I think I give up.....

[4x4TruckinGirl]

Okay, so all has been sort of going okay..... well not really. Anyways, after we got the stacks on and obviously the rebuilt turbo..... I Have seemingly developed a head gasket leak, passenger side towards the back. (See pic below) There is also a fairly decent oil leak, which you can also see in the pic, all down the tranny and starter, oil has managed to get back to the transfer case too. Also, I have a tick of some sort, AGAIN.... I'm thinking injector(s) because the # 1 and 4 are leaking (passenger side 1st one and back behind the turbo) 4 is leaking pretty bad, before turbo and stacks it was clean. The return line kit has been done recently, I'm not 100% sure on the o rings and whatnot. I checked the oil and had an oil change a little over a week ago, after the turbo install, and I had to add a quart last night. I think the shiny new turbo coupled with the 4" exhaust and bigger downpipe have created more headaches for me......Thoughts, suggestions, comments???

In weird news, despite all of this, I have seen a MPG increase.......

 

[EMD_DRIVER]

That first pic looks more like a rocker cover leak. If it were the head, wouldn't it be below the manifold?

Gary

 

[sle2115]

I've got to say it, So now what do you think of the Chevy?

Sounds like you have your hands full. I need to do valve cover gaskets on mine, had planned to do it while on break, but took my daughter and went to Lake Erie instead!

 

[4x4TruckinGirl]

Honestly truck is running great....... which boggles me....... I'd take it 1/2 falling apart over the chebby anyday..... lol

 

[LCAM-01XA]

Sam, that's a valve cover gasket leak - I got it too, only on both sides of the engine, looks identical to what your pics show. I just keep adding oil as necessary, will put new gaskets some day but it ain't on my priority list right now.

Also, the return line kit comes with new o-rings and new copper seals (washers) for the injectors, so those should have all been replaced when the rebuild kit went in.

 

[4x4TruckinGirl]

Hmmm well I guess that's sort of better news, the injector thing I think I can handle on my own, shouldn't be too tough of a job..... Just need to get myself a torque wrench and the proper specs for putting them back in.......

What should I watch for to know when I *have* to replace the valve cover gasket? Would that be cause by the rebuilt turbo and exhaust by chance, seeing how it wasn't leaking at all prior to that?

 

[tractorman86]

dont go over like 15 ft.lbs. but tighten up the valvecover bolts it might solve that problem, they do rattle things loose quite often.

 

[sle2115]

Honestly truck is running great....... which boggles me....... I'd take it 1/2 falling apart over the chebby anyday..... lol

I guess that's where we differ and what I don't understand. I'll take reliability over anything and I'm just not real sure about the reliability of these trucks. I sure know I wouldn't take off on a road trip in mine, but that's just me. I'll find a Chevy someday that is what I want and this one will go down the road without a second thought.

 

[Diesel JD]

The only thing you said that has me at all concerned is you saying something about a head gasket leak? Are you seeing a coolant leak? Or just oil? I don't know about the 7.3s but 6.9s usually blow on the water side right at the edge of the block, unless they have the 2nd update gasket in which case they'll sometimes seep oil. The valve cover gaskets are a real PITA. Drivers side is easy, passenger side is darn near impossible without at least taking off that plastic cover for your AC condenser(at least I think that's what it is!) Even then its a tight fit. You might not have as hard a time as some of us since you probably have somewhat smaller hands, but still getting those couple bolts under the lip of the cowling is going to be fun. For me, I could not get my hands back there it was simply a blind bolt, and I had to use a universal joint and extensions with a 1/4" drive. The injectors are easy. You'll need a 1" box wrench or 1" deep socket. It takes some effort to break them loose but a breaker bar with the socket or a big rubber mallet with the box wrench should do the trick. I wouldn't worry about the torque spec. Its 35 flt-lbs but about 1/4-1/2 turn past good and snug is about right. Don't forget to use a new copper washer and a bit of never seize on the threads. Clean out the bore at least with a shop vac and a paper towel so that no crud falls into the cylinders. Some would say you need to go further and clean it with a shot gun bore cleaner, but I wouldn't go to such extremes on my truck unless things looked really bad in there. Most likely the return kit was disturbed when you put the turbo back on. No matter how careful you guys were, just bumping them can make them leak...I've heard Calvin say just looking at them wrong can make them leak. Also I'd have the injectors tested. Williams Diesel down the road from you will test them for free(at least they did back in 2004) They should have the replacement injectors if you need them. You could probably get them a bit cheaper from one of these two places
http://pensacoladiesel.com/index.php?target=forms&name=contact_us
http://www.dieselspecialists.net/nonpowerstroke.html#injectors
I'm pretty partial to Delphi stuff, but then I'm not sure on the G codes if they are only available from Stanadyne, but either way, the shop in Altamonte Springs was selling them real cheap last fall, I don't know about now... Good luck, keep us posted. When are you going to be working on it?

 

[RLDSL]

For those valve cover bolts you want to get ahold of an inch pound torque wrench. If you have a harbor freight around you can get one that will do the job pretty cheap. then convert ft lbs to in lbs ( multiply x12 ) Ft lb torque wrench generally won't go low enough and even when they do, they aren't very accurate at the end of the scale ( not to mention hard to manuver in tight spaces, the little 1/4" drive in lb torque wrench will squeeze into tight places, you can catch them all with a deep socket and a short wobble extension )

Also clean both metal surfaces up good and put a thin coat of Hylomar on both sides of the new gasket to prevent future leaks. make sure to look at all the little triangle goodies that go on before the nuts/bolts and set them on to where the outer wings touch the valve cover first to spread the tension best

 

[4x4TruckinGirl]

Well I'm gunna order up the return line kit and whatnot off ebay, seems like the best place, it's where I got the last kit for my 6.9L..... I suppose maybe next weekend if I get the chance. I have the 1" deep socket, I was gunna get a torque wrench, but if it's not absolutely necessary it would help, they're about 60 bucks I believe. I will for sure get them tested before putting them back in.

I can give tightening those bolts a try, dunno if I can get it done or not, lol. There is no oil in the coolant and mostly other than the pic I posted there isn't anything else leaking but oil I suppose. No coolant leak either. Thanks for the help, I guess it's not all as bad as originally thought!


This truck is fine like I said it's running great and honestly never left me in orlando or anywhere else for that matter like the chevy did! Most of the issues are easy for someone to fix a little more experienced than me, but i'm workin' on it!

 

[92F350CC]

Chevy or Ford it's a roll of the dice. Had good fords and bad fords, good chevies and bad chevies. The truck i have now, i take across the country all the time without hesitation, and it's a ford powerplant, not an IH. Meanwhile, the most recent chevy i had is now in the junkyard because everything started failing too fast on it.

 

[Diesel JD]

Definitely the Ford vs. Chevy thing is a personal preference thing. They have their good and bad points. Good luck, but check with that diesel specialists place on the return kit. They might be about as cheap as ebay or even a little cheaper I don't remember for sure.
JD

 

[Optikalillushun]

i replaced my valve cover gaskets (what i took off crumbled like potato chips) and the very next week they were leaking like hell again. took me three times to get them to finally stop leaking. just some words of advice...

 

[subway]

dont go over like 15 ft.lbs. but tighten up the valvecover bolts it might solve that problem, they do rattle things loose quite often.

i think you mean in.lbs, ft.lbs would snap those babies right off. basically just give them a good hand tightening.