yarddog

I bought this truck used in July with 78K on the clock and it's been great so far. It's got 83K on it now. I had a buddy run the VIN and found it got a new VP and lift pump at 44K. I figured the VP would last until I got out of warranty but I was wrong!

I check the odometer codes on a regular basis and all I ever get is the 1693 companion code, so I figured everything was fine. I've had a little white smoke at start up but it runs strong and gets good mileage. Anyway, I had a buddy with a Superchip scanner pull my codes and it came up with 0216. I was really suprised to see it! I thought I would see it on the odometer.

If you're still under warranty and have 1693, get your codes pulled. I had no symptoms and could have gone another 20K miles and never checked the codes and the VP would have failed on me right after 100K


So now I have a hard decision to make. Should I modify the fuel system so this VP will last? It's still got 17K of warranty left but at this rate, if I do nothing, I'll have to this again at 120K.

I don't have cash for a FASS so if I do anything it'll be a bottom feed with a holley blue and a fuel pressure guage. It's not a FASS or RASP but it's a big improvment over stock and maybe I can squeeze 60K out the next VP

rockwithjason

Fuel pressure gauges are mandatory for 24V trucks. If you don't have one, get one. Keep a spare lift pump in the truck and if the guage falls below 8psi change the lift pump. If you follow those rules you should be ok for quite a while.

yarddog

That's good advice. I did have a shop check my fuel pressure 2 weeks ago and it was fine?

The crazy thing is the companion code to the 1693 I had was 0216.

pmtg

how did they check the fuel pressure? at idle? im assuming they didnt check it under load such as a WOT run on the road, that is where the greatest concern should be taken.

atleast you still have warranty...but by the sound of it, the VP hasnt failed yet. maybe its possible the 0216 is left over from the previous failure? maybe not. either way, get it cleared and see if it shows up again.

yarddog

We didn't test it under load just at idle and 2500rpm.

farmer dave

I would get things changed under warranty now, get a fuel pressure gauge put in and watch it. If the pressure starts falling again, then go with a high performance pump. Dodge has started using a in-tank pump, supposed to be better. Who knows right now though.

HOHN

Or, it might not help you at all.

My VP died at 40K with perfect FP the whole time. Factory LP is still in place and still giving good FP.

CTD NUT

There is no turning back from the 0216 DTC. A new LP and more fuel pressure won't reverse the electronic failure that triggered the 0216 in the first place, nor will the lack of fuel pressure cause it. You can erase the 0216 and see if it reappears; my guess is that it will......if it was a soft code it would have cleared itself after a certain number of starts. Plan on getting the warranty to cover this before it is too late.

yarddog

I didn't erase the code, I want the tech to see it first thing. I'm taking her in on Monday. It doesn't make sense that the code is left over from the last VP failure, that was a LONG time ago.

It still bothers me that I don't have any typical symptoms of a VP failure. And that the code didnt' come up on the odo. So again, if you have a reoccuring 1693 get your codes checked.


I'm glad this POS pump is under warranty. It's actually really depressing there's such a major engineering failure on this engine. It's like being married to the perfect woman, but knowing she could die at any time

wildbill040

I just replaced my VP @ 86k with no codes from the Dodge computor, but it failed immediatly with no warning and 11psi FP. The shop that replaced the pump used a DRBIII to pull the Cummins computor codes which carried the 0216 a 1693 and mant "over boost" codes. After replacement and start up, a 0216 again appeared and was erased but did not show on the Dodge comp. I returned the truck 2 days later to have the engine check light thet came on tested and it showed a 0216 and again 2 over boost codes. He erased them, restarted the truck and it reset a 0216. The truck is running perfectly now, but the Dodge comp. is setting this code and the Cummins comp isnt? Im running a TST competition box in level 2 or 3 ( my clutch wont handle any higher setting ) and the tech says it isnt the cause of the codes except for the " over boost" ones. The IP has a 12 mo. warranty from Bosch who over hauled it and the shop will replace it again if it fails with or without the codes. He thinks there is a GND problem on one or the other computor causing the codes to appear and not to worry about it unless it does fail!

Clunk

Out of the book...
P0216 (M) Fuel Injection Pump Timing Failure
High fuel supply restriction, low fuel pressure or possible
wrong or incorrectly installed pump keyway.

Cyborrg

Several sources list High fuel supply restriction and/or low fuel pressure as causes of the death code. My lift pump died last week and immediately through a 0216. No other sympton.
Dealer installed the in-tank kit. Band-aid.

I think (IMHO) that frequently a fatal lift pump has registered the code and the victim had no means of monitoring the fuel pressure. Keeps driving as long as it's running, and the lack of fuel pressure causes the VPs ultimate demise. It's all this knowledge from other people that make monitoring the fuel pressure mandatory.

A whole bunch of people have found out about a bad LP after changing the fuel filter, then the truck won't start. That VP will pull the fuel as long as the fuel line is primed. Crack the seal on the filter, the stuff in the line bleeds back into the tank. That tiny rotary gear pump is not going to pull spit through a straw, much less fuel through 6' of dry line.

If you have good fuel pressure and are getting the 0216, I think your scrood
either way get the gauge, at least the light..

Extra300

Not sure i totally agree with this statement. Maybe i just don't completely understand what you're saying. My experiance has been, low fuel presure has led to damage to the VP44 due to lack of lubrication and cooling that the VP gets from the proper volume of fuel. This damage, in turn, caused a 216 code (fuel timeing) when the VP would lose presure, which would also give me the "dead pedal". I now have an upgraded VP together with a new LP and a second in-line pump that is activated by oil presure. No more problems, for now, and good fuel presure (anywhere from 18 to 32 lbs) depending on conditions. Fuel presure, or lack of, seems to be the root cause of VP failures which result in 216 codes. It all seems to be connected.