OK 3 months ago it was the injector pump, replaced it. 2 weeks later lift pump, replaced it. Now it died again and codes are 0500 and 1762. Any ideas?

 

Well those two codes really should not make it die. So, perhaps the codes were set as it went down. First suggestion is look at all electrical connections for corrosion, looseness, ect.
How did gauges get you by LP till two weeks later??? generally the LP precedes the VP by two weeks.

 

Turns out it was out of fuel (tank was reading 1/4 so I'm not sure whats up with that) I replaced the first LP about a year ago, then IP 3 months ago then LP went bad again right after that. When the IP went I was running in excess of 10# @ WOT (I have Wildcats fuel line upgrade kit)

 

It's your fuel sender that has gone south, happens a lot actually. Not a difficult repair, other than dropping the tank, and costs around $70 at the dealer (or at least did last time I purchased one).
mishkaya

 

How common is it for the fuel sending unit to go bad? My truck died at 40 mph a few days ago, felt like it ran out of fuel. Cranks fine, no start. The tank was 1/4 full when it happened and I usually maintain a higher fuel level than that. When the weather allows, I will begin troubleshooting the fuel system. Never thought that it may have simply run out of fuel.

 

It's very common actually. More common than most would believe. If you have 1/4 tank of fuel when your truck died, I wouldn't be surprised if you simply ran out of fuel. You can't usually just add 5Gal though, you will usually need about ten for the lift pump to prime properly. I have helped out more folks with this issue than I care to mention.
mishkaya

 

Is there a way to determine that my tank is actually dry? On the vehicles that I've owned with steel tanks, I could tap and get a resonate empty sound - not so with the Ram. I guess the tank is a good place to start in troubleshooting my fuel system. Simply running out of fuel could be an easy fix. So before I pour 10 gallons of fuel into the truck, is there anything else I need to do before I attempt to start it? I've never run out of fuel in the Cummins before. Prime or purge? This is new to me so I appreciate any advice anyone has to offer.
Thanks!

 

As stated previously. First you need to check to see if the lift pump is delivering fuel to the injection pump. To do this you can use the schrader valve at the IP while someone cranks briefly. If you have a good flow of fuel to the IP, you lift pump is working and you still have fuel. If not, either your lift pump is not delivering fuel, or you are out of fuel.
As far as I know, there is no easy way to tell if you still have fuel left in the tank on these trucks. If you reset your odometer every time you refill, you can check your distance to see if it looks reasonable or not.
mishkaya

 

It happened to me just after I got the truck. I had previously run the tank down to the warning light so I wasn't worried later when the tank went below 1/4.

At about 1/8, my truck died. After much hair pulling, (because I was SURE that there was still fuel in the tank), I filled up, bumped the starter a couple of times to prime and after a few seconds, it started right up.

I rarely let it get below 1/4 now.

 

That's good to know JoeCanuck, sorry I am learning at the expense of your misery.
mishkaya, I can't find a Schrader valve. Do I need to buy Parker access valves and install them to the top of my fuel filter at the test fitting ports? I have been reading many many posts throughout this website trying to help myself by educating myself as well as asking questions. It's time consuming but I feel that I am beginning to understand things. I hope I am not hi-jacking this thread. Thanks everyone!

 

The schrader valve is at the inlet of the VP44. If your fuel supply has been modified, the schrader valve may have been removed. If it is gone, I would suggest getting a cheap gauge you can hook up to the test port to find out what your fuel pressure is. ( In reality you should invest in a fuel pressure gauge mounted in the cab, as fuel pressure is critical for the long life of the VP44).
mishkaya

 

The 99's didn't come with a shrader valve on the vp. You can remove one of the plugs on the top of the filter housing and plumb in a gauge.

 

Didn't know that, thanks for the tip.
mishkaya

 

Thanks everyone, (special thanks to mishkaya for the PM's). I'm getting closer to understanding this thing. tlea7 can have his topic back again! Sorry I stepped on you buddy..........