hello all ,
ive looked through a few post and cant find similar problem with a resolution. Any help much appreciated. Issue has been going on for a few months. Driving along tach and volt meter cut out. Has been getting worse Rpm gauge jumps around sometimes. Only suspect i have is the ESS . I also noticed cruise quit. there has a been a past battery leak of some sort but light . Last bit of info now, wait to start does not come on or check engine when key is 1st turned to start. I was getting ready to check ess but now that wait to start and check engine intermittent also i suspect short to PCM?

 

I had almost the same issues - ESS cured the tach/volt meter- if the PCM has no ESS signal the PCM shuts off, hence that's why voltage drops.

Still no wait to start or evidence of the grid heaters working for me tho, but it could be temp related since it's warmed up quite a bit.

 

thx justme , ill change out the ess 1st chance i get and post reply

 

I ran truck a few hundred miles today seems tach and every other gauge work for about an hour then cut out 3x today. ESS wouldnt overheat would it? anyone ?

 

I heard of several cases of the ESS acting up after the engine is warm, so yes it is likely the problem.
When it's acting up and the PCM thinks the engine isn't running your cruise and A/C won't work either.
Might want to check before you blame the ESS and replace it.
Last time I replaced an ESS it was $69 from Napa.

 

Go to Cummins if you have one close for the ESS- around $50. Found out the day after I picked up the one from my dodge dealer for $119!!!

Ess is a Hall Effect sensor- they can go weird from lots of things, heat being one of them.
Might want to loosen it, clean the face, then regap it before replacing. Could test the wires too, but if you are finding heat related failures, odds are you will not be able to replicate for a test.

 

have a 92 B250 Cumming doing the same thing were is the sensor located??
tried NAPA they need more information do not have a ESS named sensor!!
please help kicking my hinny thanks!!!

 

I paid about $60 at Cummins a couple years ago - Dodge wanted more than 2X that! Easiest bang for the buck repair I ever made on my truck - it took all of about 5 min to change and the tach, AC, Trans shift & alt voltmeter all worked perfectly again after.

 

is it called engine speed sensor, local NAPA did not have one listed, can someone tell what it is called exactly thanks!!

 

Napa incorrectly calls it a crank position sensor, CPS

 

been really busy , i did get a trouble code 12 , battery disconnect or pcm disconnect from battery. After talking to an autoparts friend , he had me convinced there was a short. So i put a massive mirror in the drivers seat so i could see the tach and start manually looking for bad connections.
I know not scientific , but when i moved the pcm harness just outside the plugin the tach activated again, i did this 3x in a row. It seemed like i was controlling the disconnection.
So, I tried opening the pins with a sewing needle on the pcm after disconnecting the batteries, and the tach seemed to cut out less 1 time per day but still tach cut out.
I need to take the time and inspected the plug a little closer or open pin connectors a tad more. For i now i put 2 zip ties around the plug and the pcm . Today is the only day that it didnt cut out. It still may be the ESS and the bad connect but for today it is working . To many projects so before i invest in any parts i will further test the pcm to harness connection. Thanks for the help all it helps alot to narrow the troubleshooting and hopefully others will benefit from this . justme there is a cummins dealer an hour away so if pcm connect doesnt hold thanks for tip.