maluco

Hello, I am a very uneducated diesel owner. I have a 99 Dodge Cummins and recently installed the Edge Juice with attitude. That system comes with gauges and from the gauges I learned that my fuel psi was very low, about 6-7 at idle and 2-5 driving. I immediately purchased the BD Diesel auxillary lift pump and installed it. The truck worked great for about 1 day. The next day I had the program at level 5, and goosed it and it took off, only to fall on its face 200 yards later. Since that moment I have not been able to start the truck. I towed the truck home, tried bleeding the fuel system, and have 20 psi, but today I removed an injector and bumped the ignition for the pumps to kick on, but no fuel came out of the injector (#1 injector). I ran trouble codes and received 4, and then tried to restart and received none when I ran it again. It seems that no fuel is getting to the injectors. Before I installed the Edge Juice I never felt a symptom of a failing injector pump. It had power, a consistent idle and no worries. Now I cannot even get it to rumble. Any suggestions...???

J BODY

As a card carrying member of the "2K" club, sounds like you will be investing in a VP44.

maluco

I am somewhat mechanically inclined. Should I venture to replace it myself, or pay Cummins or Dodge to do it?

RCW

Before you panic, go back to the bleed procedure and follow the instructions in the owner's manual on bleeding the system following a fuel filter change. Never open #1 injection line when bumping the key to get the lift pump to cycle or you will just back flow air into the delivery valve of the injection pump and that can cause damage. While you are there, disconnect the Edge system and put it back to stock. Again, keep in mind if you do not disconnect your batteries and let the system drain of all voltage, before you unplug or replug those connectors you are playing Russian Roulette with the on-board processor in the injection pump.

After you bleed the system that feeds the injection pump, then attempt a start cycle. If it does not fire within a few revolutions of the engine, stop. At this juncture it will be necessary to read the trouble codes and look for a code related to the fuel system, and there are quite a number of them. If you have a fuel system related code, then it is 99% probable that your injection pump itself has failed.

blackdiesel

you can get step by step instructions on here to do it your self with simple hand tools. I put my first one on in 2 hours and change with no problem. dealer will ask you 1800 or better and you can get one from jetpilot for 1000 and do it yourself

maluco

Who or where is Jetpilot?

blackdiesel

its doug at performancedieselwarehouse.com who is also a member here. look him up, hes a good guy

maluco

About changing the pump yourself... what are the tricks, if any? Is there anything I should know before doing that? I have debated whether I should take the truck to Cummins in town, Dodge, or a private diesel repair shop. I am not new to mechanics, but I am new to diesels. I have built many gasoline engines, and of course I did install the edge system on this truck, welded an exhaust from the turbo back, etc. What are your reccomendations for the pump exchange? It is apparent to me that I should change the oem lift pump as well, right?? Thank you all for your help!

Mike D

Maluco,

I've changed the injection pump on my 99. It's pretty straight forward, really. The only special tool needed is the gear puller. The hardest part was getting to the pump mounting bolts. If you take your time and don't rush yourself, you should have it done in about 5 hours. Get a buddy to keep you company and run to the fridge for a couple of cold ones. Let us know if you need any specific question answered.

Look on the bright side, the vp44s have had two electronic upgrades since 99 and a couple of internal updates.

Sixpack

Biggest tip is to bar the engine so the keyway in the pump shaft is at 12:00 so the key will not fall into the timing cover on removel or installation. Then be very patient when installing the new pump. Use Loctite on the keyway (pump shaft) to secure the key so if you bump it while installing the pump the key will not fall out. Did I mention, take your time lining up the pump shaft with the pump gear? Take your time it's not a hard job with basic hand tools. As mentioned above, you'll need a gear puller. Good luck,

Phil

maluco

All, thank you for your assistance. I have a new VP 44, and a new lift pump, as well as an auxillary lift pump. Everything is working good. Since I had the air ram intake off, I swapped the OEM for an ATS model. Was that a good choice? I paid just a little over $300. The sales person claims it is a better product than the Banks version????? Now I have 28 psi at idle, and about 19-23 at drive. How does that sound?