1989 F-700 Diesel Box Truck

[nixonrules]

Hey Guys- New to this forum. I just bought a 1989 F-700 with the 6.6l Diesel and Allison automatic trans. It has a 24' box.

I intend to use this rig to move from Texas to California. This truck has a lot of miles on the engine (305,000) and about 20k on the trans (rebuilt). The engine appears to have been well maintained. Is there anything problematic with these engines that I should check? Are they typically good for a lot of miles?

I just don't want to find myself broken down in the middle of the Mohave desert! Thanks!

[MagicRat]

That is not actually a prohibitively high mileage for a commercial diesel engine. If it was well maintained, there is still much mileage left in it.

IMO do some maitenance. Inspect all the belts and hoses. I would suggest to replace them all. Replace the coolant, engine oil and filter. Grease the chassis, including king pins, steering components and driveshaft U-joints.
Replace the fuel filter(s), there may be more than one. Look at the air filter. Blow it off with compressed air, gently, and replace if it looks pretty dirty.
Check the transmission and rear axle fluid level and condition. Replace the rear axle gear oil if it looks dirty.
The front wheel bearings may use gear oil, not grease. Check the fluid level there, if this is the case.
Replace the batteries if they crank the engine slowly or if a load test shows they are bad. Check and clean or replace all the connections.

Find out if this truck has automatic brake adjusters; if not find out how to adjust the brakes, just in case.

Are there air brakes on this thing? Drain the water daily from the air tank, unless it has an automatic spit valve.

Finally, travel with some basic tools, some spare coolant, oil, gear lube, jumper cables, spare tire, jack lug wrench..............and a cell phone.

[nixonrules]

I have learned quite a bit more about this truck since I first posted this question and your analysis is spot on. I basically hopped in this truck, started it and drove it 1500 miles without a hitch. The engine runs like a champ even in the 8 degree (-30 wind chill) conditions that I was starting/driving it in. I have already purchased and intend to install new oil filters, fuel separators, air filter and synthetic oil. The only disappointing suprise was that the front brakes are shot and I will need to put new rotors on both side. Thanks for your reply!