95 2500 5.9 issues

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Trucker122106

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Feb 15, 2017
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Ram Year
1995
Engine
5.9 magnum
Hi guys and gals.. I am new here but have heard great things, I just broke down and bought my dream truck and i think i bought a bit of a lemon. I am financing it so I'm stuck with it so i am gonna fix it, just don't know where to start. so here goes.....

Problem 1. low oil pressure showing on gauge and the light comes on at idle
(when you rev it up a little it goes out but gauge still shows a little low) "ie Below 40"

Problem 2. the idle dances around a bit and sometimes is rough.

Problem 3. after a short trip the other day it was losing power like it was backfiring or running out of gas but it was full, when i got it home (barely)
there was fuel driping from the fuel tank and i reached up and it was wet up by the big circle thing on the left of the cap on the top of the tank.

4x4 doesn't work either at the moment but i think that's cuz of a vacuum leak issue. I don't know if all these issues are related or could be caused by the notorious plenum gasket issue but i have the kit on order from hughes and was looking for some educated input from some friendly people such as yourselves... Thank you for your time and I would appreciate any help on these issues, seems how I'm stuck with a monthly payment on it for 2 years regardless i might as well learn something from this debacle...:)


Sorry for being long winded...
 

dapepper9

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5.9L V8
1. sounding like a bad oil pump. Could try draining and refilling with 10w40 and see how it acts
2. often plenum leak or idle air control valve on the back of the throttle body
3. you're going to have to find that fuel leak and fix it before addressing the backfiring. Could be lack of fuel or lack of pressure or any number of other things
4. 4x4 is vacuum leak 95% of the time
 

Gr8bawana

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I think your first mistake was financing a 22 year old truck. Did you buy the truck sight unseen? I'm sure all those problems were already there when you bought it.
I bought my last used truck from a dealership and they looked at me funny when I showed up with coveralls to do some very close inspection before purchasing. I was under the hood and crawling everywhere underneath.
 
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Trucker122106

Trucker122106

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Ram Year
1995
Engine
5.9 magnum
My Baby/Devil

no... didn't buy it sight unseen but it didn't do the hesitation, stutter or the check engine light till the next day, and as far as financing a 22 yr old truck, with my credit after all the assorted bs me and my wife have been working thru, its the only way I can fix my xredit and get a vehicle, but I get your point.

I guess I was dazzled by "expletive" and made an impulse decision, just trying to fix it now, cuz ill be damned if I don't keep my word to the finance company.

that's what got me and the missus in the mess 8 yrs ago.

but if I give em my word you can be sure I'm gonna keep it. regardless if I have to rebuild the whole thing or not,.....sorry went off on a tangent..

*****update******

alternator died today and the codes I got from the cel flashing all say low voltage out of range and that the 02 sensor is bad/ running lean....

interesting side note I can only find the upstream o2, is there supposed to be a downstream on this year?

Again sorry for venting and being long winded but as always I appreciate the help.
 

dudeman2009

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2001 1500 Sport with enough electrical modifications to make my brain hurt
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Magnum 360
Don't worry about venting, sometimes we all have to get stuff off our chest.

As far as your issue with the truck go, Dapepper has covered basically what should be done.

If you're set on getting this truck running, there is some time sensitive things that must be done.

First is the oil problem, if that drops to nothing, you better shut it off immediately. Unless it's unsafe to do, don't keep driving, don't rev it up, just shut it off. If you have to tow it, so be it, a tow is cheaper than a new engine.

Oil pressure issue like you describe could be a few things. This is where my opinion might differ from Dapepper, but its my take on the subject. As a diesel tech I worked on both on road trucks as well as off road and stationary equipment. For on road trucks and automotive, you'd just replace an oil pump if it was suspect. For off road and stationary equipment that isn't always possible, be it the part no longer exists, or availability issues would cause unacceptable downtime, i've rebuilt quite a few oil pumps, there is no difference between an oil pump for a diesel and a gas engine. An oil pump is just a gear that has smooth teeth and rotates in a small enclosure to create flow. Oil pumps really don't wear except in the case of an improper install and oil contamination. Oil pumps don't create pressure, they create flow, pressure is a result of resistance to flow.

If you have low oil pressure, one of two things is the case, the oil pump cannot create enough flow, or something else isn't creating as much restriction. The latter is almost always the case in my experience. That being said, the first thing i'd do is an oil change, since we don't know what kind of oil is in it now, i'd just put 5W-30 or 10W-30 in it. If the problem persists, you're likely looking at an engine with a lot of wear. For $30 plus your time and the effort of dropping the pan to replace the oil pump, it is something to consider if you really thing that could be the cause. If after replacing the pump, or not replacing it, and the problem persists, switching to a high mileage synthetic oil of either 5W-30 or 10W-30 is the best option as they contain additives that will help coat bearing surfaces even when the oil pressure is low.

Rough and unstable idle, Checkout the plenum thread and fix that first. If the problem persists, when its doing this to you, pull a vacuum line for the PCV valve or brake booster, if it runs better, its likely the IAC valve.

Fuel leaks must be fixed and pressure test must be done to rule out fuel supply issues is the first step.

4x4, like Dapepper said, check your vacuum lines.
 
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Trucker122106

Trucker122106

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woooot ......it be fixed.....for now at least

i appreciate all of your help..... i ended up laying in the dirt for about 3 hours chasing vacuum lines, found the leak.. replaced hose. fixed gas tank issue.. replaced cap that has the fittings on it from a donor at the junkyard, no more fuel leak., replaced o2 sensor, alternator, and the tps sensor, no more check engine light. drained the oil and did an oil change 3 times got the sludge to come out of the damn thing its cleaner oil now. the oil pressure at idle came up to just below the middle so i think the sludge was over working the pump, so im gonna replace that and the oil sending unit for the gauge next. The hughes kit is on back order but its paid for just waiting for it to arrive. that will help to keep the tps sensor and the others from fouling out so much.... "i hope"

no more back firing... re did both exhaust gaskets and cleaned the heck outta the surfaces.. no more knocking sound either..."Woot"....

got the 4x4 working.... the fork on the axle was bent so i got a new one...



so far im only into it for about 7 hrs worth of work... and about 560.00 but im having fun any who...

thank you guys a lot and i hope to keep hearing more from you in da future....
 
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