I was hauling a load of cattle feed from Lubbock to Amarillo back in August when my truck started stumbling around mile marker 78. Pulled over and found water in the fuel sample I took from the separator. Turns out the drain valve on my Racor had been seizing up for months and I kept putting off replacing it because it was a pain to reach. Ended up stuck at a shop in Bushland for two days while they replaced the injectors and cleaned the whole system. Cost me about $1,400 plus lost time on the load. Now I replace those drain valves every year without fail and check the separator every morning before I roll. Anyone else had a water-in-fuel issue that cost them more than just a quick drain?
I wasted 3 days chasing electrical gremlins on a 12-valve before I finally blew out that return line and found a chunk of crud. Any of you guys got a piece of advice you ignored for way too long before it saved your bacon?
The line let go right after I finished a retorque on the head, spraying hot diesel everywhere while I was still standing on the frame rail - has anyone else had a new line fail like that after torquing to spec?
Figured I'd save a few bucks on a $40 set instead of spending $150 on the OTC one... big mistake. Snapped the threaded rod on the third injector and had to spend 2 hours drilling it out of a 6.7 Powerstroke. Anyone else had luck with a specific brand that actually holds up?
I was doing a head gasket job on a 2015 Freightliner at Pritchard's Fleet down in Denver, and a 5/8 bolt just twisted clean off at 90 ft-lbs. A retired mechanic named Walt walks over, picks up my old Craftsman torque wrench, and says this thing hasn't been calibrated since Clinton was in office. He handed me his Snap-on and I finished the job in half the time. Anyone else had a seasoned guy save your bacon with a simple tool swap?
Last Tuesday I was on a job outside Lafayette, working on a 2015 Freightliner Cascadia. It started raining halfway through and the truck went from running rough to dead in the water real quick. Pulled the valve cover and found water creeping into the number 4 injector wiring harness, corrosion had built up over time. I dried it out with compressed air and replaced the harness connector, fires right back up. Anyone else run into moisture getting into their injector plugs like that?
Been running the same fleet of 6 Freightliners for 4 years, always used the cheap spin-on filters from the local parts house. Last fall I swapped to a Fleetguard brand on a whim for my personal truck. At the 500 hour oil change the lab report showed iron levels dropped from 42 ppm to 11 ppm, insane difference. The old filters just weren't catching the fine wear debris I guess. Anyone else seen big changes in their oil reports after switching filter brands?
Spent 6 months running cheap Napa filters on my 7.3 Powerstroke. The day I pulled the old one and saw the bypass valve had started to fail I switched to Fleetguard. Who else has nearly toasted an injection pump running budget filters?
Back in '08 my buddy kept telling me to run Rotella T5 in my 7.3 instead of the straight 15w-40 I always used. I figured it was just a way to charge more for half the petroleum. Fast forward to last spring, I had to pull the heads on a truck that had been on T5 since 150k. The valvetrain looked almost new, no varnish, no crusty buildup. The guy who owned it ran it hard too, hauling hay bales out of Cheyenne every summer. I still run conventional in my old 4BT but I've been using the blend in everything else for about a year now. Any of you guys had a similar experience where you changed your mind on something?
I was rebuilding a 6.0 Powerstroke last spring and this retired fleet mechanic watched me set the timing. He said I was off by 3 degrees and would burn a hole in a piston within 6 months. I told him I had been doing it the same way for 10 years with no issues. But then I double checked his method (he pulled the valve covers and used a dial indicator instead of my usual approach) and sure enough he was right. Has anyone else had that moment where you swear by your method and then find out you've been wrong the whole time?
I always figured those fuel additive cleaners were snake oil for guys who didn't maintain their rigs properly. Then a buddy's Detroit 671 in an old Kenworth started running rough and smoking bad last month. He dumped in a bottle of Opti-Lube and after about 50 miles that thing smoothed right out and the smoke cleared. Has anyone else had a situation where a specific additive actually proved itself on a stubborn engine?
I had a 2015 F-250 come into my shop in Denver last month with some rough idle and figured I'd run a can of Archoil through it before digging deeper. Well after about 50 miles that thing started puking black smoke and the injectors went totally out of balance. Learned the hard way that these common rail systems don't like heavy cleaners if the injectors are already worn, turned into a $3k injector job. Anyone else had a cleaner mess up an engine worse than it fixed it?
Had a 2015 Cummins come in with a hard start when it was 110 out, and after chasing it for two days found three bad glow plugs that were swollen and stuck. The heat down there actually makes them fail faster because they never cycle off the same way. Anyone else seen more plug failures in desert climates?
Picked up a beat up Branson 5800 at a pawn shop near Akron for $40 last month. Figured it'd be a waste for cleaning injectors but gave it a shot anyway. Thing actually stripped carbon off a set of 6.7 Powerstroke nozzles better than my buddy's $600 unit at his shop. Just had to replace the transducer for $20 off eBay. Has anyone else had luck with cheap used cleaners or did I just get stupid lucky?
Tbh I thought I was saving money going with a remanufactured injector from a no-name supplier. Cost me $400 plus my labor to swap it into a 6.7 Cummins last month. Two weeks later the truck started running rough and smoking white. Pulled it back out and found the injector tip was cracked. The supplier said no returns on installed parts so I'm out that cash. Just a heads up to stick with OEM injectors even if they cost double. Anyone else get burned by cheap reman stuff?
I know everyone swears by Rotella T6 for everything, but I put it in my '92 7.3L and started getting leaks at every seal. Switched back to conventional 15W-40 and it's been dry for 3 years now. Has anyone else had a similar experience or am I just lucky?
I was down in Laredo last month helping a buddy with a Cummins ISX that kept dropping a cylinder. After swapping injectors twice I finally checked the fuel filters and they were packed with this fine black grit. Turns out the pump at that little station off I-35 has a bad tank liner that flakes off. Now I carry a bore scope everywhere and check filters before I even start diagnosing. Has anyone else run into tank liner problems messing up fuel systems?
Replaced the injector cups on a 6.0 Powerstroke and it fired up on the first crank no smoke or nothing. Forgot how good it feels when a job just clicks, anyone else have those rare perfect days?
Some guys swear the computer knows best for preheat timing but I got sick of waiting on a slow controller so I wired in a manual push button with a 6-second hold and now I'm wondering if all those years of relying on the PCM was just holding back the old IDI learning the hard way that a direct power feed might be simpler and more reliable than a module that costs $400 to replace, what's your take on factory versus manual glow plug control?
I was chasing a hot fuel issue on a buddy's 6.7 Powerstroke, pulling a trailer up I-5 near Salem. The #3 injector had a bad return line seal, dumping high pressure fuel right back into the rail. Replaced it with a rebuilt unit from the local diesel shop, and his fuel temp went from 195 to 180 after a 30 minute pull. Anyone else see big temp swings from just one bad injector?
He said he never tightens them past 140 in the final pass because he's seen too many pulled threads at 160 and now I'm wondering if the manual is wrong for daily drivers, has anyone else backed off the spec on these motors?
He was beating on the side of a 6.7 Powerstroke like it owed him money, and I had to step in. That aluminum head is not a place for brute force, you need the right puller and some heat, maybe a soak in penetrant overnight. I showed him my OTC slide hammer kit and we had it out in ten minutes without a scratch. How many of you still see this cowboy stuff on the regular?
Oil sprayed everywhere under the hood, lost all boost pressure. I had to limp it to a pullout using just the emergency kit hose clamps and a spare quart of 15W-40. Anyone know a better permanent fix for those factory crimp fittings?
I was down there last week for a parts run and noticed a whole line of yard tractors with those old two-strokes... they were all from the 80s. The foreman said they keep them because the rebuild kits are cheap and his crew knows them inside out. Made me rethink pushing everyone toward newer common rail engines for every job. What's the oldest engine you guys still see doing real work?