HPOP Reservoir... 7.3 psd

IdaSHO

IDACAMPER
Nothing common. Most 200k mile 7.3s are probably still on factory installed injectors.

Stiction can be an issue, but it isnt a failure, and is much more related to high mileage/hours and the viscosity of the oil being run.
Low temperatures is where it starts to show up. But its a simple wear and tear symptom. A good synthetic helps tremendously.
I run my 7.3 year round, never plugged in, in North Idaho. Temps near and below zero are common for my cold starts.
With the rotella T6 5w40 I run, it cranks over fast and fires quick. Smokes a good bit, but they all do on cold starts, especially when nearing 300k

Actual injector failures are normally due to fuel quality.

But even those failures are rare on 7.3's
The 7.3 injectors are incredibly robust.

The biggest injector related problems will be O-rings.
Especially now days with even the youngest 7.3 being what, 16 years old?
 

Bikersmurf

Expedition Leader
Having drained mine and refilled it, it is now running better.
I’ve watched Bill Hewitt’s videos also. I see some value in advice coming from a diesel mechanic who’s shop truck that’s engine lasted almost 800,000 miles on the stock injectors... despite doing nitrous runs on the dyno... and otherwise abusing it.

Although some gunk could be stirred up be draining the oil reservoir, there is also a risk that the same gunk could be distributed by the large volume of oil being pumped through the reservoir.

I feel it’s best to get it out of there. It’s not like I sprayed oil around in there to stir it up... I stuck a house down to the bottom and sucked the oil out from the bottom, until the reservoir was empty. I’d hope most of the sludge at the bottom would be sucked out as the oil is drained from the bottom.
 

Bikersmurf

Expedition Leader
Nothing common. Most 200k mile 7.3s are probably still on factory installed injectors.

Stiction can be an issue, but it isnt a failure, and is much more related to high mileage/hours and the viscosity of the oil being run.
Low temperatures is where it starts to show up. But its a simple wear and tear symptom. A good synthetic helps tremendously.
I run my 7.3 year round, never plugged in, in North Idaho. Temps near and below zero are common for my cold starts.
With the rotella T6 5w40 I run, it cranks over fast and fires quick. Smokes a good bit, but they all do on cold starts, especially when nearing 300k

Actual injector failures are normally due to fuel quality.

But even those failures are rare on 7.3's
The 7.3 injectors are incredibly robust.

The biggest injector related problems will be O-rings.
Especially now days with even the youngest 7.3 being what, 16 years old?

We will each make our own choices on how best to maintain our rigs. In the case of my 22 year old 7.3 with almost 17k hours on it, I’m choosing to suck the oil out of the HPOP Reservoir from the bottom. I plan to repeat it regularly to improve the quality of oil in it.

So far it seems to run smoother, quieter, stronger, and smoke less under full throttle (not that it belched smoke before).

Do as you want... I feel it’s worth it.
 

gtbensley

Explorer
Nothing common. Most 200k mile 7.3s are probably still on factory installed injectors.

Stiction can be an issue, but it isnt a failure, and is much more related to high mileage/hours and the viscosity of the oil being run.
Low temperatures is where it starts to show up. But its a simple wear and tear symptom. A good synthetic helps tremendously.
I run my 7.3 year round, never plugged in, in North Idaho. Temps near and below zero are common for my cold starts.
With the rotella T6 5w40 I run, it cranks over fast and fires quick. Smokes a good bit, but they all do on cold starts, especially when nearing 300k

Actual injector failures are normally due to fuel quality.

But even those failures are rare on 7.3's
The 7.3 injectors are incredibly robust.

The biggest injector related problems will be O-rings.
Especially now days with even the youngest 7.3 being what, 16 years old?


What are you basing this off of? Plenty of threads out there with failed or poor injectors around the 200K mile mark.

Looking at those pictures its pretty clear that oil is nasty and sludge like. Maybe we dont have proof that its causing things to fail but it sure cant be helping them. I will be changing mine after seeing those pictures
 

shenrie

^^^ hates cars
I am one of the ones whose hpop oil looked identical to what came outta the pan. I had planned on following the videos from bill, but after draining the hpop tank and not seeing any of the nastiness others have reported, I just did a basic oil change. It was easy enough to drain the little tank, so I plan on taking out whatever oil is in there each oil change. One less quart of nasty diesel oil out of the equation each time.
 

Chorky

Observer
I wonder how much of that nasty oil is attributed to infrequent changes, or just the type of oil ran, or possibly any sort of contamination from blow-by that crept up there, maybe even significant idling rather than highway miles... Just rebuilt my entire enginge last year. Second owner of the truck, had 220K and 100% original. Everything was original. Lots of parts replaced, not necessarily out of need. Of course injectors, and HPOP. Old injectors and HPOP were in perfect condition, even the O-rings. Just for some additional data in case anyone is tracking. Previous owners had routine and good maintenance, but ran the truck very hard.


A good synthetic helps tremendously.
I run my 7.3 year round, never plugged in, in North Idaho. Temps near and below zero are common for my cold starts.
With the rotella T6 5w40 I run, it cranks over fast and fires quick. Smokes a good bit, but they all do on cold starts, especially when nearing 300k

I was just thinking about this. Been running Amsoil since the rebuild - stuff is awesome, so far anyway. But was trying to think what to switch to come next fall when I'm in -20 degree temps....
 

IdaSHO

IDACAMPER
What are you basing this off of? Plenty of threads out there with failed or poor injectors around the 200K mile mark.

Define failed. The only oil related "failure" a 7.3 injector will see is stiction.
And by definition, it isn't a failure. Running the proper weight oil and changing at proper intervals, and stiction is never a problem.
Like I said, actual injector failure is RARE. A legit failure due to oil is even more so.

As I've already said, most injector problems are related to failed injector O-rings.
And those tend to exhibit problems right around 200k.

But it isn't an injector failure....

If you really think it is due to not changing the HPOP res, by all means, please provide some proof.
 

IdaSHO

IDACAMPER
I was just thinking about this. Been running Amsoil since the rebuild - stuff is awesome, so far anyway. But was trying to think what to switch to come next fall when I'm in -20 degree temps....

The 5w40 Rotella T6 is great stuff, especially for these old 7.3s that can be a bear to start in the cold.
The thin oil allows the truck to crank over significantly faster, that makes a huge difference in cold starts.

I run it year round.
 

Chorky

Observer
la T6 is great stuff, especially for these old 7.3s that can be a bear to start in the cold.
The thin oil allows the truck to crank over significantly faster, that makes a

I will have to look into this. What's your change interval? No concerns in the hot summers?
 

IdaSHO

IDACAMPER
I rarely put more than 5k on the old 7.3 per year.
So I change oil and filter once a year regardless of mileage, normally in the fall so I have a fresh clean oil for the winter (severe duty)

No concerns in the summer. The oil handles it just fine. Its a premium diesel oil. (y)
 

gtbensley

Explorer
Define failed. The only oil related "failure" a 7.3 injector will see is stiction.
And by definition, it isn't a failure. Running the proper weight oil and changing at proper intervals, and stiction is never a problem.
Like I said, actual injector failure is RARE. A legit failure due to oil is even more so.

As I've already said, most injector problems are related to failed injector O-rings.
And those tend to exhibit problems right around 200k.

But it isn't an injector failure....

If you really think it is due to not changing the HPOP res, by all means, please provide some proof.


I would classify extreme stiction as a failed injector....the injector is not working correctly and causing the vehicle not to run well. Catastrophic? No. I absolutely agree with you that most failures are O-ring related. I dont have proof that the HPOP oil causes the failures nor do I think they are a likely cause BUT it sure cant hurt to do it. Its pretty well known that the 7.3 likes clean oil.
 

F350joe

Well-known member
The 5w40 Rotella T6 is great stuff, especially for these old 7.3s that can be a bear to start in the cold.
The thin oil allows the truck to crank over significantly faster, that makes a huge difference in cold starts.

I run it year round.
I rarely put more than 5k on the old 7.3 per year.
So I change oil and filter once a year regardless of mileage, normally in the fall so I have a fresh clean oil for the winter (severe duty)

No concerns in the summer. The oil handles it just fine. Its a premium diesel oil. (y)

I just switched to T6 from T5 and difference is noticeable. Way smoother and seems to warm up faster.
 

IdaSHO

IDACAMPER
I dont have proof that the HPOP oil causes the failures nor do I think they are a likely cause BUT it sure cant hurt to do it. Its pretty well known that the 7.3 likes clean oil.

Which, if you go back and read my comments, is exactly my position.

Bottom line, proper weight oil @ proper intervals and you will have great results.

Do note that I keep mentioning proper WEIGHT oil.

It makes all the difference, specific to topic, with regards to stiction, the so-called only oil related "failure" in the discussion.
Stiction always rears its head at cold start, in cold temps and/or when running oil that is run beyond its life.

In these situations the oil is thicker. This alone can cause stiction, even on brand new zero mileage injectors.
 

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