I have a '03 Dodge Ram 2500, my mechanic has had this truck for 3 weeks this time around. It started with not starting when the engine was warm, the lift pump was replaced, this helped some, problem still occurred, they replace the Cummins computer. This did nothing but drain my wallet of $2800. The have had the truck three weeks and have put a patch on another pump, checked the instillation of the lift pump. It passes all the test. He claims to have checked all he knows to and thinks it might be electrical. Please any suggestions and advice. I'm in New Orleans at he is not a full time diesel mechanic, that is hard to find these days, the dealer does not have a diesel mechanic and started out to fix the truck and made it worse. PLEASE HELP!!

 

my 03 would have hard time to start then no start.
replaced lift pump and was good for one day.
after reading no start probs with 03 dodge on this site i ended up replacing my injectors. good since september.
good luck

 

Do these things have a lift pump and a injector pump? I thought they had both and the injector was called the cp3? thats were I would go cause that sounds like the tell tell vp44 problem of hard starts when hot.

 

Cowboy? Cp3 is the injection pump. Like yours is the VP44.
BBrusseau: If your truck has over 100k, then it is most likly injectors.

 

They do have a lift pump on a common rail engine to feed the cp-3 . The cp-3 pump makes the high pressure to feed the fuel rail. The injectors are electronic and controlled by the computer for fuel delivery and timing. On a 24 valve engine with the vp-44 style injection pump it is the high pressure pump and it also advances the timing as instructed by the computer but the injectors are completely mechanical .

 

The truck does have 110K miles on it and runs great!! The do think it is electrical because it starts cold and hot. just not warm.

 

Will it crank when warm, just not fire off? Could be cascade overflow valve or -rail relief valve.....gonna need a computer to look at several things to be able to determine more. Fill out your sig so we know what mods ( if any ) you have on the truck. Click User CP near the top left of the screen, and then click edit user signature.

 

If you read up on the 03's it is very common ...the injectors, I went thru this also
do a search on "long crank" on 30-07s

 

Thanks, it does crank just not fire off.

 

mine did the same, would start great cold but after you drove it a few minutes it might start and might not, if it did not want to the only way to start it was either..which is not good for it, after it started it ran great. I tried the cascade valve lasted 1 week. When I first took it in, they said it was the Lift pump, lasted 3 days, then it was the High pressure relief valve, lasted 1 week, finnally they replaced all the injecters, started great after that, luckly It was still under warranty.

 

If that did not fix the problem, then you should not be liable for the cost. It's not ur fault that they're just throwin parts at it and not fixing the problem.
Sounds to me like the general consensus has answered ur question, but personally, I would find a qualified mecahnic to diagnose the problem CORRECTLY so you don't have to just keep throwin money at it.

 

Mine injecters was bypassing 400 ml (13oz) back into the fuel tank in 30 minutes

 

I agree with hink, i'd be darned if i paid for that bill, heck you could have pulled out the shotgun and started blasting expensive parts at it. I also agree qualified mech. No cummins dealers near you? Diesel shops with a scan tool? If its electrical he don't have a schematic? Id grab my truck leave them the $2800 puter and run if thats the best they can do.

 

If you are out of warranty, take it to a Cummins shop and ask them to run some tests. Yes, the injectors could be an issue, but that is almost as an expensive guess as the ecm was! It could be numerous things. Pay for some diagnosis, you'll be ahead in the long run. There MAY be a dealership in your area that is competent in diesel repairs, but they seem to be few and far between. Ask for some referals on here. Somebody nearby has probably dealt with a dealer near you before.

 

Before you go much farther, carefully inspect the electrical loom from the A/C compressor clear around the back of the head where the wire tends to rub the block. When that starts happening, and it will happen to everyone that has not installed a loom isolator, you ground out the A/C sensor and it pulls the voltage low enough that the injection system will fail on warm starts.

Once that is done, have it scanned and then reflashed by a dealer. When you replace the computer it has to be flashed initially by a dealer (or someone with the OEM software). The dealers still have the best scanners to identify the problems so you do not end up tossing parts are an unidentified problem. Unfortunately, they do not all know how to use them.

The suggestion to try a Cummins Service Center is by far the best if the problem is not as simple as the wiring harness or the need for a reflash.

The Cummins Service Center can bypass the Dodge ECM and use their test system and isolate any injection system trouble in short order. Unfortunately, if the loom is damaged or the OEM computer is fuzzy, the Cummins tests will not find the exact cause.