Ford guys are a loyal bunch. One of the more common questions we receive here at Diesel Power is: "I want my Ford to make 800-1,000 hp and I don't want to put a Cummins in it. How do I do that?" For an answer, we called upon Ryan Bean, owner of Bean's Diesel Performance out of Woodbury, Tennessee. The Caterpillar-yellow engine you see here made 712 horsepower at the rear wheels, which is about 900 hp and 1,500 lb-ft at the flywheel.
One of the keys to making 7.3L Power Stroke engines live at this power level is having a strong foundation. This engine features one of Bean's stud girdles, along with Crower connecting rods and Mahle pistons. The heads were also fire-ringed, and are equipped with H11 head studs. The camshaft is one of Bean's own design, while the valvesprings are from Competition Cams. With a strong short block, the next step is lots of fuel and air. A Stealth high-pressure oil pump was fitted to the 7.3L engine, along with a custom set of 350cc injectors built by Bean. Air was supplied by a huge 75mm inducer (2.95-inch) S400 turbo, and a Nitrous Express NXD 4000 nitrous kit. The tuning was done by Tony Wildman at Total Diesel Performance.
One of the downsides to this engine was cost. Bean figures that the price of the engine would be about $20,000-$30,000 if you had a shop build you one, and at least $15,000 if you built it yourself. What that money gets you, is a 7.3L Power Stroke that can make about 550 horsepower at the wheels with no nitrous, and 700-plus with nitrous. Oh yeah, torque checks in at 1,200 lb-ft at the rear wheels. DP