Friend of mine has an 01 3500 auto for a work truck, and at startup he's said he gets alot of white smoke and it's gutless until he revs it wayup and then it's perfectly fine. Says it takes a good 1/4 mile run to clean her out of whatever's making it do that. He said it felt like the wastegate was sticking open but it's white smoke, not black, and with the utility bed on it and all that weight his ussually smokes a little under load so I don't think it's a turbo problem. My first guess was it's not getting enough fuel or there's air in the lines. But wanted to see what you guys thought. I'm VP illiterate and I was thinking maybe it was the fuel pump, but it's a company truck so he has no way of installing guages to find out the fuel pressure. Like I said though, it clears up after he revs it up for a minute or when he makes a full throttle run for a few seconds. Then it regains all it's power and stops the white smoke, just the normal black. Any thoughts? To me it seems unlikely that the fuel pump wouldn't be the problem when it's intermitent like that.

 

Have him pull the codes on it, and test the fuel pressure. He should have a fuel pressure guage installed ASAP.

 

There's no codes showing. I work at a parts store, and we have diagnostic equipment. Nothing showed up. I told him he about the fuel pressure guage and explained to him the trouble that the VP's have with lowered fuel pressure and bad LPs but he said his company probably wouldn't allow it. It's a company truck at least, if the VP decides to dive they can pay for it, not him. sad to say that.

 

No codes the IP should be okay, more than likely the LP is weak. Normally, a weak LP shows no signs of trouble. I'd change the air & fuel filter, check the FP and if that doesn't help take it to a Cummins shop.

 

When my L/P went Kaput it didn't do the white smoke thing, just fell on it's face when you mashed the gas. Hard to say with no codes, but it sure sounds like the VP is on it's way out. Check fuel press/install new L/P and see what happens.

Tom

 

Read the codes today, there's a code P0216 Injection pump timing circuit malfunction. Is that the IP death code? Still consistantly doing what it is.

 

Yes, that's usually the death code.


phox

 

lol should I tell him to prepare to take it to a shop? how hard is it to change? I've rebuilt a 12valve entirely, know how to change the P7100 injection pump and time it, is the vp44 that difficult to change? How long might it take? Like I said before he uses this truck for work so timing would be an issue. I imagine with the electronic timing there's not much to putting it back on? There any threads that someone knows about that cover's removal and installation? I feel I'm a pretty good mechanic, I've just never done an injection pump on the 24v's before so just makin sure there's not some big thing I'm missing. Thanks