OBS Power Stroke Turbo Swap - Removal and Reinstallation

How to remove and reinstall a turbo on an OBS (94.5-97) Ford with the 7.3 Power Stroke. The replacement turbo we put in isn't a factory turbo, but the procedure is the same.

[@DPats1228]

I like the humor. “If you can’t figure that out you probably shouldn’t be doing this job.” 😂

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

I say that pretty frequently actually haha. It's true though!

[@ryanstropicalplantsoutdoor1989]

@@darkhorseautoanddiesel I got the Turbo Back on.... the trucks running.... it seems like it whistles a little bit louder but now I can hardly get up to 55 when I'm going uphill ...do you know why that could be

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

@@ryanstropicalplantsoutdoor1989 Do you have a boost gauge? If you do, what's it reading? Check the rod for your wastegate. It may have come off. I've had that happen once. I didn't get the clip back on it all the way and it fell off going down the road. Took forever to spool up, wouldn't spool at all under about 2200 RPM, high EGTs, and smokey exhaust.

[@ryanstropicalplantsoutdoor1989]

@@darkhorseautoanddiesel well this is going to sound crazy but it doesn't have a wastegate it only has the bypass valve... It's spools up at idle and it tries to build pressure but it acts like it's misfiring although it doesn't shake when I'm going I just feel like I'm not getting ignition on all cylinders but there's no smoke at all

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

@@ryanstropicalplantsoutdoor1989 Send me an email. [e-mail] It'd be easier to help you talking through there than on here.

[@digitricks]

Thank you very much for this highly informative video! Ever since I bought my 97 F250HD 4x4 7.3L Powerstroke, I don't believe I ever heard it whine. Considering replacing it and your video helps!

[@OBSessed97]

18 FOOT POUNDS for turbo to collector.

[@melvinmccoy9830]

Great job on video. And showing how easy it is to loose meat trying to bust tight fasteners. If it was easy every one would be a mechanic. Patience is a virtue. I have a 94.5 it's a good old truck.

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

Thank you. Losing meat is quite common. I have lots of scars on my hands from wrenching on vehicles.

[@alpinhi]

Thanks for the video! I'm in the middle of pulling my turbo to fix a massive oil leak. I watched lots if videos before I started and yours helped me immensely getting those two hidden pedestal bolts out. Thank you!

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

You're welcome. I'm happy to see that my videos are helping people.

[@gribblesgarage]

I’m about to do this also to fix a massive oil leak

[@williambrydges1329]

WOW, all your bolts came out so easily. I needed a 2ft breaker bar for the nuts on the exhaust flange.

[@craigbarres648]

Your level of demonstration was spot on. Other videos on this same topic spend a lot of time explaining, but then skip the actual step of removing that 15 mm nut on the passenger side bottom behind the turbine of the turbo. THANK YOU! I now know what tool I need to buy.

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

You're welcome! I'm glad my video was useful and helpful.

[@rogercarrico4975]

Thanks guys! Very good video! Nice how you videoed removing those hard to get to nuts and bolts. Showed the tool set up needed for each. Even included the torque specs for each My turbo is fine right now. But since I NEVER plan on getting rid of this truck. I see exactly how it's done. If and when I tackle a rebuild!

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

You're welcome. I try to be as detailed as possible. If/when you rebuild the turbo, I have a video on that as well. It's for a Super Duty, but it's mostly the same.

[@Outdoorsnmotors]

Thanks for the video! Not a lot of videos out there, saved me alot of time, luckily my dads coworker used to be a ford mechanic, and he made a special wrench for the lower two exhaust bolts on the turbo. Just a stubby 15mm with half of it ground down for clearance and a slot for a pry bar. The job still took me all weekend, but if I didn’t watch your video first, would have took me longer thank you.

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

You're welcome. I'm glad it helped. That's why I started this channel.

[@Mrplace001]

Very good video, was very useful to get an idea of what to expect as I swap the turbo on my '97 F350.

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

Glad it helped. That's why I make these videos.

[@user-om9dj1ln5e]

This video is perfect! Nicely done and Thank you

[@cprince8348]

Good job on the video. I’ll use this one as a reference soon when I do a r/r/r on my 1996 turbo. Thanks!

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

You're welcome! I'm glad my video is helpful.

[@oscarsanchezmendoza2274]

getting ready to do this, thanks for the detailed instructions.

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

I'm glad it's helpful. That's why I make these videos.

[@robo5877]

Tip: If you remove the ebp valve first and install last, it makes job much easier. Requires 12pt 8mm or 5/16“ socket . 1/4” drive. .

[@elijahhawkins3455]

perfect video man!

[@FordShitBoxes94]

Thanks for the video just got a 1994 ford F-250 7.3 power stroke that needed a new turbo and didn’t find any videos that showed how to do it better

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

You're welcome. That's why I make these videos. I made that video over a year ago, and my recording skill have probably improved in more recent videos, but knowing that it's still one of the best ones out there for information is sufficient to make me happy with it.

[@malachinewton2510]

Looked great

[@codywilliams463]

I've watched like 20 vids on the easiest way to get this turbo off and no one I've seen got a wratchet on all the bolts thanks for the tips best one I've see so far

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

I'm glad you like it. Helping people is why I started making these videos.

[@2ndspingarage]

A small flat head screw screw driver helps to get boost tubes back together

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

I considered trying that but didn't want to risk damaging them with the screwdriver. I've definitely done it before but damaging things and having it take up garage space waiting for parts wasn't really an option at the time.

[@ramhornjoe]

Great video guys, there are a bunch of crap videos for this job & you broke it down nicely.

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

Thank you. I try to be as detailed as possible without being boring.

[@ramhornjoe]

@@darkhorseautoanddiesel you nailed it, much appreciated managed to swap out mine on a 96 F250 with plenty of cursing & liquid wrench.

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

Cursing is definitely gonna happen on that job, even if you have help or have done it 10 times.

[@Mattie_Ice]

I made a platform to lay across. With the alternator removed and the bolts reinstalled, it acted as a stand. Used 2 football bleacher cushions cut in two to balance the wood I placed above it. I then used the last half of the cushion as a chest cushion. To get the v clamp on, I didn't mess with it for more than 15 min before realizing it wasn't going to go on. Ford and their infamous wisdom used the shortest bolt possible on the clamp. Preventing you to get the nut on. I went out and found a longer bolt and used a hard wheel of a grinder, and shaped the head to match the original. It took me 5 minutes to put it on, and I had the truck put together in 3 hours there after. Get a grade 8 bolt with full threads that's an inch longer. I didn't have a fully threaded bolt, so I had to dye mine. I actually ran to bolt length problems on most of the clamps. But I was able to make due as they're very accesible, unlike the one on the back. Hope this helps.

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

I like the idea of the platform to lay on. I'm not sure why you had issues with the clamps. I've never had a problem with the bolt length on the V-band clamps. As long as everything is lined up properly it should go on pretty easily. Makes me wonder if you had things misaligned.

[@Mattie_Ice]

@Dark Horse Auto and Diesel Thanks for the response. I have yet to drive the truck. If I did something wrong, what am I looking for or listening for?

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

@@Mattie_Ice exhaust smell I'm the cab, smoke from under the hood, increased noise from under the hood. You can open the hood and watch in that area and have someone rev it up. If you have a chip that increases fueling it would help with noticing smoke.

[@DS-Turbo]

Lol I was going to do mine last year but found out the one bolt behind the turbo in the hard spot was completely stripped just waiting to get the nerve now to sawzall the turbo off since I can't even get the egpv off either from all the rusted bolt head or what is left of them. Fun times ahead

[@powerstoke88]

Good video

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

Thanks, I had good help haha

[@balogunolurotimiidowu3553]

Thanks 🎉❤

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

You're welcome.

[@victorMartinez-vy2mz]

Thanks

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

You're welcome.

[@twigglykevin]

12point 8mm and remove the EBPV deal and it makes the passenger rear pedestal bolt easier to get at.

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

I didn't really think of that. I figured it'd be too hard to get the old one off in the truck and to get it back on after. I'll try that the next time I do one of these!

[@craigbarres648]

How do you get the rear/bottom 8 mm head bolt back in and torqued after the reinstall? Or do you put it on outside the truck, then monkey with the 15 mm nut on the reinstall? If the downpipe was out from under the hood, that seems like it would be significantly easier. But honestly, I’ve spent the last two days trying to remove the 15 mm nut. Been chasing tools and nothing is working yet. Looking forward to my swivel sockets getting here tomorrow.

[@andresjureaz2188]

Easy to follow saved me a lot time and work .. one question where did you buy the turbo .. does it come with a pedestal delete… thank you

[@powerstoke88]

Turbo came from kc turbos. It’s a kc300x stage 3. No it didn’t come with a pedestal delete. I just deleted mine.

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

I don't remember us deleting the EBPV crap from the pedestal. Was I drunk by that point of the project? Or does my memory just suck that bad?

[@powerstoke88]

@@darkhorseautoanddiesel hahaha. Well the rod wasn’t hooked up anyway. We tore it apart and I plugged it. Be definitely did it.

[@2ndspingarage]

Send it boys

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

We definitely did

[@jorgefonseca9225]

Great explanation mate 👍 but this is a really fucking hard job 😅😅 it's so tight really hard for release the bolts 🤔🙄🙄 anyway it's taking all day without stress 😅😅👍👍

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

It's definitely not fun. Once you've done it several times it's not too bad though.

[@CowboyNC]

Just bought a 97 psd have AB stock injectors in it what would be a good replacement for the turbo it’s my first diesel an still learning any help would be appreciated

[@reggieanderson885]

AB injectors = 130cc right??? If so , probably nothing…

[@timothyedgens3670]

Really good video currently at 320k on my one ton dually the only problem I ran in to is the up pipe collector gasket and it being a pain to remove the inside bolts any pointers on replacing the crush washers on those????

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

Thank you. Getting the nuts and bolts off the collector pretty much requires the 15mm swivel socket I mentioned in the video. There shouldn't be any crush washers to replace though.

[@timothyedgens3670]

My bad I’m talking about the up pipe bolts . I don’t have the money to replace the up pipes so I’m replacing the oem crush gaskets

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

@@timothyedgens3670 you can get a set of bellowed uppipes on rock auto or Amazon for like $80ish. I have over 100k miles on a set of el cheapos on my work truck and they're still sealed up just fine. If you just replace the donut gaskets you'll likely regret that decision quite quickly because the pipes themselves are probably rusted and worn down and you'll still have leaks. I'm a big of a cheapskate as anyone so I get it, but do you wanna do it right the first time and be done or the second time when the first failed?

[@ryanstropicalplantsoutdoor1989]

HELP!!!! Great video...thank you it helped a lot... I took off the I.c.p. to check hpop pressure...3 second crank and it just oozes...but the truck will run🤦...i don't understand...it chugs at idle....new ipr valve....rebuilt ipr....and still...it ran fine with a few hiccups before I rebuilt the ipr....and fuel bowl.... I have no computer only volt meter...12.5v and reversed 12.8v on the ipr.. 8omms ipr.... New icp...great continuity... Not sure of volts...i will check tomorrow but I don't think that matters right now... Any ideas...i have done my research...ive posted on Facebook for help....all I get is get a regular job and pay a mechanic...i own my own company but the truck is broke😭....thank you

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

How much have you ran the truck since replacing the IPR and rebuilding the fuel bowl? Opening up the fuel and oil systems will get air them, which can take some time to work its way out. Depending on how much air got in, it could take 20+ miles of driving before it acts completely normal again.

[@brennasamarin]

Did you pre-prime or mechanically prime the turbo after installation... or do you just crank it over after the new one is in?

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

Pre prime. I always turn the turbo upside down, then dump some oil in and spin it until no more air bubbles come up, then dump it out and install it.

[@DieselMan73]

What turbo is this that you put back in @dark horse auto and diesel?

[@joevincent73]

What if you DO drop the print into the intake? Please don't ask why I'm curious...

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

I don't think I need to ask why... You're definitely going to want to get anything dropped in the intake out of there. Depending on where it went, you may have to pull the plenum off. That isn't hard to do, just remove the bolts and carefully pry it off. Then you'll spend a good amount of time cleaning the old silicone off. When you reinstall it I'd recommend using the OEM silicone from Ford or International.

[@user-cd3dn6cy4z]

Friend, I have a problem with water in the oil, I don't present any evidence, but little water appeared in the oil. Do you think it's the oil cooler or the heads?

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

Probably the oil cooler. I had the same problem a little over a year ago. The heads and head gaskets on a stock 7.3 almost never fail, although it is not possible.

[@ashokjames3467]

Hey is it 1/4 Rachet and extension used to remove the pedestal two bolts behind?

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

Yeah I used 1/4" drive for those.

[@classickruzer1]

I love those slippery ratchet handles and sockets when your hands get oily. NO GRIP. Why do they polish the damn things....

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

Agreed. But then again, a rough, grippy texture would likely get painful pretty quickly.

[@darrentylor5473]

Where did you get the replacement?

[@winxleaderyt6649]

What brand socket was that 15 mm mime dont fit

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

Craftsman. It's not a normal socket. The U-joint is built into the socket.

[@caelebsuwyn7937]

Idk how you guys got that out so easy. I’ve been fighting mine for over 8 hours now and the passenger side rear pedestal bolt stripped out and I flipped out

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

Patience, caution, and proper tool selection. Plus having done it a few times in the past helps a lot.

[@remiphillips]

I can't get my rear passenger side pedestal bolt to thread back in no matter what I do, its crazy. All the others went back in fine. If my one pedestal bolt back there won't thread in, will this lead to an oil leak?

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

Pretty much guaranteed an oil leak. Quite possibly a massive one. The back 2 are where the orings are and while all 4 are important, those 2 are the most. The best advice I can give you is to pull the pedestal back off and try threading the bolt in with nothing in the way. If that doesn't work, you're gonna have to run a tap through it to clean the threads up that somehow got messed up. If that doesn't work, you're gonna have to drill it out bigger and put a thread insert in, which won't be fun. I have to ask, did you try threading them all in just a few turns or did you you tighten some down before threading in others?

[@remiphillips]

@@darkhorseautoanddiesel I tried starting with it but it would't go anywhere, spent way too much time trying to get it started by hand to no avail. Drivers side one went in ok, so then I tired shimmying it back and forth to see if i just wasn't centered on it, but it was just spinning around not biting the threads. Then I test fitted the other bolts and they all went in fine, so I know its not an alignment issue. Really don't want to pull it back off, but if the threads are messed up in some way I guess I might have to

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

@@remiphillips unfortunately pulling it is your only smart option.

[@johndowe7003]

what turbo did u swap in?

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

KC300X stage 3. The biggest drop in turbo KC Turbos makes for an OBS.

[@hrodriguez112]

which turbo will give you more power mpg?

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

You probably would never notice a change in fuel mileage by changing the turbo. If anything it'd probably decrease due to playing with the extra power. You MIGHT see a SLIGHT increase in mileage by deleting the EBPV, but even that is questionable.

[@ebayollis]

What kind of turbo is that?

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

KC300X stage 3

[@dandable]

How has performance changed over the stock turbo?

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

We never ran it on a dyno or track, so I'm not sure on actual numbers, but it sure felt better. I'm sure it made more power.

[@israelsalinasmartinez3024]

Whats Is It of number part of this new turbo.

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

Turbo came from kc turbos. It’s a kc300x stage 3.

[@user-ir1fo4ne8e]

Wahoo no blood will not yea. As soon as you feel it move stop pushing, or pulling tool. Or you can get a gusher 😮😢.

[@jesusmolina7656]

Why did u change it?

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

The factory turbo doesn't flow nearly enough air for 238/100 injectors, so we upgraded.

[@mandavaler]

You know what i think i will just go ahead and pay my mechanic to do that instead....

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

Hahaha, it's not a fun job, that's for sure.

[@mandavaler]

@@darkhorseautoanddiesel and mines needed it for months lol

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

@@mandavaler Could have had it done by now! 😆

[@Nfscarbon07]

I bought a new billet compressor wheel and turbine assembly with all the guts, and a 0.84 AR housing, and I just spent 2 hours trying to get the turbo off and I've decided I'm going to pay someone else to do it for me 😂

[@peltiereric6497]

Those Harbor Freight Torque Wrenches are garbage, they tend to be accurate when you first buy them but as soon as they get tossed around the toolbox drawers a few times they loose calibration. Also on a side note, using an extension on a torque wrench 100% will mess with the accuracy of even the highest quality torque wrench. Previously I worked for a supplier to CAT Equipment and on the rare assemblies that required an extension on the Torque Wrench that specific torque wrench was calibrated weekly with that extension on and there was no swapping sockets and using extensions on ones that were not calibrated for it because it greatly affects the readings especially on high tolerance assemblies

[@El_ReyJ]

Easier than the 6.0 that’s for sure

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

I've never had the displeasure of removing one of those, but looking at one, I would guess you are correct. I'm sure some day I'll end up doing one and finding out though.

[@tommybragalone7943]

You are batshit crazy if you think removing a 6.0 turbo is harder then removing a obs 7.3 turbo. I use to be able to remove a 6.0 in 20-25 minutes tops.

[@quentonmanning7166]

Good n tite

[@brandone6252]

Get real tools or you should probably not be doing this job 😂

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

Really, besides the 15mm swivel socket, everything else is basic hand tools haha.

[@brandone6252]

I was trying to be funny

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

Somehow I missed it... (facepalm)

[@thomasklein6954]

Bood one. Thanks

[@darkhorseautoanddiesel]

You're welcome.