford did not make these 7.3L anyway. I might try and find that software! Wonder if my old computer will run it ;-)


So many things point to the transmission. Now I am a bit scared...

I am going to pull her into the garage and take apart the valve covers again. It MIGHT just very well be that the caps on the glow plugs have worked loose. Losing a few cylinders would cause the same issues. I do not smell unburned diesel though so this might not be the right way to go. It is the cheapest thing to do at this stage.

We both noticed how much more power we had after doing the glow plugs. I'll be back!