F53 V10 First Timer Questions
My wife and I just bought a 1999 31' Georgetown Class A on the Ford F53 Chassis with the V10 in it. 30,000 miles. My wife and I are still fairly young (early to mid 20's) so we don't have a lot of v...
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we have a 2000 Itasca Suncruiser which has the Ford V-10 on the F53 Super Duty chassis. the engine currently has 85,000+ miles on it.
nope but I wouldn't expect it to happen for another 30-40K miles. we had a blowout around 65,000-miles. we were on our way home from a 3-month trip, stopped for gas and the plug blew as we were accelerating down the entrance ramp. and I had just had the plugs inspected before we left on the trip.
that's one I have not heard about on this engine. easiest way is to have the oil changed...since you just bought it that's probably a good idea anyway...and then check the oil level on the dipstick.
I bought one for our MH but it wouldn't work...at all. if you buy one be sure you can return it.
apart from the blown plug we've only had two semi-major problems with our ford.
- when traveling at highway speeds above 2500-rpm and with the dash air on the volume of cold air coming out of the vents would substantially decrease. this usually happened when climbing a small hill or on the initial acceleration from a dead stop like at a stop light or stop sign. as i recall ford had a service bulletin on this and the remedy was to install a second vacuum tank. problem solved.
- we were in a driving rainstorm in texas one afternoon...a real toad strangler. as we were climbing a hill a few miles from our campground we suddenly lost 90% of our power...the MH struggled to climb the hill and for a time I wasn't sure we would make it. I had the pedal to the metal as they say but was hard pressed to make more than about 10-12 MPH on level ground. we made an appt. at a local ford truck service shop for the next day and they found that the standard sir filter was literally soaked with rain water. the mechanic was amazed that any combustion was taking place let alone enough to propel the vehicle forward. the solution was to replace the cardboard AF with an K&N air filter. they can be a bit pricey and they do need periodic service but problem solved.
we've had some minor issues but overall we're very happy with the Ford and would probably buy Ford again if we don't go diesel on the next MH.
good luck and enjoy your new-to-you MH.
j.robinson389 wrote:
1. I have read about countless problems about these engines blowing out spark plugs. Is there anything I can do to help prevent this? I am pretty sure the original plugs are still in it.
nope but I wouldn't expect it to happen for another 30-40K miles. we had a blowout around 65,000-miles. we were on our way home from a 3-month trip, stopped for gas and the plug blew as we were accelerating down the entrance ramp. and I had just had the plugs inspected before we left on the trip.
j.robinson389 wrote:
2. I believe there was a problem with the original oil dipstick on this chassis, how do I know if I have the updated one or not?
that's one I have not heard about on this engine. easiest way is to have the oil changed...since you just bought it that's probably a good idea anyway...and then check the oil level on the dipstick.
j.robinson389 wrote:
3. Do you recommend spending the money and buying a ScanGauge II? Or is usually not necessary?
I bought one for our MH but it wouldn't work...at all. if you buy one be sure you can return it.
j.robinson389 wrote:
Any other advice or recommendations would be greatly appreciated, we are new at this, and I want to try and make as few "rookie" mistakes as possible.
apart from the blown plug we've only had two semi-major problems with our ford.
- when traveling at highway speeds above 2500-rpm and with the dash air on the volume of cold air coming out of the vents would substantially decrease. this usually happened when climbing a small hill or on the initial acceleration from a dead stop like at a stop light or stop sign. as i recall ford had a service bulletin on this and the remedy was to install a second vacuum tank. problem solved.
- we were in a driving rainstorm in texas one afternoon...a real toad strangler. as we were climbing a hill a few miles from our campground we suddenly lost 90% of our power...the MH struggled to climb the hill and for a time I wasn't sure we would make it. I had the pedal to the metal as they say but was hard pressed to make more than about 10-12 MPH on level ground. we made an appt. at a local ford truck service shop for the next day and they found that the standard sir filter was literally soaked with rain water. the mechanic was amazed that any combustion was taking place let alone enough to propel the vehicle forward. the solution was to replace the cardboard AF with an K&N air filter. they can be a bit pricey and they do need periodic service but problem solved.
we've had some minor issues but overall we're very happy with the Ford and would probably buy Ford again if we don't go diesel on the next MH.
good luck and enjoy your new-to-you MH.
