Engine/Transmission (1998.5 - 2002) Engine work

[RClark]

Last month while towing my 13,000 lb 5th wheel up and thru Eisenhower tunnels, Westbound on I70 I noticed that I had to run the engine over 1600 rpm, any lower and it would surge and blow black smoke. Also i would sometimes get a turbo surge/bark. At lower altitude it was OK but below 1400 rpm it surges unless I down shift to keep the RPM up.
Do I need injector work(9500 on them), valve adjustment(Done when injectors changed to stage 1), or other repairs. at 147500k maybe I need a new truck.

 

[petersonj]

Living in Leadville, Colorado for over ten years, I am familiar with the Eisenhower Tunnels (entrance elevation at over 11,000 feet). Given the information provided, my guess is that your engine is simply over-fueling in the low rpm range because you have larger injectors and the turbo is out of its efficiency range. It would be understandable that when you are approaching this elevation pulling a heavy load at low rpm up a 7% grade that there is far more fuel available to burn than there is oxygen available to burn it. Consequently, black smoke and surging would likely follow. The same symptoms showing up at lower elevations (Denver for example, still at over 5,000 feet) but at a lower rpm such as 1400 would be expected.

I really don't think there is anything wrong with your engine, it is just that you are driving it at elevations that most trucks will never see. A solution when driving in those conditions could be to set your power enhancement to a lower performance level or just back off the throttle.

Something to keep in mind - there are very few major highways in the United States that one can still be pulling a 7% grade at elevations from 8,000 feet to 11,000 feet. Interstate 70 through Colorado is one of them.

John

 

[JR]

As mentioned waayy too low RPM with that much weight pulling a steep grade. 1600 rpm is at the very bottom of the engines torque curve. Don't be afraid to drop a gear, these engines will run at 2500+_RPM all day long. Not to mention you'll be up in the power band and able to maintain speed much better.

 

[KATOOM]

Towing at lower RPM's is jarring on the drivetrain too. Everything is much smoother and more efficient when working under higher RPM's.

 

[Vaughn MacKenzie]

Wow definitely drop it out of OD, pulling 13k over Eisenhower in OD is asking for a melted piston!

 

[RClark]

I wa out of OD and sometimes in 2d. traffic was a a crawl getting there.