Cruzing on the highway when truck lost power and check engine light came on(p0251 and p2509)

[Aiden_400ex]

Hello all, I was cruzing on the highway at about 65mph when the truck lost power for about a second then power came back with an engine light, drove the rest of the way home(about 5 miles) just fine. I thought I lost 3rd gear cause it felt like an aggressive up-shift. Got home and checked the codes on my edge monitor and it was p0251 and p2509. I looked it up the p0251 code and hear that it can be cause by a clogged fuel filter so I'm going to change that later today, I haven't tryed to start it agian cause I'm to scared. If you've seen some of my other posts you know that the truck was my late uncles and it was given to me. So I have no maintenance history except for my grandpa(my uncles dad) that remembers him getting new injectors about 4 years ago. The truck has 320,000 miles. Also there is this wire with a fuse that is coming off of the drivers side battery and the fuse keeps melting and i have no idea why its melting or what it goes to/does. It combines with a bunch of other wires and goes down into the back of the engine bay. Any imput as to why it would throw both those codes at the same time would great. Also if anyone is or knows a great diesel mechanic around corona/riverside California that would be helpful.

 

[RamCares]

If you are still experiencing this and would like to bring your vehicle to a dealership for further diagnostics, use the following link to find dealer locations near you. Please also feel free to send us a PM with the appointment date, time, and location. We will gladly get you connected with a specialist who can assist you further.
https://www.ramtrucks.com/find-dealer.html

Yenori
Ram Cares

 

[Choupique]

So first thing is melting fuses and fuse blocks - big problem. Stop doing that. Something is shorted somewhere in that circuit and you could potentially catch your truck on fire. Disconnect the circuit at a minimum until you figure out what's going on there. It's likely linked to your engine failure.

Figure out what circuit that is first, and let's go from there.

 

[Aiden_400ex]

So first thing is melting fuses and fuse blocks - big problem. Stop doing that. Something is shorted somewhere in that circuit and you could potentially catch your truck on fire. Disconnect the circuit at a minimum until you figure out what's going on there. It's likely linked to your engine failure.

Figure out what circuit that is first, and let's go from there.

Should I just take thw fuse out or disconnect it from the terminal? And like I said idk what it's goes to or does but I have reason to believe that it has somthing to do with the aftermarket alarm I had taken off a few months ago, the aftermarket alarm was going crazy and wouldn't let the truck start and would go off randomly so I had it removed. And before that that fuse looked fine. I was thinking that the guy that took the alarm off might have missed part of it or somthing, It doesn't look OEM cause it has newer looking zip ties on it. I also took the truck to the shop for the alternator wiring that's going to the passenger side battery melting and I got a new alternator. I told them about the melting fuse and they never even checked it out, they said it was most likely from the bad alternator and should be fine now with the new alternator.

 

[Units]

Looks to me like an aftermarket fuse holder, is there any aftermarket lights or such in the truck?

 

[Aiden_400ex]

Looks to me like an aftermarket fuse holder, is there any aftermarket lights or such in the truck?

Part of the aftermarket alarm system that I had taken off were police lights in the front grill and under the rear bumper, but I have then on a switch now.

 

[Aiden_400ex]

UPDATE, I replaced the fuel filter and the one that was in it was as black and night and disgusting. There was some stuff at the bottom of the bowl so I drained it and then I put the new filter in and then cycled the key to fill up the canister. It ran for about a minute and then died so I went to cycle the key agian but I could no longer heat the fuel pump turning on. After about 20 minutes of my throwing tools across my driveway I checked the melting fuse and it was melted even more so I replaced it and kinda forced a new fuse in and guess what... I can heat the fuel pump going and I went and felt the fuse after the fuel pump was on for about 5 second and the fuse was already hot. So then I got my big boy pants on and traced the wire with the fuse and it leads down the firewall and down to the wiring harness that's under the driver's side wheel well. Wich after some research I found that is where the fuel pump gets its power from. So what I'm thinking is that fuse was barley supplying enough power to the fuel pump and cause what happened on the freeway and caused the ecm code to come up aswell. Does that sound like right? Like I'm not just delusional and praying that this melting fuse is causing all these problems loooool.

 

[MikeT]

What is the amperage rating the fuse you are using? Usually fuses don't heat up much at all, if too much current is drawn they just blow, don't bother getting hot. Seems to me your dealing with a situation that the current draw is likely very close to the amperage rating of the fuse, thus causing it to heat up but not quite blow, it eventually wears down and then blows. I would try to find a DC amp meter with a setting about double the rating of your current fuse, then measure the current draw with the key on and fuel pump running, that will give you a good idea of what your situation is as far as current load on that circuit. Here now you can take a BIG chance with the wiring and just add a fuse with a current rating of about 1.5 times the maximum current draw of the circuit or you can take it to a mechanic that has experience working on vehicle electronics and he/she can make sure that the wiring involved can safely withstand the load that is being drawn. The big chance you are taking is if the fuse can handle the load without blowing but the wiring can't you could possibly burn your truck to the ground. I would recommend taking it to a mechanic to make sure the wiring can handle the load. Oh and no I don't think you are delusional, I think you may have found the source of your problem.

Mike

 

[Aiden_400ex]

What is the amperage rating the fuse you are using? Usually fuses don't heat up much at all, if too much current is drawn they just blow, don't bother getting hot. Seems to me your dealing with a situation that the current draw is likely very close to the amperage rating of the fuse, thus causing it to heat up but not quite blow, it eventually wears down and then blows. I would try to find a DC amp meter with a setting about double the rating of your current fuse, then measure the current draw with the key on and fuel pump running, that will give you a good idea of what your situation is as far as current load on that circuit. Here now you can take a BIG chance with the wiring and just add a fuse with a current rating of about 1.5 times the maximum current draw of the circuit or you can take it to a mechanic that has experience working on vehicle electronics and he/she can make sure that the wiring involved can safely withstand the load that is being drawn. The big chance you are taking is if the fuse can handle the load without blowing but the wiring can't you could possibly burn your truck to the ground. I would recommend taking it to a mechanic to make sure the wiring can handle the load. Oh and no I don't think you are delusional, I think you may have found the source of your problem.

Mike

It's a 15, I got a new fuse holder and cut the old one and installed the new one with the same size fuse. Turned the key to the run position and the fuel pump turned right on. I felt the fuse and wire and it wasnt hot at all like the other one wich I burnt my finger on after it was on for about 5 second. I cycles the key a few more time to make sure the canister was full and the truck started right up. I let it run for a few minutes and it idled way better then it did before, stay exactly at 736rpms. I went on a drive and after she was warmed up I got on her pretty good and my FRP was exactly where it needed to be. I got home and checked the fuse and wire agian while the truck was still running and it was warm as in the normal amount of warm for being under the hood. Also before I drove it I cleared the codes and they haven't come back.

 

[FabricGATOR]

Good going, I think you are certainly onto something.

Now here is my concern. A fuse is supposed to be the sacrificial link that blows BEFORE the wires melt. It appears that you now have a nice beefy fuse holder in the second picture but off in the background it appears that you have a hokey splice connector and it is going to something like an 18 gauge or 16 gauge wire.

First, you should use something other than that stereo wire splice, If not soldering and using heat shrink insulation sleeve, than at least use an adequate crimp butt splice connector.

Then, you likely need a heavier wire going down to the pump.

There may be a data tag on the pump that tells you the operating amperage or as suggested using a meter to determine the actual amperage.

Then there is an approved wire gauge for that amperage based on the distance that the pump is away from the battery.

DC voltage need more copper to go distance or you get voltage drop. If you have lower voltage, the lamp, pump, or device will draw more amps because at the end of the day it is watts that gets the job done [volts x amps = watts]
A quick look at this chart and me thinks you need a 14ga wire or more