Trucking along.

GOOSE

Happy IDI'er
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Haven't posted nearly enough so I just thought I'd check in. I've had this old IDI for over 10 years now. I went through hell putting 3 different engines in her and wasting countless dollars. Word of advice, if you like the truck, don't give up on it. Thanks to people on this site, she has been a reliable truck for nearly 100,000 miles now.

So who is in the middle of a disaster in fixing their trucks?

Who is enjoying the fruits of their hard work with a reliable truck?

Who just bought their truck and have no idea what they are getting into?

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Garbage_Mechan

Garbage Mechanic
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I couldn’t agree with you more on the “pick a truck and stick with it” comment. Seen so many people get older used vehicles, then dump them the first time something goes wrong. Then complain about their luck and how that model vehicle is junk and on and on. 10 vehicles later same story. Meantime I have been driving the same truck the whole time and it is in great shape and 100% reliable, better than stock cause weak links all fixed and in some ways better than it was new. And there is nothing on the truck I haven’t been into so no stress.
 

Garbage_Mechan

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Case in point the 91 in my signature. Bought it from the original owner in 2001 w 130k miles. In 18 yrsI have owned it I have still not been into the engine farther than pump and injectors. 5 spd Trans still shifting great. TTB swapped out for rebuilt D60 when TTB needed ball joints. Front end all new. Noticed today the original radiator is seeping around the top tank. Never been out of the truck so I can’t complain about once every 28 yrs. Still don’t have everything just the way I want it but more every year. Might be “done” by the time I’m too old to work on it LOL.
 

boogieman13ie

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I was having a little bit of problems with my 93 7.3idi zf5 so i took it all apart cause i wanted to take the time to fix everything on it and its been 8 months and a couple thousand and still not done i love this truck im not a mechanic so i bit more than what i can chew truck was still running when engine came out
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reset2

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Myersville MD USA
Just had 2 tire issues. Giving up on my replacement Mexican radiator, now going to try a aluminium Chinese radiator. Got to get things straight for the rally.

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saburai

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Bokeelia Florida/Catskill mountains NY
I'm in India for another three weeks, but high on the priority list when I get back to the Catskills, is to sell Diego, the '90 in my signature and then swap a recently HD rebuilt e4od in to Raylan, my "new" factory idit 4x4
 

Mulochico

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Bought mine nearly 10 years ago (90,000 miles). Had a few hiccups along the way, was turned onto this site fairly early by a friend of a friend. I wasn't to up on diesels (worked on a few VW's around 1980. Learned a lot here, still learning. The truck is reliable enough I would take it cross country with very little prep. My DD. Every time I think of getting something different I go for a drive or end up working on a friends newer vehicle :confused::mad:cookoo, then I come to my senses.

Thanks to all on the site for what help has been given and is to be given in the future. It has helped me continue to build confidence in the fact that these are simple vehicles at the core and with a little effort they will last a lifetime (I hope, hate buying vehicles)
 

Clb

Another old truck
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nannyfornia
Awesome to see ya back...
I just got done with a 3k road trip, finally got into the 50k odometer club.
I have had the ole girl pass a lotta new crap pulling 7k on that trip(yep a 25 yo dog) chasin strokes down hahaha.
 

Thewespaul

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I’ve owned the shop truck for near ten years now. I bought it from the original owner with 160k miles and it’s coming up on 300k now. On its third engine now, the first needed a head job and instead I swapped in a used idit with some head work and upgrades. Blew that up with nitrous, and recently swapped in another used na idi with real good compression. I have so much history with this truck I wouldn’t think twice to put another three engines in it to keep driving it. I now own a bullnose, bricknose and this obs, but the shop truck will always be special to me.
 

BrianX128

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Just depends which one we're talking about for me lol.. "Ernest" has gotten some work done over winter with a newer ZF5, new SMF flywheel and clutch and all that good stuff, new carrier bearing, U joints, and a new rear driveshaft yoke. Truck has always done me very well since I got it about 4 years ago with no working glow plug system and just general neglect from sitting in a garage unwanted and unused since it's owner passed away. The rest of the family was scared to drive it because it is so big, loud, and is a stick which they weren't comfortable with, they put the wrong glow plugs in it to try and sell it and feared it had other problems because it would only start if pull started but it was fine, just needed rid of autolites which must have worked once. Now it's biggest problem is the front tank sender doesn't work just reads empty no matter what but the back tank works fine. I just run it until I hit 300 miles on the trip meter and switch to the rear tank and know where I'm at until it's time to fill up. I'll fix that at some point this summer. I've done a lot to it.. it has a remote mounted donaldson 7405 main oil filter, a bypass filter/aux oil cooler, coolant filter, banks power pack exhaust, totally re-vamped ac, ranger vacuum switch /max ac mod, two big "helper fans" in front of ac condensor I can turn on if it gets hotter, nos IP with 70k original miles (as of now) from a turbo IP, pyro as well as tons of other gauges, I could just keep going on. It's for sure the vacation / tow the camper / go to the drive ins / get groceries "good weather" truck. For being N/A, it's towed about 4 tons between trailer/tractor on trailer and the camper and if you stay in 4th on hills you can keep at 55 / 65 if you want and don't mind the noise. EGT's get close to 1100 but I swear the banks power pack air lid thing helps with my egt's with the huge dryer duct piping by the radiator and the wider y pipe / larger exhaust. As long as you are on close to flat ground or smaller grades you can even leave it in overdrive comfortably.

But like I said outside of fixing the front tank sender, I have no further plans but driving it and letting it do what I need it to.

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And.... then there is "Lenny"..... Had it for a little over two years.

He's also had some major surgery over winter, some by me and some by Farmer Frank (a member here) I live near. I bought it cheap from a guy with more money then he knew what to do with and just needed a spot in the driveway for another classic car. Looking back, it wasn't cheap just because he was loaded it was cheap because they kept getting fuel in the oil and couldn't figure out why. I believe after they tried a new lift pump and changed the oil multiple times they just gave up and were making it someone else's problem. But a new IP and injectors from mel, a few hours of cursing from myself and it was fine again. I added a rear tank as it didn't have one, and also added an under the dash ac system which is awesome as it was a factory no AC truck. It's probably the coldest ac I've ever had. Right about when it was running good to be my main winter vehicle / work truck I hit a deer, and had to re-do the front bumper and some things but it still looks fine. Then the throw out bearing seized (hence the visit to frank's, I hate doing transmission surgery) and it got a new clutch and flywheel etc as well. Only issue I have with it these days is some gremlin in my steering every once in a while that might be a seized u joint in the front axle but it's behaving after some grease so it just keeps on working. It does ok towing as well, but with only 4 gears instead of 5, and being a 3.55 axle ratio instead of 4.10's like Ernest, it's a little more irritating to pull up hills. EGT's run a lot hotter as well, it just has a factory intake but the exhaust is off of a superduty (6.0 I think? It's 3.5 " from the y pipe adapter back, but still the restrictive Y pipe from the factory not the better one on the other truck).


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It's just ugly. I'd love to paint it or put a flat bed on it or do something to it. It's got no rust, lived 25 years in arizona and I wished the previous owners would have not started to sand and paint it and just let it be that deep blue on the back side of the cab whether it was faded and peeling or not. Something like that is my only plans for it, but I have reservations about putting money into it's appearance since it's my winter vehicle and I live in the rust belt. It doesn't exactly have a home in the garage.. Either my fiance's suv or my TDI get the last remaining spot, Ernest, my gasser and the VAC are permanent residents avoiding snow, rain, cold, etc. lol

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Danielle

No, it's not finished
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Sometimes I look at my bronco and I wonder if I should just give up but then I'll see a thread like this and realize everyone (or nearly everyone) are in the same boat. Life, husband, kids, job all need your time and sometimes months go by and you realize you have some "me" time and it's back out to the shop to play!

I realize the rally had motivated the heck out of me with my CC to get it ready for an open hood peek, but more importantly, to make it to Virginia and back with my children in it.

This year we are finally taking a trip we have been planning and saving for years so rally is out. And now that truck needs a clutch, front end work (thanks New Jersey and Pennsylvania garbage roads!!!) And injection pump!

I have a year heehee
 

DavidS

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Good reading above. I'm two years into my 94 f250idit e4od...so far it has rebuilt motor (came with a locked up motor), currently working through e4od codes...and so much more to do. But that's the idea, find a truck that you like and chip away at the problems until one day you look at your window and there she is, all done! I liked "turned the corner" as @laserjock put it. I can't even see the corner yet lol. But one day...
 

WAID

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Having actually had mine for less than a year I'm at some middle phase. None of the major problems I feared after sitting at my parents came to be. It is running well and the wife and I have been making good use of it and the camper we got for it. The critical issues are taken care of but lots of projects of various sizes remain to be done; fixing the long neglected AC, valve cover gaskets, body work, fixing the radio, and hopefully eventually getting around to putting a turbo on it.
 

david85

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Well, lets see...many years ago, I bought a truck. I wanted a reliable diesel that I could afford and the 6.9 was the only one that fit the bill. I already knew the 8th gen F-series, so why mess with what works?

First came the 3.08 gears. That worked fine. Then came the E4OD...that took 3 tries to get it right.

After nearly a decade, everything in the powertrain has been gone through except for the transfer case that came with the E4OD. After a few good jobs came the inevitable layoff (Alberta Oil Patch... it happens). Between trade school and part time work, I finally had some time for the frame-off restoration. Even that had to get cut short when another job came along. So the body is pretty much new now, minus a few paint defects that I'm sorting out at the moment. The frame is old but still sound, even if not what I hoped for (galvanizing and 4wd will have to wait...).

I have driven company trucks and many think I should be more grateful for being able to drive something new. But to me, it's just not the same. It's not mine. There's no pride, no soul, no sense of purpose in something new and fresh. Don't get me wrong, the 5.0 Coyote bolted to 10-speed is a nice setup, but it doesn't put a smile on my face. The automatic engine shutoff at stoplights really doesn't make me smile. All the beeping and popup messages are also irritating. But it is smooth, quiet and fast, with nearly 400Hp. Meh...it's still not mine.

So after a decade in my stewardship, the old beast is living a life of semi-retirement. It's not a sleeper, nor a show truck. It's simply a truck. I still daily it, and it still tows light trailers. And yes, it can still bury the speedometer if I ask it to, even if a new truck will blow it's doors off.

And speaking of semi-retirement, it still does some "official" duties once in a while.

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