7.3 Powerstroke Specs: The DIRTY DETAILS


7.3 Powerstroke Specs

With a production run from 1994 to 2003, Ford’s 7.3 Powerstroke specs weren’t all that sexy by today’s standards.

But little did Ford engineers know that hidden in the details of the horsepower, torque, and displacement numbers, they’d created the heart of a legendary beast of a motor.

An engine that some say … just won’t die.

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7.3 Powerstroke Engine Details

You may not know that Navistar—International—originally built the 7.3L diesel V8 engine—the T444E turbo-diesel. And after that Ford released their first vision of that Navistar 7.3L diesel V8 engine in 1994.

The block and heads on the 7.3 Powerstroke were made of cast iron, making them tougher and longer lasting.

And Ford’s 7.3L powerstroke diesel was equipped with two overhead valves for each cylinder.

These and other factors made the engine awesome for its time! And over twenty years later there are still reportedly over two million 7.3 Powerstrokes still on the road today. Impressive!

Ford continued production runs of the 7.3 Powerstroke diesel until mid 2003 when, sadly for us enthusiasts, emissions requirements caused them to cancel production and replace the 7.3 Powerstroke with the “less-than-bulletproof” 6.0L Powerstroke.

But that’s another story…

7.3 Horsepower Specs – Defined

Now, let’s revisit what horsepower means – a unit of power equal to 550 foot-pounds per second (745.7 watts). Today, that unit of measure is used to define how powerful an engine is.

7.3 Torque Specs – Defined

And let’s continue to make sure we’re all speaking the same language. Torque is “a twisting force that tends to cause rotation.” Or simply, twisting force.

In your 7.3 Powerstroke’s case, actually in any diesel truck, it’s the measure of rotational effort applied on a diesel engine’s crankshaft by the pistons. And the amount of torque that an engine can exert depends on engine RPMs.

Thank you Wikipedia…

If you have trouble keeping the details of those two straight, just remember that horsepower’s for hauling ass. And torque is for towing.

7.3 Powerstroke Bore and Stroke Spec

4.11 in (104 mm) bore and 4.18 in (106 mm) stroke

7.3 Powerstroke Displacement Spec

The 7.3 Powerstroke displaces 444 cubic inches—7.3 liters.

7.3 Powerstroke Weight Spec

The 7.3 engine weighs 920 pounds dry.

7.3 Powerstroke Engine Dimensions Spec

And the dimensions of the 7.3 L diesel are 34″Lx32″Wx38″H

7.3 Powerstroke Compression Ratio Spec

17.5:1

7.3 Powerstroke Oil Capacity Spec

I talk about this in-depth in the 7.3 oil change article, but the 7.3’s oil change capacity was and remains 15 quarts. This is not to be confused with overall capacity, which I detail in that 7.3 oil change article.

7.3 Powerstroke HEUI Fuel System

The 7.3 Powerstroke has a HEUI—hydraulically actuated electronic unit injection—fuel injection system.

I detail it and the 7.3 HPOP—high pressure oil pump—used to actuate the injectors in these three 7.3 HPOP articles:

  1. 7.3 HPOP Remove/Replace
  2. 7.3 HPOP Buyer’s Guide
  3. 7.3 HPOP Leak Repair

7.3 Powerstroke Injector Specs

7.3 injectors work by getting an electronic signal telling them to let high pressure oil from the HPOP into the injector. This high pressure oil forces the injector’s needle tip open, thus “injecting” diesel fuel into the combustion chamber.

California emissions—CARB – the California Air Resources Board—required 1996 and 1997 7.3 diesel Powerstrokes to be equipped with split-shot fuel injectors. Non-California 7.3 Fords didn’t get split-shot injectors until 1999.

Split shot injectors work by “pre-charging” the cylinder with a small amount of diesel first and then following it up with a larger injection of diesel fuel.

Split-shot injectors reduced knocking and smoothed out the engine, but more importantly to California and CARB, reduced emissions by more fully and completely burning the fuel in the combustion chamber.

7.3 Powerstroke Injector Codes

  1. AA Injectors
    • Years – 1994-1996 and all non-CARB 1997s
    • Injector Type – Single Shot
    • Max Flow Rate – 98cc
    • Part Number Cylinders 1-7 – F61Z-9VE527-ERM, CMR-2-RM
    • Part Number Cylinder 8 (Cackle fix) – F4TZ-9VE527-AARM, FI-2-RM
  2. AB Injectors
    • Years –  1997 CARB and the early 1999s
    • Injector Type – Split Shot
    • Max Flow Rate – 130cc
    • Part Number – F61Z-9VE527-BRM, CMR-1-RM
  3. AC Injectors
    • Years –  These were on the International T444E Engine
    • Injector Type – Single Shot
    • Max Flow Rate – 160cc
  4. AD Injectors
    • Years –  Later 1999 Powerstrokes to 2003
    • Injector Type – Split Shot
    • Max Flow Rate – 140cc
    • Part Number – 5C3Z-9VE527-BRM, CMR-8-RM
  5. AE and AF Injectors – Cackle Fix – Cylinder 8
    • Years –  Later 1999 Powerstrokes to 2003 (specifically for cylinder #8)
    • Injector Type – Split Shot
    • Max Flow Rate – 140cc
    • Part Number – 5C3Z-9VE527-ARM, CMR-7-RM

7.3 Powerstroke Engine Cylinder Firing Order

The 7.3 firing order is 1-2-7-3-4-5-6-8

7.3 Specs - Engine Firing Order

Now let’s get down to the nitty gritty details…

…just remember that horsepower’s for hauling ass. And torque is for towing.

1994 Ford 7.3 Powerstroke Specs

1994 7.3 Powerstroke Specs

1994 was the first year of Ford’s 7.3 Powerstroke production run.

1994 7.3 Powerstroke Horsepower Spec

210 HP at 3,000 RPM

1994 7.3 Powerstroke Torque Spec

425 lb-ft at 2000 RPMs

1995 Ford 7.3 Powerstroke Specs - Truck image

1995 7.3 Powerstroke Specs

1995 was the year that California required the 7.3 Powerstroke to have split-shot injectors.

1995 7.3 Powerstroke Horsepower Spec

210 HP at 3,000 RPM

1995 7.3 Powerstroke Torque Spec

425 lb-ft at 2000 RPMs

1996 Ford 7.3 Powerstroke Specs - Truck Image

1996 7.3 Powerstroke Specs

1996 7.3 Powerstroke Horsepower Spec

215 HP at 3,000 RPM

1996 7.3 Powerstroke Torque Spec

450 lb-ft at 2000 RPMs

1997 7.3 Powerstroke Specs

For the next two years the 7.3 Powerstroke horsepower and torque specs remained the same.

1997 7.3 Powerstroke Horsepower Spec

225 HP at 3,000 RPM

1997 7.3 Powerstroke Torque Spec

450 lb-ft at 2000 RPMs

1998 7.3 Powerstroke Specs

In 1998, the rest of the trucks caught up to California emissions and all of Ford’s 7.3 Powerstrokes came equipped with split-shot injectors.

1998 7.3 Powerstroke Horsepower Spec

225 HP at 3,000 RPM

1998 7.3 Powerstroke Torque Spec

450 lb-ft at 2,000 RPMs

1999 7.3 Powerstroke Specs

1999 7.3 Powerstroke Specs

1999 is when things got interesting. Not only did Ford redesign the body of the F250 and F350 Superduty pickups, giving them a more rounded and sleeker look, but it added larger fuel injectors and an intercooler. And this boosted the 7.3’s performance specs.

The truck produced 10 more horsepower and 50 more lb.-ft. of torque.

1999 7.3 Powerstroke Horsepower Spec

235 HP at 2,700 RPM

1999 7.3 Powerstroke Torque Spec

500 lb-ft at 1,600 RPMs

2000 7.3 Powerstroke Specs

2000 7.3 Powerstroke Specs

The 2000 7.3 Powerstroke specs stayed pretty much the same as the 1999 production year.

2000 7.3 Powerstroke Horsepower Spec

235 HP at 2,700 RPM

2000 7.3 Powerstroke Torque Spec

500 lb-ft at 1,600 RPMs

2001 7.3 Powerstroke Specs

2001 7.3 Powerstroke Specs

In 2001, Ford engineers tweaked the engine calibrations and eked out a little more horsepower and torque for both the auto transmission and the manual, stick-shift, 7.3 Powerstroke.

2001 7.3 Powerstroke Horsepower Spec

Automatic Transmission – 250 HP at 2,600 RPM

Manual Transmission – 275 HP at 2,800 RPM

2001 7.3 Powerstroke Torque Spec

Automatic Transmission – 505 lb-ft at 1,600 RPMs

Manual Transmission – 525 lb-ft at 1,600 RPMs

2002 7.3 Powerstroke Specs

2002 7.3 Powerstroke Specs

As far as horsepower and torque goes, 2002 specs were a repeat of 2001.

2002 7.3 Powerstroke Horsepower Spec

Automatic Transmission – 250 HP at 2,600 RPM

Manual Transmission – 275 HP at 2,800 RPM

2002 7.3 Powerstroke Torque Spec

Automatic Transmission – 505 lb-ft at 1,600 RPMs

Manual Transmission – 525 lb-ft at 1,600 RPMs

2003 7.3 Powerstroke Specs

2003 is a sad year for us 7.3 Powerstroke enthusiasts as it was the last production year. Ford succumbed to government regulations and new emissions standards and created the 6.0 Powerstroke to “replace” it. Though that engine failed to live up to the 7.3’s reputation for reliability.

2003 7.3 Powerstroke Horsepower Spec

Automatic Transmission – 250 HP at 2,600 RPM

Manual Transmission – 275 HP at 2,800 RPM

2003 7.3 Powerstroke Torque Spec

Automatic Transmission – 505 lb-ft at 1,600 RPMs

Manual Transmission – 525 lb-ft at 1,600 RPMs

7.3 Powerstroke Specs Summary

So, there they are—Ford’s not jaw-dropping by today’s standards, but still very impressive for its day—7.3 Powerstroke diesel turbo specs everyone’s been raving to you about.

And if you want to find out how to push those numbers higher, check out our article on increasing your 7.3 Powerstroke’s stock MPG and HP specs.

For me, I’m more interested in that legendary engine longevity number I’ve heard. A million miles? My 2002 F250 7.3 Powerstroke’s not there yet, but I keep religiously changing my 7.3 oil … and crossing my fingers…

Steve

I'm Steve. I've owned over a dozen diesel pickup trucks in my life and always worked on them myself. I'm the owner of Dead Head Diesel. I live in California. You know, the diesel "friendly" state.

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