Engine is bullet proof as long as it has been taken care of. I blew my tranny at about 180K and was not even mad about it. I had heard that they blow tranny's and I was expecting it a lot sooner than that. My truck mechanic installed a rebuilt ford tranny for just under 3K. has a 2-3 year guarantee cant remember exactly. Only thing about the 7.3 is they like to guzzle the fuel. My Dodge sips it like a fine wine. I'm at 285K on the ford right now and still going strong...knock on wood.
strick