Engine/Transmission (1998.5 - 2002) what does this light mean?

[_luke]

So, I just bought my first diesel. Barely had it 24 hours & this light comes on.



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Can anyone help me out?





thanks,

_luke

 

[Fireman Dave]

I think it's the check engine light. Could be anything from no oil pressure to overheating or something else. How are the gauges reading for coolant temp and oil pressure? I assume they are ok?

 

[_luke]

yeah, all gauges are fine... truck seems to run normal.



It gave a little hiccup when the light went on, kinda like the turbo cut out for a second.



I turned it around & drove right back home.

 

[_luke]

is it safe to drive it today & get it checked on monday?



any checks I can do to see how serious it might be?

 

[snowracer69]

Tell us more about your pickup, specifically the year (fill out your signature too).



If it's a 2000 or newer, you can check the codes yourself. Go out, put the key in the ignition and then do the following w/ the ignition:



on, off, on, off, on. After the third time you turn it on, in the odometer window something will appear, normally codes. I'll take a wild guess and say that the first one will be P1693 which is just a standard error saying the computers had a problem communicating. Then, write down the next ones that show up and you can do a search for them on here, or find a site that has the codes on it (sorry, I don't have any sites bookmarked w/ the code list.



That will at least give you a place to start looking for problems. I've set lots of codes in the last two years of BOMBing, and most were my own fault.



Josh

 

[_luke]

ok, I got the following codes...



P PCU

P 0500

P 0460

P 1693



sorry I'm such a newbie on this. I've only had this truck for a day.



I'll look up the codes & see what I can find.





edit:

hmm... . my sig isn't showing up.



truck is a 01 2500, 5 speed, 4x4, QC shortbox, 121K miles.

 

[Fireman Dave]

Luke,



If the gauges are ok and it's not showing any signs of something wrong (except for the idiot light), I'd drive it. Could be just a sending unit or a computer thing. That's just my opinion - it's your truck. I know it sucks to have this happen the day after you got it. All you want to do is drive it! If you aren't comfortable, leave it alone until you know what's up. If it were mine, I wouldn't be afraid to drive it based on what you've said.



Dave

 

[tgbol]

The 1693 means that the truck computer has sensed a coe set by the PCM//ecm

460 is "No change in fuel level unit over miles"

500 is no VSS signal. Which is vehicle speed sensor. Does you Speedo work?

The fuel level and vss could be related.

 

[_luke]

so after some quick research, I think it's related to the fact I've been driving on snow/mud/ice. Tires spinning a fair amount & the computer gets confused?



Does that make sense?





edit: speedo & fuel gauge seem to be working fine.

 

[EricBu12]

Disconnect your batteries for 1 hour and reconnect. this will clear all but the basic 1693 code and the light should go out. then drive normally and see if it does it again

 

[EricBu12]

Also, does the truck have gauges? at 22K the Lift pump "Should" be ok but you will want to find out what PSI your pump is doing.

Normal is anything over 12-15 idle 9-11 cruise, and no less than 5 or 6 WOT.



Do a search on lift pump problems and get ready for a weekend of reading



On the hiccup you mentioned, that might have been a problem with the VP44 ..... maybe it is not getting enough fuel... .

 

[ramman-mn]

Originally posted by _luke

So, I just bought my first diesel. Barely had it 24 hours & this light comes on.



#ad




Can anyone help me out?





thanks,

_luke

 

[_luke]

Originally posted by EricBu12

Also, does the truck have gauges? at 22K the Lift pump "Should" be ok but you will want to find out what PSI your pump is doing.

Normal is anything over 12-15 idle 9-11 cruise, and no less than 5 or 6 WOT.



Do a search on lift pump problems and get ready for a weekend of reading



On the hiccup you mentioned, that might have been a problem with the VP44 ..... maybe it is not getting enough fuel... .

yeah, I read up on the lift pump issue before I even bought the truck. The truck is pretty much stock, so no fuel pressure gauge. I had planned on going the FASS route at some point, but now, I'm thinking I should do it ASAP.



would the lift pump trigger those particular codes?

 

[Fireman Dave]

The lift pump is usually a silent killer. If not for my fuel pressure gauge, I'd probably still be driving on a dead lift pump (and a soon to be dead VP-44). No matter what the dealers may say, the truck WILL run on 0 pressure with no signs of a problem.

 

[Slightly Modified]

I got the 1693 code today. I finally got around to installing my fuel pressure guage yesterday and I was getting only 5psi at idle and 0psi at any throttle. So I put on a new lift pump this afternoon. Truck still ran fine but I would have made short work of the new VP-44 with the Comp if I hadn't seen how low my fuel pressure was. Now it is a solid 15psi at idle and 10psi at WOT. Check that fuel pressure immediately. After I started the truck a few times it cleared itself and the check engine light went off.