Last week my 1999 cummins just died coming out of the boat ramp. Could not get it to fire again. It was slightly overdue for a fuel filter and after I got it towed home I noticed the water in the fuel sensor was unplugged. I changed the filter, reprimed the cannister, checked for pressure at the cannister by cracking the banjo connector, fuel sprayed everywhere. The truck still would not start so I bled the injector lines 1, 3, and 5. Only got drips coming from the lines. The truck still would not start. There is no Dodge service center in Ketchikan and I need advice.

 

how much fuel is in the truck? often the guage does not work so well in these trucks, that combined with the ramp angle.....well maybe. so now that you have it home look over all the fuel lines from the vp back to see if you can spot any sign of leakage. once you have that done......pull the filter and bump the pump (on an empty fuel canister) and verify that you have a decent volume of fuel. ok now put the lid on and loosen the banjo at the vp.....bump the starter and the lp will run. let it push out any air it might have and snug up the banjo while it is pumping. bump the starter a time or two with the fuel lines all ready to run. now try to start the truck....it might take a few tries to get lit but it should light. be very sure the batts are up and to let the starter cool if it too hot.

I strongly suggest a fp guage as it helps immensely to solve these problem.

 

sounds like you may have lost an injection pump. thats the way mine died, driving down the road just like you turned the key off.....sorry to hear it..

 

I get a nice steady flow from the VP intake banjo connection. I still get only drip or nothing at the other end of the fuel lines. Should I get more then a drip?

 

Pressure AT the injector should be in the thousands of PSI range.
Definately more than a drip.

 

That's what I thought. Thanks for the help. The truck only has 60,000 miles on it, so it is still supposely under warranty. Now I need to convince Dodge to allow a non-authorized dealer to work on it. The downfall of living on a island and in a small community. However the fishing, shrimping and crabbing is great.

 

Yeah, I think our VP trucks are somewhere in the 17K to 18K range. Don't stick your fingers near them!

I'll have to agree with the previous consensus though, time for a new VP. You can take it to any Cummins dealer. It is the '03+ trucks that Cummins can't touch, I think. Thanks DC!!!

 

before you condemn the pump....take the banjo off the vp44, there is a rubber hose (at least on mine, an 01') between the vp and fuel filter, pull it off. now slide a piece of clear tubing onto the line coming from the fuel filter, it will need to be tight as to not allow air to get in. the clear line should be at least 3-5 feet long so you can put 3-4 loops in it and then rout it to a container to catch the excess fuel, now cycle the lift pump......is the fuel that is pumping air free????? if it is......try one more time to start it and then start drinkin'.......if there are tiny bubbles in the fuel you have an air leak somewhere that is causing the timing to retard far enough that the truck won't start.......worth a try.

 

realizing that clear tubing might not be too easy to find in Ketch, you could instead....pull the banjo fitting and put the end in a clear container with a little diesel in it and see if it blows any bubbles....the tubing is much easier....and cleaner.