Cam & Lifter update HELP!

[Mike Martini]

Hey All,
I am in need of some help. I have a 2014 Ram 1500 with 240,000 mostly highway miles. about 3 months ago I started with the first Check engine light and a Miss on #8 especially at Highway speeds lower RPMs before it would downshift going up a grade. I went through new Plugs coils swapped Fuel Injectors. etc with no luck. I finally decided I would do the Cam/Lifter swap. In doing so I found some wear but no seized Lifters or major wear on the cam (cylinders and Pistons looked great other than Carbon build up). When O was in there I had the Heads milled even though they looked good. They checked the valves at the same time (all good) so I left this all as is. After re assembly I had a Check engine light saying a miss on #1 and #8 still at low RPMs but it was better and mainly in lower gears. Also the Eco Mode was not working at this time. I probably put 50 miles on it and Yesterday I started it up and the Engine light was out and the Eco mode was working again. Running as good as it has since I have owned. I drove running errands with several stops and it seemed good. Later that night I went to go out and started it and it was back to the check engine light and a slight Miss the same as after rebuild.

I am looking for ideas to check. One possibility I probably should have addressed when it was apart is I was supporting my weight when reaching to the back side of the Motor and think I may have broke the electric plug area of the VVT solenoid. I looked it over and it seemed to be intact so I left it go. Could this be the cause?

Any other Ideas to look into would be welcomed.

Thanks in Advance

Mike Martini

 

[Mike Martini]

Oh in addition the codes I am getting are
P0300 - Random Multiple cylinder Misfire.
P1004 Short Runner Valve control Performance.

 

[Hemi1569]

How much did they take off the heads? Just curious as to pushrod selection.

 

[Mike Martini]

I think I was told .005" I thought they looked fine but don't know enough to be sure so I had them taken to a shop to get several exhaust studs out and figured I would have them milled to be sure.

 

[alex6666]

given the amount of time and money you've invested to date .....maybe it's time to find a pro (not a dealership) at accurately diagnosing the problem? I'd check around shops for a referral ....when you hear the same name a couple times that's probably your go to guy. Might be cheaper than the parts cannon theory. No offence intended and good luck.

 

[MrBonez]

given the amount of time and money you've invested to date .....maybe it's time to find a pro (not a dealership) at accurately diagnosing the problem? I'd check around shops for a referral ....when you hear the same name a couple times that's probably your go to guy. Might be cheaper than the parts cannon theory. No offence intended and good luck.

I agree.

Throwing parts at one is a hit or miss strategy and you've already thrown some and looks like nothing "Stuck", so it's time to use a different approach.

Be sure to recheck the VVT solenoid since electronic parts are sensitive, you need to make double-sure it's OK before doing other things to it.

From the sound of things it's fine mechanically but there are a couple of things to consider.
If it has a catalytic converter, make sure it's still OK because those can begin to clog and cause problems. With the amount of miles it's got, can't hurt to at least be sure it's not trying to blow exhaust through what amounts to a soda straw.
Since the miss seems defined to a couple of cylinders in particular AND the fact eco mode had quit, then started up again I'd have to say some investigation of the electricals may be in order.

From my own experience as a former service tech in the field on industrial/heavy equipment:

EDIT:
*Basic things to check are for bad grounds and if it's a case of no power to a component, check it's fuses first.
Be sure to check both in a case of no power to something, otherwise grounds should be the inital focus and go from there.*

A bad/loose/weak ground can cause all manner of problems and even drive someone nuts trying to figure out WTF is going on because it can cause some weird behaviour. It will test fine sometimes and act up at other times, even to the point it can throw false or even impossible codes if a faulty ground is in play.

That's a basic thing to look for before digging deep into potential wiring & electrical component problems.

Find the locations of terminal ends for grounding points in the harness of the related component(s) area, check and clean them along with making sure they aren't corroded and they are secured properly where they need to be.

Also make sure the wiring itself isn't affected/corroded with their ends being loose to the lug on the end of it (Like a wire weakly crimped to a connector end), that can cause problems too.
If you think it's got a problem, clean it and the spot where it goes to and be done with it, also be sure to apply something to it once done to shield it from further moisture/corrosive effects, dielectric grease works well in these cases and will remain long after you apply it.

Also just do a basic inspection of things like where you'd have some wires connected in a block for example, whether power or ground and if any of it looks crusty/rusty, clean it up and just make it right.

Since you live in salt country, corrosion at these points might be at least part of what you're running into here and the pickup is old enough for stuff like it to happen anyway.

Hope this helps.

 

[4d6n2]

Hey All,
I am in need of some help. I have a 2014 Ram 1500 with 240,000 mostly highway miles. about 3 months ago I started with the first Check engine light and a Miss on #8 especially at Highway speeds lower RPMs before it would downshift going up a grade. I went through new Plugs coils swapped Fuel Injectors. etc with no luck. I finally decided I would do the Cam/Lifter swap. In doing so I found some wear but no seized Lifters or major wear on the cam (cylinders and Pistons looked great other than Carbon build up). When O was in there I had the Heads milled even though they looked good. They checked the valves at the same time (all good) so I left this all as is. After re assembly I had a Check engine light saying a miss on #1 and #8 still at low RPMs but it was better and mainly in lower gears. Also the Eco Mode was not working at this time. I probably put 50 miles on it and Yesterday I started it up and the Engine light was out and the Eco mode was working again. Running as good as it has since I have owned. I drove running errands with several stops and it seemed good. Later that night I went to go out and started it and it was back to the check engine light and a slight Miss the same as after rebuild.

I am looking for ideas to check. One possibility I probably should have addressed when it was apart is I was supporting my weight when reaching to the back side of the Motor and think I may have broke the electric plug area of the VVT solenoid. I looked it over and it seemed to be intact so I left it go. Could this be the cause?

Any other Ideas to look into would be welcomed.

Thanks in Advance

Mike Martini

I used my vvt solenoid as a plug when I did the mds delete. Im assuming you selected to keep the mds system and mds cam?

 

[Mike Martini]

¥es I did keep the MDS system. I replaced the vvt Solenoid and it cleared the check engine light. It did come back on for a short runner valve again but the miss error was gone. I cracked the plug on the short runner and am pretty sure that is the source of that issue. Thanks everyone who replied.