Engine/Transmission (1994 - 1998) New to cummins...another KDP question???

[SSigmon]

New to the cummins but not new to diesels... i did alot of searching on the KDP lately, and here is my situation... . just bought a 1997 2500 and i am the 3rd owner, 2nd owner only had the truck for like 5,000 miles... didnt like the diesel anyway asked him about the KDP and he had no clue what i was saying, dont know if the first owner did it or not. the truck has 218,000 miles on it now, and had 213,000 when the 2nd owner bought it.



My question is this, the truck has numerous minor oil leaks on the front and around the oil pan. when you park the truck overnight it will drip from the front of the engine and leave a tiny mark on the pavement a little less than the diameter of a coke can, put cardboard under it and it is like 10 drops, but it does this every shutdown, could the KDP cause a leak this small or is it normally a major leak???



Side note i am doing the KDP this weekend, but i have a 1500 mile trip before it gets back to the shop for me to do it



Thanks in advance



Scott

 

[Ol'TrailDog]

I'd say nope. The killer on the loose will typically majorily crack the gear cover - if you are very very lucky. Often it snuffs a gear, snaps a camshaft, and cracks the gear cover. The small leaks most likely are leaky seals.



If you are able to peek behind the bracket that is in the way of looking at the curve in the gear cover (upper left side as you face the truck) you may be able to see a cap screw, machine screw, or allen head screw where the dowell had been blocked ("jigged"). I thought that it might be possible to do this with a mirror.



However, I decided to heed the advice of others and tab the dowell instead of jigging it. That way I could check the other cap screws and have peace of mind. I did it almost as soon as I got the 97 with 137k miles on it about 1. 5 months ago. the dowell was fine and the cap screws were locktited. It is highly possible this truck had suffered a KDP earlier because the gear cover did not have an engine id plate on the gear cover, hence may have come of an earlier rig for the repair. Tabbing isn't that difficult if you are the least bit mechanically inclined.



The TST instructions are excellent as are other threads about tabbing. They can be readily found by doing a 2nd Gen engine transmission search. Plus you can fix the leaky gaskets

 

[SSigmon]

Great, that is what i had thought from reading other posts, i am gonna at least take the cover off, replace the gaskets and seals and check/tab the KDP this weekend! i want to like you said see for myself and make sure all the bolts and KDP are nice and tight. dont want anything to hurt the 300-400,000 mile lifespan i keep hearing about



Thanks



Scott

 

[jbrowne]

You have the right idea now! I had exactially the same problems, oil leaking from the front seal. I pulled the front gear cover and sure enough the pin was out about half way. I used a brass punch and tapped it back in. I made my own washer to retain it in place. I looks like the profile of a camshaft lobe, about 3/4" long eggshaped. I used a thin piece of metal so I could use the same bolt. I also used locktite to retain the bolt. The thing that gave me the most trouble was getting the fan off. Solved that by making a wrench out of a piece pf flat stock that was the same shape as the fan bolt pattern, drilled a few holes and bolted it on so I could hold the fan while I removed the large nut that retains it. And if I remember right it is left hand thread.

Have fun.

 

[Joe G.]

If you need instructions on how to do the job email me at -- email address removed --

 

[DBrickel]

I would suggest putting in a new water pump at the same time as long as you have the front apart. Kind of preventive service.



you might have oil drips from the breather tube and or the oil drain plug.

 

[Dirtscience]

Good advise on the water pump. I did my KDP last week and was looking the water pump in the face. I was thinking man I should change that. Long story short, I did not change it and it seized tight on me the following day. What luck!



Mark.

 

[SSigmon]

Awesome thanks for the help guys, i appreciate it alot. got the kit from TST with the front seal and all so hopefully the instructions there will be all i need. heading out tonight for a 1500mile trip, hopefully the KDP wont get me on the way ... . if it will just make this trip it will be fixed



Thanks again



Scott

 

[DJb]

I have the same info that Joe has and it helped me a good deal as my truck was my first Cummins too and that job was my first look into the engine. I also replaced my water pump and the wrench for the fan came from a pawn shop for 5 bucks. It was a stubby open end and was kinda difficult to use but I found a regular long combo wrench at another pawn shop a couple of months later for 10 bucks. The same wrench also fits my 95 Dakota and the wife's 2000 Durango. Ya, I visit pawn shops somewhat often lol. The large wrenches like that seem to go cheap cause there doesn't seem to be a big demand for them..... oh ya, I made my own tab from a piece of 1/32" stainless steel.

 

[Dave M]

I did KDP about last fall and used the TST kit. The directions were very good and especially how to install the seal on the gear case cover. I put the cover in the oven and the seal in the freezer for about 30 min and after 3 tries It went on. The extra black (or is it grey) seal that comes with the kit is a dust cover that goes on after the cover and seal are on. Just throw it away or slid it on the crank till it butts up against the gear case cover (after the gear case cover seal is installed). Be sure to use about 3 rolls of paper towels and 3 cans of brake cleaner to get the crank real clean before putting on the seal or it will leak. It must be put on dry.



I did not take the fan apart but just removed the bolts holding the fan to the block. It was not a problem that way. I also replaced the water pump and radiator hoses while I had them off. Also, get extra loctite if (and you should) you are removing/cleaning with brake cleaner and loctiting the 11 bolts under the case. There is not enough in the TST kit to do all that. I used blue loctite.



I got a new gear case gasket from Cummins and used the recommended gray ATV sealant on it... . and no leaks yet. I replaced the valve cover gaskets also since mine were leaking.



Here are 2 links to my TDR post on 2 KDP fixes with pics that might help. The first is when I did my 97 and the second is the one I did for a friends 93:



http://www.tdr1.com/forums/showthread.php?t=115252&highlight=KDP



http://www.tdr1.com/forums/showthread.php?t=115673&highlight=KDP



There are good pics of the 11 bolts that need loctited on both threads so have a look.



Good luck,



Dave

 

[DieselTweaker]

So far I really like using the TST kit very nice, ive used them twice, thinking of ordering one and just keeping it on had for the next one i do.