Replace IP/Injectors or wait?

[Chrono558]

My truck currently has 135K on the odometer. I'm not sure if the IP/Injectors were ever replaced on this engine by the previous owner and best I can tell the IP looks original. The engine is running decent overall. It does have a puff of smoke on cold start and it can get just a little hazy when romping on it such as getting up to speed quicker than normal. Fuel economy is hovering around 15 MPG in all around driving.

I know the IP and injectors are wear items and in my case I'm in the end of its service life. I'm also fairly certain it'd be best to replace both IP and injectors at the same time. My question is given how the engine is running now, should I just bite the bullet and go ahead and replace them or just run with what I've got until it gets worse? Drop about $1K in parts now or wait?

This is also an NA engine and although adding a turbo would be nice, it'll be a while before I get to that point. Do I go ahead and get an IP/Injectors for a turbo engine or just spring for a NA calibration and see if the IP can be tweaked to support a turbo in the future?

I'm just looking for feedback is all. Thanks.

 

[Clb]

Turbo upgrades can want more pump, will also run fine on a stock setup.
Brb...

 

[RDieselKid84]

If you can do without your truck for a few days I would let one of the guys here on this site rebuilt them for you. They can trun up the IP for more fuel so when you trubo it is ready. My local pump man did this for me, we have been using him for thirty years. It's hard to find a dependable shop to work on these old pumps. Good luck with your search.

 

[Thewespaul]

I probably sound like the worst sales guy of all time saying this, but if you aren’t having any issues or complaints with performance I would hold off on replacing the fuel system. If you look up the “db2 tuning guide” on here I’ve put out a ton of information for adjusting these stock pumps for better performance and economy. A light haze is pretty normal on an na engine, and you may net a bit more economy by playing with the timing a bit as well. If you start to have injectors hanging open or hot start issues with the pump I’d be happy to rebuild them for you. I would invest the money towards a turbo first before jumping the gun on a new fuel system, you can adjust the stock pump to supply more than enough fuel to feed a turbo on these trucks.

 

[frankenwrench]

I probably sound like the worst sales guy of all time saying this, but if you aren’t having any issues or complaints with performance I would hold off on replacing the fuel system. If you look up the “db2 tuning guide” on here I’ve put out a ton of information for adjusting these stock pumps for better performance and economy. A light haze is pretty normal on an na engine, and you may net a bit more economy by playing with the timing a bit as well. If you start to have injectors hanging open or hot start issues with the pump I’d be happy to rebuild them for you. I would invest the money towards a turbo first before jumping the gun on a new fuel system, you can adjust the stock pump to supply more than enough fuel to feed a turbo on these trucks.

Maybe sound the worst of them, but honesty is key. And that's what we're all looking for.

 

[RDieselKid84]

Thewespaul just told the truth about your IP. I was going to tell you to leave all the eBay junk along . And talk with Wes or Russ or Mel before you did something with your IP or with a old pump shop that did this work years ago frist. These guys want steer you worng. By the way what year and what engine do you have.

 

[Golden Helmet]

It sounds to me like your IP is pretty happy, 15 MPG is pretty good. If you're not having hot start problems then I'd just keep on running it.

 

[Macrobb]

Yeah; add the turbo, EGT gauge, then crank the fuel... then you can think about more stuff.

A stock pump/injectors can easily put out about twice as much fuel as you have now... Useless until you get the turbo, but totally needed once you do.

Basically, right now if you took the truck and put it on a dyno, you might see 85-100 HP at the wheels(125 with a brand new engine/pump/sticks at sea level).
Add a turbo(ATS/Ford Factory or Banks etc), adjust the fuel up and you can easily hit 200 at the wheels. Basically straight up double the 'go' power.
This puts you solidly in the range of stock 7.3 PSD trucks - a stock '02 truck will dyno in the ~195 range.

A turbo is one of those things that you don't know you *need* on an IDI until you have your first. Then, driving a N/A IDI is just...meh.
It's interesting - you'll find that unloaded, N/A and turbo IDI are about the same feel wise until about 40MPH... That's the point that the NA accelerates more slowly and the turbo just starts kicking in.
Loaded... no contest. Turbo IDI just plain pulls all the way up to redline. I find peak torque is usually around 2800 RPM on these, where your turbo more or less runs out of air and the IP can't deliver as much fuel.