Turbo Vane Actuator - My Turn!

[JLandry]

Well, my 2014 Ram 3500 dually made it 10 years and 70,778 miles before the turbo vane actuator finally failed.

The last couple of times I drove the truck, chimes sounded, the MIL came on, boost went low, and the exhaust brake stopped working. DTC's pulled were the classic P003A, P00AF and U010C.

I just installed a City Diesel turbo vane actuator purchased from Geno's and everything is back to normal. I went ahead and replaced the engine coolant at the some time since it was due. To refill the cooling system, I used a vacuum evac tool. It made refilling the cooling system simple and quick with no left over air pockets to deal with.

John L.

 

[Diesel85]

Nice job @JLandry! Glad you are back up and running again!

 

[Topzide]

@JLandry, Did any of the bolts give you issues? How's the truck feel with the "City" unit? I noticed that it did give you that hard EB engagement, but more of a ramp up. I'm glad that "City" has made a plug and play unit for those of us who choose to work on our trucks! Glad you got it done. Now get back to enjoying the time behind the wheel!

 

[JLandry]

Did any of the bolts give you issues?

Thankfully no, but I had anticipated that possibility so was prepared.

I spread the job out over three days because it's hot and humid here (was over 100F) and I was working in the sun. The first day I removed the tire and wheel well liner, sprayed PB Blaster on the mounting bolts, and started the coolant draining from the lower radiator hose into a 5 gallon bucket. I let it drain overnight.

The next day I swapped out the turbo vane actuator. To loosen the bolts, I first tightened each one just a smidge, then removed them. That worked fine. If the head of that lower left bolt had stripped, I would've tried to slice it in half using a cutoff wheel in a rotary tool, then I would’ve tried vise grips to remove what was left. I wasn’t worried about doing damage to the old turbo vane actuator housing, because as you undoubtedly know, there’s no core charge with the City Diesel units.

The last day I refilled the coolant system, reinstalled the wheel well liner and tire, then went for a 60 mile test drive.

How's the truck feel with the "City" unit?

I can’t tell much difference, except that the exhaust brake is working perfectly. I drive do pretty conservatively, so someone who’s a more aggressive might notice a change in performance. I've been accused of driving my truck like an old man, but I AM an old man now so that’s okay.

My next project is to tackle replacing the front brake pads and rotors. I have the parts but I'm going to wait for cooler weather.

John L.

 

[TRAMPLINEMAN]

I can’t tell much difference, except that the exhaust brake is working perfectly.
John L.

Did you check the ease of swing in the arm when you had the actuator off?
I had to cut the lower left bolt on mine as it would not come out. Like you said, I also did not care about damaging the case.

 

[JLandry]

Did you check the ease of swing in the arm when you had the actuator off?

Absolutely! It checked out fine. I could move the lever back and forth with the side of my finger. No sticking noted at the extremes of travel against the stops.

John L.

 

[bcbender]

Satisfaction in a job done well, to your liking, w/o paying a kings ransom for it.