Auto Start/Stop and potential alternator issue?

[Wild one]

Ok... the saga continues...

New PCM in...still has a misfire in cylinders 2 and 7. I was told they are eating the cost of the PCM since it didn't work. Compression is still fine, everything tests ok otherwise.

Next test is going to be the fuel injectors. Swap injectors on cylinders 2 and 7 with others, reset codes and see if the misfire moves. (At least they said the Star techs are helping them now as to the diagnostic steps.)

If fuel injectors are working properly and misfires don't move, the next step is to open the engine and look for internal issues (cylinders, springs, lifters, camshaft).

Regarding taking the truck someplace else, I was advised that doing so would require them staying over again and starting with Star techs from scratch. Is that true? This is all covered under warranty, so nothing out of pocket for me. But I just want the truck fixed!

Questions for the group...
1. Could the fuel rails themselves be clogged or damaged?
2. What is the path the fuel goes when entering the rails? I thought i read somewhere that it enters passenger side at 8, goes up the rail to 2, then crosses over to the driver's side at 1, then down that rail to 7. Is that true? If so, could it be a coincidence that the two problem cylinders are at the end of the fuel paths on the rails? I'm spitballing here (if my information is accurate).
3. Someone told me that the fuel rails are metallic and coated internally and if a piece of that coating broke off, it could be causing a problem like a blockage. Is that even possible?

Thanks again.

Joe

If you were working on it yourself,i'd say pull the injectors and do a home clean on them,and blow out the fuel rails,but if it's being done under warrenty,let them carry on,eventually you might end up with a new engine

Injector cleaning

Supposed to go cold and snow for the next 10 days,so i figured it was a good time to pull the injectors and give them a cleaning.Got them soaking in injector cleaner,where i'll probably leave them for a couple days before using some carb and choke cleaner to wash them out using my old homemade...

www.ramforum.com

 

[jshabouk]

Ok, new update. They have the solution!

Contaminated fuel system.

They found 2 bad fuel injectors (codes moved when they swapped injector spots). They also found water in the tank and other contaminants in there, and in a sample they took from the tank. Given I only buy name brand gas, who knows how the hell that stuff got in there. I was told that more often than not, dirt and water get into underground gas tanks and get passed into our fuel systems without us even knowing. However, it was like a perfect storm that caused this level of contamination.

Long story short, extended warranty won't cover it, but my auto insurance will. They are working with the insurance company to get the fuel system drained/cleaned, and all fuel injectors replaced along with anything else that touches the gas as needed. Fingers crossed that this will come to an end soon.

Thanks to all.

 

[Dean2]

Glad they finally figured it out.

I would check the Google ratings for the stations you use all the time, as well as Facebook. Very often, if you are having contamination, others are too. If you can find the culprit, one they can clean their tanks, 2 you don't go there anymore and 3, your insurance company may get a recovery, or you can claim against them and stay claim free.

All the best and thanks for updating the thread.

 

[RamDiver]

Ok, new update. They have the solution!

Contaminated fuel system.

They found 2 bad fuel injectors (codes moved when they swapped injector spots). They also found water in the tank and other contaminants in there, and in a sample they took from the tank. Given I only buy name brand gas, who knows how the hell that stuff got in there. I was told that more often than not, dirt and water get into underground gas tanks and get passed into our fuel systems without us even knowing. However, it was like a perfect storm that caused this level of contamination.

Long story short, extended warranty won't cover it, but my auto insurance will. They are working with the insurance company to get the fuel system drained/cleaned, and all fuel injectors replaced along with anything else that touches the gas as needed. Fingers crossed that this will come to an end soon.

Thanks to all.

Thanks for the update.

As previously mentioned, I would seriously take any information from this stealership with an enormous grain of salt.

I'm not sure if only 2 injectors would be compromised with bad fuel, but with the information provided on this group thus far, I would trust nothing from them.

Regardless, you're closer to getting your truck back, and however the facts are twisted, I hope you get out of this experience with the least financial upset, whoever pays for whatever.

.

 

[jshabouk]

@Dean2 - I am doing just that. Insurance said they may never figure out what happened, but they did confirm and reassure me that this claim will not go against me as it is a different type of claim (besides being a no fault claim in Massachusetts).

@RamDiver - Thanks for your update also. The good thing is I have expiring disappearing deductible credits that I can use so my out of pocket will be $200. If they can do all the work and all I pay is $200, I think that is a good thing.

Thanks.

 

[Dean2]

One other thought, where did you fill up just before you started having issues. Water in the gas, as well as heavy contamination, shows up almost immediately. I would strongly suspect the last station that I filled at just before it started throwing problems.

 

[Yardbird]

One other thought, where did you fill up just before you started having issues. Water in the gas, as well as heavy contamination, shows up almost immediately. I would strongly suspect the last station that I filled at just before it started throwing problems.

Absolutely. Gas is appx 6.2 US lbs. per gallon, while water is appx 8.3 US lbs. per gallon.

I worked in the fuel business, and water in gas or diesel will show up very quickly.

I've had to pump out thousands of gallons of Diesel from two different companies after the distributor let fuel out of the tank farm before all water had settled after receiving a big order from the pipeline.

Two big for the area trucking companies had trucks stranded all over three states.

 

[RamDiver]

One other thought, where did you fill up just before you started having issues. Water in the gas, as well as heavy contamination, shows up almost immediately. I would strongly suspect the last station that I filled at just before it started throwing problems.

If we were to believe the contaminated gas theory, this makes perfect sense.


A buddy of mine had a surprise this spring while having an oil change/warranty check at a stealership, on his 2020 Ferd.

They determined that he had bought bad gas, and it was necessary to change all the plugs.
But not clean the injectors or the fuel tank, as I understand it.

And, the funny thing is, he was obtaining gas at an Ottawa Costco station.
Imagine a busy place like that, and supposedly a Top Tier station.

I have yet to ask him if his truck was running poorly or if they showed him the fouled plugs.
He's one of those folks who tends to take the word of a stealership as the Gospel.

.

 

[jshabouk]

FINAL RESOLUTION

Got the truck back, and after flushing the gas tank, fuel lines, fuel rails, and replacing all 8 fuel injectors, the truck is running like new again. Drove it to take my son to college, got back up to 25 MPG on the trip.

Thanks to all for your guidance/assistance on this.