7.3 Diesel with Banks Turbo Kit: 1994 Ford F-350 Dually
For fans of reliability and axle twisting torque, the International Ford 7.3-liter diesel is legendary. That legend stems from the insane number of miles that some examples have clocked, and for the mere fact that Ford made it possible to check the option box to put a school bus engine in a truck. Hubba-hubba! However, there is always a need for more power. That is where Gale Banks and his awesome Banks Turbo Kits come in. If you would like a nineties crew cab in great condition with an upgraded turbo diesel, check out this 1994 Ford F-350 Dually for sale on eBay in Citrus Heights, California. With 87,100 miles on the odometer, this truck may be a holiday bargain with bidding currently at a paltry $9,100 with just one day to go.
Gale Banks got his start in hot rodding at the tender age of 14. He tore down his mother’s Ford Model A engine and rebuilt it to make it put out more power. Given that a stock Model A engine put out 40 horsepower, the fact that Banks found an additional 65 horsepower is proof that he had a talent when it came to engines. Over the years his pursuit of power led him to El Mirage for land speed record runs, contracts for making marine engines for Special Operations forces, and to building up his own company to market kits for enhancing the power output of numerous types of engines.
Banks earned a lot of money and gained clout in the automobile aftermarket with his turbo kits for Ford’s 7.3-liter Powerstroke diesel engine. Designed and built by Navistar International, formerly known as International Harvester, the T444E was initially designed to be placed in school buses, transit buses, and other forms of heavy equipment. Thanks to Ford adding this torque monster of an engine to their heavy-duty truck line, over two million of these engines were produced. That production was stopped in 2003 due to increased emissions control restrictions for diesel engines. Thus, one of the advantages of this engine is that it wasn’t and therefore isn’t subject to EPA emissions regulations. California laws are anyone’s guess at this point.
When you don’t have to worry about million-dollar fines and long stints in Federal prison for producing horsepower and torque, magical things can happen. in the nineties, there were several companies pushing the limits of both gas and diesel engines. Banks seemed to have the diesel side cornered, and Reeves Callaway was the undisputed master of turbocharged gasoline engines. One can make the argument that regulation is necessary for several reasons, and they would be correct. One could also argue that when innovation is allowed to flourish unfettered, technological advancement comes at a stunning pace. The horsepower that we enjoy in almost every car on the showroom floor today is built off the innovations of the hot rodders of yesterday. Some wore jeans and some wore lab coats.
Regardless of the current situation surrounding diesel power, this truck could be a bargain for anyone looking for a heavy-duty hauler at a reasonable price. The seller tells us that this truck has only 87,100 miles on the odometer and is in excellent shape for its age. Among the additions besides the Banks Turbo Kit are a K&N Filter kit, trailer brake controller, a pillar gauge set, a fifth wheel hitch and tailgate, upgraded exhaust, a shift controller, and the truck is lubricated with all synthetic fluids. Interestingly, the transmission has been rebuilt and the torque converter was replaced. Inside, we see that the upholstery is nearly immaculate and that the truck comes with cruise control and power locks. One of the more curious things about this truck is that the front windows are powered, but the rear are manual. Is this the only way that crew cab rear windows were available, or were power rear windows an additional option?
We are not sure exactly which Banks Turbo Kit was added to this truck. If you look at kits available today from the company, they are said to average an additional 120 HP and 256 lb-ft. of torque. The factory numbers for the 1994 Powerstroke were 210 HP and 425 lb-ft. of torque. While these numbers pale in comparison to those put out by modern diesels in similar applications, this was very strong for the period. This V-8 diesel was also rather simple in construction compared to the engines that came after it and was certainly overbuilt for the purpose. This allowed the owner who liked to tinker an engine with room for owner-installed improvement and peace of mind knowing that the engine could take both a lot of miles and a fair amount of abuse.
In all, this could be a great bargain for someone who wants a dually to haul a loaded car trailer or just needs something that can drag around a fifth wheel. What it lacks in infotainment systems and heated seating it more than makes up for in durability and cost of ownership. With over 40 bids on this truck already, you might want to take a chance at this price.
Is this a bargain if the bidding stays around $10,000? How many more miles do you think this truck can cover without major repairs? Please share your opinions and experiences in the comments.
Auctions Ending Soon
1971 Ford Mustang Mach 1Bid Now14 hours$7,100
2003 Porsche Boxster SBid Now15 hours$6,250
1966 Lincoln ContinentalBid Now17 hours$500
2000 Jaguar XJ8LBid Now4 days$1,250
1977 Datsun 280ZBid Now5 days$275
Comments
I’m not a Ford diesel fan since the cab has to be removed to take the engine out on most we’ve worked on but this is one that’d be in our fleet in a minute for $10K if we needed another. 7.3 was one of the best and highly sought by those who use ‘em but too many knotheads throw some cheapo tuner on it then go out “rollin’ coal”, which in turn is why CA has outlawed Diesel powered medium and heavy trucks as of 2036.
This one is done right, and probably will still be turning’ & burnin’ for a long time to come.
Why in the world would you lift the cab to pull the motor?
That’s the only way to get the turbo off of the new ones. These trucks were great in their day. Install the Banks setup and they really got with the program. Install new infotainment inside the cab and maybe a GV overdrive and go for 200k miles cross country
This is not a powerstroke engine. It’s the 7.3 IDI with the turbo that produced 190HP and 388ft/lbs. of torque. I’m not sure how much the Banks sidewinder added to these figures but Banks makes quality power adders. I drove a 87 or 88 F250 with the 6.9 IDI and. A Banks turbo kit with the 5-speed manual. What a nice driving truck. Not very powerful but much nicer to drive than a 7.3 Powerstroke with the 5-speed transmission. Really nice rig but crew with a long bed dually is a purpose built rig. Not something you use as a grocery getter. Because they have less power they generally get better fuel economy.
Nice(st) truck. This was top of the line, none better. I read, the Powerstroke came out mid ’94. If you wanted an automatic, you got the old motor, manual got the Powerstroke. The trencher dealer I worked for, they had field salesmen, and had regular cab dually Ford F350s to deliver machines that I drove on occasion. They had older ones with the IDI motor, then they got a couple new ones with the Powerstroke. The difference was noticeable, the IDI , a non-turbo(?) was a slug compared to the Powerstroke. I read, Ford did offer a Garret turbo for the 7.3 in ’93, but few went for it. With the cost of these new hovering close to $100 GRAND, it doesn’t take Sherlock Holmes to figure this one out. An old junkyard employee told me once, “why buy new when used will do?” It’s a heck of a truck for $10grand.
Pull the Slug out n put a Cummins 5.9 engine in it then you would have something worth driving.
That I6 Cummings 12 valve will be rolling coal long after everyone alive today is gone! The original combine motor!
In 1996 I traded my 1993 F150 XLT in (I had bought it new, it was a most wonderful truck) on a 1993 F350 XLT crew cab dually – the trailer had gotten longer and a lot heavier, and the poor F150 was not up to the task.
I kept the F350 for less than a year – it was strangely awful. Not much power, not great mileage, and prone to parts and service issues. I wasn’t a fan of the IDI engine, and I traded the truck in on a brand new left-over 1996 Dodge 3500 Cummins/auto single cab dually that I drove hard for the next nine years – now that was a truck built for hauling!
best,
bt
You guys and your Cumm-a-longs, lol
It’s kinda strange that a F-350 diesel with only 87,100 miles on the odometer;… has had 3 owners. Now I have a good friend that has a semi which I drove for him, has a 97 dodge pickup with a diesel in it that has over 600,000 miles on it that has never been touched. So I’m not saying anything bad what so ever, but this doesn’t seem wright for that year of truck with such low miles. It makes a person wonder if possibly something maybe wrong with it
I had a 1997 for 5 years , same set up but also had the full body kit with front bumper , loved it but the sad reality was it was cheaper to run a gas 150 with a 6 speed thatthis old girl withthe 4 and the crazy price of diesel …this is a nice one !
YOLO
The 7.3s were not too bad I worked on many of them back in the day. Head gaskets, porous cylinder walls, and the God awful glow plug relay and glow plugs! They were no powerhouse but got the job done. A far better engine than the crap that Ford produced after it !
Ford didn’t produce them, International did.
I’ own a 2000 F-350 4-door duelly with a 7.3 Power Stroke, auto. I have over 366,000 miles on mine & have had no major issues,(knock on wood) I’ve pulled race car trailers, Stock trailers, bale trailers all over with mine. Would not trade for a new one
that’s a lazy old idi 7.3 u ran them years ago, them smartened up and got dodges with 5.9 cummims in them. nuff said
Head bolt eater !
I special ordered my 1997 f350 4×4 dually, 7.3 power stroke 5 speed. 52 miles when I sign the papers, 26 years later and 500k miles on it and still going strong with very few modifications through the years!!! I’ll take this one to my grave !!! Bob from Albuquerque new Mexico
7.3 is the most overated engine of all time.
I think a lot of people are getting this truck and engine cornfused with Ford’s later products. It doesn’t eat head bolts and you don’t have to pull the cab to work on the motor. Pretty sure all that tomfoolery came later. It’s definitely worth $10k. There’s a guy in town who bought a similar model truck (it’s a Powerstroke, same body style) new and he’s still driving it. He keeps his stuff nice and it still looks almost new.
’89 F-350 XLT crew cab, 4X4, 5 speed, 4.10, IDI 7.3. Great truck! I towed a 10,000# 5th wheel camper with no problems. Michigan truck, body cancer killed it at almost 400K miles. No real problems anywhere, just normal upkeep. I got 18 mpg on the open road, 16.5 city, and 12 towing. No, it wouldn’t set any speed records, but “reliable” was it’s middle name!