The History of the Ford Power Stroke

The Ford Power Stroke is a turbodiesel truck engine that has been produced since 1994. Intended to compete with truck engines from other American automakers, the Power Stroke has been refined over the years to power Ford's E Series and F Series full-sized trucks.

Predecessor

Prior to the introduction of the first Ford Power Stroke engine in 1994, Ford used a 7.3-liter diesel engine in many of its trucks. Production began in 1988. This engine was not turbocharged and used indirect injection. By 1993, a turbo version had been added, based on Ford's existing 6.9-liter indirect injection diesel engine.
In 1989, Dodge began offering its "B Series" engines in its truck line. Manufactured by Cummins, the B Series was available as an inline 4- or -6 cylinder diesel engine. As Ford sought a replacement for its 7.3-liter diesel engines, the need to compete with the B Series was taken into consideration.

Introduction

Ford redesigned its 7.3-liter diesel engine for the 1994 model year. The Power Stroke name was first used midway through 1994. The new engine employed direct injection for the first time, along with electric fuel injectors. It was the power injectors that inspired the Power Stroke name. A turbocharger coupled with an intercooler provided increased horsepower and made the Power Stroke ideal for inclusion in Ford's heavier vehicles.
The original Ford Power Stroke remained in production through the 2003 model year, making it among Ford's longest production runs for a single engine.

Evolution

In 2001, General Motors introduced its Duramax line of diesel truck engines, which competed directly with the Ford Power Stroke. To keep pace, Ford introduced a new edition of the Power Stroke in 2003. The new Power Stroke was a 6.0-liter turbodiesel. The first several years of production were disastrous, with Ford forced to recall hundreds of trucks and offer full engine replacements to many owners whose engines failed while still under warranty. Clogged valves were responsible for most of these problems. Engineering modifications helped, but did not remove, this issue.
Drivers of Ford trucks with the new 6.0-liter Power Stroke received frequent "check engine" warnings from their on-board diagnostic instruments, and dealerships saw a flood of warranty claims and general complaints. In 2007, the 6.0-liter Power Stroke failed key federal emissions standards and had to be modified further.

Later Versions

Federal emissions standards spelled the end of the 6.0-liter Power Stroke. For the 2008 model year, Ford's new Super Duty trucks featured a new Power Stroke engine. The new engine had a displacement of 6.4 liters and was rated at 350 horsepower and 650 ft.lb. of torque. It ran on special low-sulfer diesel fuel. A revised turbocharger was successful in increasing the power and efficiency of the new Power Stroke.
Ford's next version of the Power Stroke was designed for the 2011 model year. The new engine, known as "Scorpion," rather than "Power Stroke" was designed for fuel efficiency, low emissions and overall reliability in an attempt to remove the stigma associated with the failures of the 6.0-liter Power Stroke.

Manufacture by Navistar

The Ford Power Stroke was originally built by the Navistar Corporation at plants in Alabama and Indiana. Navistar has a long history of producing engines for industrial use, as well as school buses, farm vehicles and passenger trucks. Relations between Ford and Navistar suffered when the 6.0-liter Power Stroke engine was experiencing failures in volume, with each firm blaming the other for the engineering shortcomings. In 2003, Navistar stopped producing the Ford Power Stroke. Ford has produced the engines internally ever since.

References

• Muscle Mustangs and Fast Fords

Resources

• Power Stroke Diesel