I just bought the truck last week and everything has been fine until thursday after work. Thursday I replaced the fuel filter thinking that it might have got gelled up because it was so cold (11-12 degrees out). It started up and replacing the filter and I had so some heat blowing on it for awhile. Then friday after work same thing happened again it turns over but won't start and nothing on the ground so I replaced the rubber fuel hoses between the filter and hard lines. It started fine again then but now today (saturday) it doing the same thing again, cranking over with no starting. I don't want to have to pump the filter everyday to get it started. Any ideas on why vit's losing prime over now?Ken

 

Check and make sure the Fuel shutoff solonoid is lifting up.

Do this by cranking the truck over , leaving the key in the "on" position , and checking to see if the solonoid has lifted, if you crank , then turn the key off , the solonoid will drop back down.

After that , check the fuel Pre-Filter/heater , they have been known to leak air in.


http://dodgeram.org/tech/dsl/filter/pre-filt_clean.htm

 

Where is the silonoid at and what does it look like? And wheres the heater at? I feel stupid asking these questions but I have no clue. Maybe a picture?

 

I just clicked on that link. I assuming those pictures are on the drivers side. I think I could see the starter in the picture. That sound about right?

 

Just went out to start and nothing again. But after fooling around with the fuel shutdown silonoid it fired right up. It wasn't pulling itself up while cranking. Can these be rebuilt or do I need to buy a new one?

 

IF the solonoid is bad , you need to get a new one, Check the blue wire coming off the driver side battery terminal , it is a fuseable link , it supplys the shutoff relay on the firewall, make sure it is not corroded. Check the relay to make sure it is working right ( is there power coming to the "pull" side of the solonoid even thought it is not lifting)

The solonoid has two different windings , a "hold" and a "pull".

Check both circuits in the solonoid with an ohm meter, they should have fairly low resistance.

You could also pull the solonoid off , and check to make sure it operates smoothly by hand , i have seen the lower end become seized and prevent starting. I have also seen them bent and jammed. The solonoid does not fail very often on these...

finally , yes all this stuff is located on the driver side of the engine:

 

More often that not its burnt points in the relay , its hanging on the leading edge of the firewall just above the fuel filter , had a 10 ga. wire among others , its 10ga because it draws up to 70 amps .
Also it may be that if the rubber boot that is around the solinoid if its riped you can get dirt ect. in there making it sticky , use a test light to see that its getting power , in the run posission .

 

Thanks. I'm starting to think it's something with the wires whether the relay is bad or corroded. It'll work interminatally. Plus i just went to dodge to see how much one would cost and around $500 for a new silinoid. I think i'll make sure it not something else first.

 

We have gotten a few shutoff solenoids from Cummins here lately. One for a Case backhoe that burnt the connector and an Ingersol rand or terex extendable boom forklift, both would not pull the solenoid in. The forklift would hold it, if you pushed it in.....sometimes. I think the solenoids we got from Cummins were only around $200, maybe less than that. I know it was'nt $500. Screw the dealer, go to Cummins. The dealer is good for one thing.....making sure you get a good wallet flush before you leave!

 

I used some dielectric grease on the relay on the cowl, but i have two of them there one is connected and the other is just there hanging. I have some sort of crazy alarm system on my truck and I think it taps into that relay somehow but not sure. Also the I looked for a blue wire coming of the battery but there is just two black wires there but either way I followed them each direction and the connections are fine. Then I just started taking stuff connecters apart and lubing them with dielectric grease just for GP and found alot of green corrosion inside of them. I sure hope that this is the problem (I just let my wife take the truck to the store ).

 

Good luck , I hope you hit the problem, if it still works once in a while , I would say the solenoid is fine. If you ever do need one , down the road , there are alot cheaper places than the dealer to get them.

 

I figured there is cheaper places but I was in a hurry to get it fixed. Next time i'll find a cummins dealer or search online. Just hope when it happens I won't need the truck as bad..... Thanks again. Lets hope i'm not on here tomorrow morning for the same thing

 

I take it wifey made it home from the store ok?

 

You can get a lot of the parts in the 12valve shutoff solenoid system at fostertrucks
http://fostertruck.com/dodge/default.htm

HTH

AlpineRAM

 

Don't replace that solenoid without checking everything else first. Yes, it may be dirty, yes it may have bad connections, yes, it may be a bad relay, but highly doubtfull that it is the solenoid itself. Do a search and everything you need to check has been covered. The Foster truck link is a good source for the new relay and dust boot.

The relays are a higher than usual amperage rating (I think 60 or 70 amps). The usual relays are just 30 amps. You could switch to a 30 amp for testing only. You will need to get the proper rated amperage one if that proves to be your problem. KD