Taylorce1,
I ended up grabbing a 2000 Lariat for cheap and I gotta admit, it was a great call.
I know all the quirks/fixes and have the confidence to drive this old 7.3 to wherever the hell I wanna go at the drop of a hat.
Even if you had to put $8-10k into it, you'd be upside down on it way shorter than if you bought a new one.
Hard to lose on a 7.3 man.
I'm surprised you could buy a 7.3L still in CA and register it! My Ford can't pull like my Chevy, but it still got the job done. Plus it's just a lot simpler truck which has its advantages for sure.
I may be jumping the gun, I don't know if I'm losing compression yet or if it's some other problem. However, I do know glow plugs and lack of compression is usually the culprits of hard starting.
Long blocks start around $4K plus core and shipping for OEM and go up, I can pick up used engine for a little less than $4K shipped 100K +/- miles. Then I have installation, rebuild or rebuilt turbo, a new intercooler (original has seen better days), new exhaust, and some intake work (old airbox is beat up). Plus whatever else needs fixed or replaced.
