Thanks for the input guys. Truck and driver are back home all good.
I am part of Riviera Racing’s #3 Trophy Truck team and after winning the Baja 1000 my 05 CTD 4WD Chase truck had a strong odor of diesel and we later discovered it was slightly leaking fuel as we left the finish line in Cabo San Lucas headed to the hotel.
I later determined that I thought it was the #5 high-pressure injection line that was split at the seam behind the fitting screwed to the injector. We brazed the line, but she blew out at a different location on the line.
Called back home and got what I thought was the correct part and the wife sent it out via Alaska Air (counter-to-counter). Waited for the two day process and went to pick it up and they directed me to Mexican Customs. Without going into all the details... I got reemed for $650 for the $25 dollar part or wait 4-days for it to clear customs.
I paid it and then found out the part was slightly different... it turned out that the line we needed was really the #4 high-pressure injection line and not the #5... my fault on this side. . and later was told by Cummins that it's fairly a common mistake when ordering the lines.
We also discovered that capping the injector and the pump is not recommended and that crankshaft damage can occur after a short time. We spoke with Cummins experts via Satellite phone hoping to merely cap each side and limp home, but we were told otherwise.
So without wanting to wait another 3-4 days for the part... I went ahead and carefully bent up the #5 to fit the #4 and put it on. I was hoping to limp it home. And when I left Cabo headed for Orange County all was good. I made it to just north of Mulege in the middle of the desert when my 23-year daughter saw via
Welcome to IonEarth that I wasn't moving. . (ION Earth is a satellite tracking system that can be view online or via the team system w/o the internet). Stuck on the side of the Mexico Hwy 1 at KM 147 appeared to be my camping spot for the next few days until my kid made a few calls and emails to some friends which discovered one buddy to be at his vacation house in Mulege. He was online and got the email and called up my kid who directed him to me north of Mulege. He arrived in a 1992 Dodge Ram Cummins truck driven by an American friend of his who lives in Mulege. We strapped my 05 Ram to his house in Mulege and went to happy hour at Jungle Jim’s.
The next day, Thanksgiving Day, my buddy-Capt. Mike flew me to Loreto in his Piper Commanche where I caught an Alaska Air flight to LAX where my wife had all the injection lines for my truck. Spent the night at LAX Sheraton with the family and headed via commercial flight the next day back to Loreto. When it was my turn to push the button at Mexican Customs with a small backpack full of CTD high-pressure injection lines I was hoping it would blink green and allow me to pass without the thorough inspection and indeed it did.
Riviera Racing’s Loreto team member-Omar drove me to Mulege and I installed it and loaded up the truck for the blast home. Left Mulege at 4pm and arrived home early Saturday morning with the truck purring.
Research seems that the #4 and #5 high-pressure injection lines are a common failure so if you are driving in remote areas take a spare with you and learn from my 6-day adventure.
Thanks for all the help friends!Oo.
Tim Sanchez