DrCharles
Full Access Member
I got the truck with several bad glow plugs 4 years ago and replaced them all with Motorcraft. The 7.3 IDI starts quickly, summer or winter, and as expected the glow time (and "Wait to Start" light) gets longer with colder temps. So far so good.
But the controller has always called for a minimum of a few seconds of glow even at a fully hot start. If I don't wait and just fire it up, the GPs then cycle off & on for 3-4 seconds after the start. The 7.3 was originally NA, and I added a factory turbo setup (recently improved to a CDD rebuilt with Stage 1 wheel upgrade) - the controller is mounted in the stock position on the right valve cover which I got from a turbo engine. The thermostat is operating correctly (i.e. the engine is not colder than it should be).
I have read in many places that there should be no (or a brief blink of the light) when the engine is at operating temperature. Is my controller just off a bit, or could a replacement be designed that way on purpose to reduce emissions? Will it significantly reduce the life of my GPs if I leave it as is?
But the controller has always called for a minimum of a few seconds of glow even at a fully hot start. If I don't wait and just fire it up, the GPs then cycle off & on for 3-4 seconds after the start. The 7.3 was originally NA, and I added a factory turbo setup (recently improved to a CDD rebuilt with Stage 1 wheel upgrade) - the controller is mounted in the stock position on the right valve cover which I got from a turbo engine. The thermostat is operating correctly (i.e. the engine is not colder than it should be).
I have read in many places that there should be no (or a brief blink of the light) when the engine is at operating temperature. Is my controller just off a bit, or could a replacement be designed that way on purpose to reduce emissions? Will it significantly reduce the life of my GPs if I leave it as is?