Nobody know what's wrong?

[M1DNYT3 H4UL3R]

Sorry to be long winded but there is al going on here. 2011 Ram 3500 6.7 deleted.

New parts list that were installed: Turbo was recently rebuilt with all new bearings, seals a ND bushings, nozzle was replaced, new VGT actuator that was installed with an Snap-On scanner.

My truck has been acting really weird lately. After going through the normal VGT issues and having to rebuild it after the filter clip came loose, I put it together and it ran fine for about 5000 miles. Then all of a sudden it was like the exhaust brake just kicked on. It would happen when when I am on the throttle when this happened. This seems to happen mostly when the exhaust brake is on however it will fit it when it is off. The noise it makes when it happens is like a bogged down dieseling noise. It will blow some black smoke. When I let off the throttle and then back on it will go away for a bit. It also tends t happen when it is reaching normal operating temp's. It has also been starting weird. It will on occasion start right up then die in about a second. If you turn the key off and try again, it will start right up and be fine. Now on occasion you may have to try it a couple of times before it will stay running.

No today it did it again, I was on the throttle and it did it's dieseling noise. I had my tuner showing the fuel pressure on a map. Right after it did it the fuel pressure went up and down from about 5000 to 14000 psi about 8 times. Even though the fuel pressure was surging, it was running fine.

So now what do you think? There are no engine codes and nothing in the history that makes sense. However there was the fuel pressure code that had came on but it is not showing now.

 

[Jim W]

Question that need to be answered that we maybe able to offer advice.
What program/delete tuner are you using?
What are the CEL's and or codes you are getting? Code reader is needed for this?
What state are your batteries in IE new or original?
When was the last time your fuel filters have been changed?
Are you getting any messages in your information display?

 

[M1DNYT3 H4UL3R]

The fuel filter has about 8000 miles on it. The batteries are about 4 year's old. They still have a good charge . Here is a little more to the story. When we decided that the actuator was the issue, we pinned open the nozzle and unplugged the actuator. Other than some turbo lag, truck ran fine.

I have the H&S Mini Max tuner. I have the tuner set to street performance. Although it still does it in all modes. I have been watching the fuel pressure on the tuner and it is right where it should be compared to the throttle. Although it did have the one time that the pressure went into a wave for a few seconds.

The only engine code it had thrown recently was a Fuel Rail Pressure Sensor code. It cleared on its own.

Now back to when it is pinned, it runs fine. It never acted up ever. This is why we think it has something to do with the actuator or something that tells it what to do.

 

[Jim W]

Were your batteries load test and were they load test separately? Load testing is the only sure way of knowing if the batteries are good or not. I would also check all of the ground connections and the battery cables to insure things are tight and clean. When the batteries start aging and anytime after 3 years old you can expect funny things to happen electrically to the these trucks. The ECM controls the actuator and if the power to the ECM is not up to the proper voltage things can happen.

I am not saying it is the batteries; but I would have them load tested as this is a very low cost fix if they are bad! I would search this site for more information on battery issues on the Ram/Dodge trucks!

 

[AHutson]

I will second what Jim said, have the batteries tested and check all the connections for any signs of corrosion. From what you have said it's doing it sounds like the ECM isn't getting enough juice. Gets kinda interesting seeing what all low voltage can cause on things.

 

[AH64ID]

I would put new fuel filters in too, unless you have a low pressure fuel gauge confirming they are fine.

 

[M1DNYT3 H4UL3R]

My fuel pressure is fine. I have the high pressure gauge on my tuner. I have cleaned and checked the batteries, checked the wiring and made sure that they are fully plugged in. I have unhooked the batteries and let it set to see if it might reset itself. Still nothing. It will run fine until it reaches normal operating temps. Then with the EB on it will sometimes close the exhaust brake while in the throttle. As soon as I turn off the EB it will quit doing it as much. It will happen when it eb is off but not as often.

Some of my friends think it may be the throttle pedal? What do you think?

 

[M1DNYT3 H4UL3R]

I have also reflashed the computer. Still does it. You can tell it is the EB because the turbo pressure immediately goes to zero when it happens.

 

[AH64ID]

Does your tuner show TPS?

 

[Ozymandias]

If the EB goes on on it's own, I would GUESS the ECM thinks the engine is NOT up to operating temperature.
Did you check all involved sensors for true values with the scanner, means water temperature, ambient temperature, intake temperature, bad maybe more.
And more wild guessing, it should do this only at idle speed.
Do you have the ability to monitor all involved Sensor command and return values while on the run?

 

[M1DNYT3 H4UL3R]

I have a way to do all of that With my Torque ap on my phone. This is my next step to see if I can monitor all of the temps.

On the above question, what do you mean TPS? I'm horrible at acronyms.

 

[EDankievitch]

My 2012 would sporadically turn the E brake on when I would be trying to take off from a light. Never tripped a code. It just wouldn’t go no power and you could hear that the E brake was full on. I lemon lawed that truck. But never did figure out what was wrong with it. It also would fill the crankcase with fuel.. But that is a whole mother thread.

 

[Ozymandias]

TPS should be Throttle Position Sensor.

 

[AHutson]

On some units it reads it as APPS= Accelerator Pedal Position Sensor.

 

[BigPapa]

On some units it reads it as APPS= Accelerator Pedal Position Sensor.

You are correct, technically, on the 2011 it is called an APPS.

 

[M1DNYT3 H4UL3R]

Ok did a swap out on the whole throttle pedal assembly from another similar truck. Still the same issue. I hooked up a blue tooth obd reader and looked at some of the sensors. Everything looks fine accept what is called the turbo pressure control. It was bouncing all over the place from almost 500 to a negative and back. Took the same setup and compared it to a 2010 deleted truck. The same gauge was a whole lot more stable going from 75 to 250. So there is definitely a huge difference in then2 trucks. Now does anyone know the part number for the turbo pressure control? It r know what it is called and where exactly it is?

 

[AHutson]

From what I was able to find on a quick internet search I think that part may be integrated into the turbo. One thing the few I found with this issue tried was cleaning the exhaust side fins of the turbo, things got a little sticky so it couldn't quite function correctly. Might be worth a shot, time is cheaper than a potentially new turbo.
EDIT: Where it's a rebuild I wonder if something might have gotten knocked loose during that process?

 

[M1DNYT3 H4UL3R]

The turbo has been removed at least 5 times. Trust me when I say it is clean. The fins have been set and reset several times. The actuator has been set with a Snap-On scanner. This seems to be an electrical issue. A sensor is acting really strange. What sensors act with the actuator? You can hear it close the fins while on the gas. It will stay closed for a few seconds and then reopen.

 

[sag2]

I have never seen a value for "turbo pressure control". The turbo is controlled by input from the boost pressure and turbo speed sensor.

 

[AHutson]

Hopefully his scanner can bring up those two sensors and he can see which one starts having fluctuating readings when it acts up. It would be a good idea to trace and check the wiring for breaks and/or poor connections once you know which one is not working correctly.