6.4L Powerstroke under the knife

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Originally Posted by mattd
Originally Posted by Donald
Originally Posted by jeepman3071
Originally Posted by P10crew
Oh that is a horrible site. The last time my junk line truck went under the knife there were 7 trucks in that exact same stance ..... cab 5 ft above the frame. I just shook my head. The engineers had no plan in mind for working on the motors. 2 of these 7 were very new king ranch dually's.....I bet those owners were proud of their 70,000 purchase.



This is a prime example of what happens when you have an engine rushed into production in order to meet strict emissions requirements. The 6.4L is a throw away engine, and probably the worst PowerStroke ever made.


The newer 6.7 PSD can have the engine dropped I believe rather than cab pulled. A big engine with lots of parts stuffed in a normal size engine bay. The 6.7 has two independent cooling systems for people to marvel over..


The 6.7 cannot be dropped out the bottom. No PSD can.

Right - the cabs are pulled for major repairs on the 2011 and up Powerstrokes. There is a procedure that is well documented on how/when to do it. When I had mine and brought it in for some standard repairs, I saw several in the shop with the cabs in the air.
 
Donald if you want to see how it's done I have a recent thread with pictures on how to do it
 
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Pulling the cab is the best scenario, and gives much better access to the engine. Duramax isn't any better. A friend of mine is really into modifying duramax trucks and had to do head gaskets recently. What a nightmare trying to do them in the truck. Modern diesels are a marvel of power and efficiency (just look at how clean the tail pipe is on a 6.7 PSD) but expensive nightmares when they break.
 
Curious what the aluminium wheel shown in two of the pictures is being used for. Trip hazard, stepping stool, seat,? LOL

Thanks for posting this, it's very interesting.
 
If you NEED a diesel vehicle , then buy one . I neither want or need one . I have no plans to ever own one . That is my advice to all .

However , should my boss provide me with a diesel company truck ( I am currently driving a 2014 F150 gasoline truck ) I will drive it and say thank you . But I am not the one paying for it . He is .
 
That's a nice low mileage 6.4, I just sold my 6.4 engine and told the new buyer to just cut they're losses and sell the truck once it's back on the road. I love the cab off function as once you get the hang of it, it's a pretty quick procedure.

[Linked Image]

[Linked Image]
 
Originally Posted by WyrTwister
If you NEED a diesel vehicle , then buy one . I neither want or need one . I have no plans to ever own one . That is my advice to all .

However , should my boss provide me with a diesel company truck ( I am currently driving a 2014 F150 gasoline truck ) I will drive it and say thank you . But I am not the one paying for it . He is .



I completely agree. i don't see why there is a such a love affair currently with diesel trucks. Maybe it's just ego and pride.....the diesel variant is more expensive than the gasoline truck; therefore the driver of a diesel is a "better man". LOL!!

I could have bought a diesel truck last year. But all my friends own them and they are always in the shop. In fact, all of them have a beater gas truck as a backup and most of them are either waiting to get their truck out of the shop and or know their turn is likely next....
 
Originally Posted by Phishin
Originally Posted by WyrTwister
If you NEED a diesel vehicle , then buy one . I neither want or need one . I have no plans to ever own one . That is my advice to all .

However , should my boss provide me with a diesel company truck ( I am currently driving a 2014 F150 gasoline truck ) I will drive it and say thank you . But I am not the one paying for it . He is .



I completely agree. i don't see why there is a such a love affair currently with diesel trucks. Maybe it's just ego and pride.....the diesel variant is more expensive than the gasoline truck; therefore the driver of a diesel is a "better man". LOL!!

I could have bought a diesel truck last year. But all my friends own them and they are always in the shop. In fact, all of them have a beater gas truck as a backup and most of them are either waiting to get their truck out of the shop and or know their turn is likely next....


I logged many miles on a 7.3 diesel powerstroke during high school/college for a farm I worked on pulling a trailer. There is something about the sound and torque of a diesel especially when towing, but the maintenance cost on them is just making it not worthwhile. The kicker is most of these systems are designed to work under heavy loads (DPF, etc) but cause problems when the truck is short tripped.
 
You can tell a lot about a mechanic by his toolbox and his shop.
Anybody notice anything about Cline's toolbox in some of his pic's ?
 
Originally Posted by A310
That's a nice low mileage 6.4, I just sold my 6.4 engine and told the new buyer to just cut they're losses and sell the truck once it's back on the road. I love the cab off function as once you get the hang of it, it's a pretty quick procedure.

[Linked Image]



That doesn't look like a Navistar V8 there - the green paint is a dead giveaway for a Detroit.

Also, with cab-off repairs does the AC need to be evacuated or just unbolt the compressor from the engine and tie it off to the cab?
 
Originally Posted by sloinker
Straight six Cummins anyone?


Have one in my RAM.

I considered all three makes when I was shopping. I had likes and misgivings with all three. The GM trucks took themselves out of the running, as they lacked the necessary rated towing capacity. The Ford still has complaints about the HPFP and other aspects of the in-house 'Scorpion' engine. Having owned a mid-90's Dodge Ram, it was the rest of the truck that I had concerns about.

Lots of people that owned the old Rams like I had, and now owned newer versions, swore that the new versions were much better. Friends who are still in the automotive repair field confirmed that. I liked everything better about the late model RAM, from the interior, to just how it ran and drove.

Shortly after I bought the RAM, a test of all three was done wherein they were all tested on a chassis dyno. The RAM had the least manufacturer claimed power of the three, but in this independent test at a company that makes products for all three brands, the RAM put the most torque to the wheels. Essentially confirming my own seat-of-the-pants impression during the test drives of all three.

Almost three years later, I've had no issues. It still pulls our heavy toy hauler great, and no gas engine trucks are rated for anywhere near the weight we pull with our Cummins powered RAM. The reality is we are at the limit of what I would want to pull with a pickup. So even though the new Diesel versions of all three brands are now rated for more weight than our '17 model, If I were going heavier, I'd be looking at a class 6 MDT. Or more likely a class 8 HDT.

Having owned MDT's and HDT's in a past business, we won't be going heavier on the toy hauler. As MDT's and HDT's are miserable to drive, compared to a loaded Dually pickup with heated and cooled leather seats, and the full "glitter and glam" package as one Bitoger refers to loaded pickups.
 
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Originally Posted by 02SE

Shortly after I bought the RAM, a test of all three was done wherein they were all tested on a chassis dyno. The RAM had the least manufacturer claimed power of the three, but in this independent test at a company that makes products for all three brands, the RAM put the most torque to the wheels. Essentially confirming my own seat-of-the-pants impression during the test drives of all three.

Having owned MDT's and HDT's in a past business, we won't be going heavier on the toy hauler. As MDT's and HDT's are miserable to drive, compared to a loaded Dually pickup with heated and cooled leather seats, and the full "glitter and glam" package as one Bitoger refers to loaded pickups.

That person would be me
wink.gif


I thought AMCI did non-partial testing, unless it's an aftermarket company wanting to get a baseline for their R&D.

The Ram is a good looking truck IMO, I think the latest generation looks sharp and clean compared to the new GM and Ford offerings. I know a friend who looked at one before pulling the trigger on a loaded Sierra 2500HD Dmax. He liked the Ram but was worried the "interior will fall apart".

It just seems like the Cummins ISB/B6.7 FCA is using is the least troublesome of the diesel options in that class. AFAIK, that same base engine is found in school buses, hybrid transit buses(NYC, Seattle and San Francisco are all using the ISB in their non-articulated hybrid buses), bread vans, class 6 trucks and off-road equipment.
 
Originally Posted by nthach
Originally Posted by 02SE

Shortly after I bought the RAM, a test of all three was done wherein they were all tested on a chassis dyno. The RAM had the least manufacturer claimed power of the three, but in this independent test at a company that makes products for all three brands, the RAM put the most torque to the wheels. Essentially confirming my own seat-of-the-pants impression during the test drives of all three.

Having owned MDT's and HDT's in a past business, we won't be going heavier on the toy hauler. As MDT's and HDT's are miserable to drive, compared to a loaded Dually pickup with heated and cooled leather seats, and the full "glitter and glam" package as one Bitoger refers to loaded pickups.

That person would be me
wink.gif


I thought AMCI did non-partial testing, unless it's an aftermarket company wanting to get a baseline for their R&D.

The Ram is a good looking truck IMO, I think the latest generation looks sharp and clean compared to the new GM and Ford offerings. I know a friend who looked at one before pulling the trigger on a loaded Sierra 2500HD Dmax. He liked the Ram but was worried the "interior will fall apart".

It just seems like the Cummins ISB/B6.7 FCA is using is the least troublesome of the diesel options in that class. AFAIK, that same base engine is found in school buses, hybrid transit buses(NYC, Seattle and San Francisco are all using the ISB in their non-articulated hybrid buses), bread vans, class 6 trucks and off-road equipment.


The member I associate that phrase with, is 'Mr. Nice'.

Don't misunderstand, the phrase doesn't bother me, I usually laugh.

Anyway, it was an aftermarket company doing the testing I'm referring to. Here's the video:



I was a little surprised at their findings. But they make products for all three, and are not biased to any particular brand.

Also, all three brands have had updates since then.

The interior or the rest of the truck having issues, was what I was concerned about, having owned a mid-90's Ram. The new ones really are MUCH better. I don't think any of the 'big 3' manufacturers have an advantage in dependability of the rest of the truck anymore. Having recently been in the newest versions of all three makes, the RAM still has the nicest interior, IMO.

I know there are brand fanboys out there that are VERY passionate about THEIR brand. I'm not one of those guys. I've owned all three brands at one time or another. I just choose what I think is the best for me at the time.
 
So the manufactures have specific instruction on how to remove the cab??? I guessed that it took these kick @&$ mechanics to figure it out on their own.
If a mechanic beats the book time does he still get paid per the book? And vise versa. ?
 
Originally Posted by P10crew

If a mechanic beats the book time does he still get paid per the book? And vise versa. ?

Yep - flat rate mechanics are always looking for that little job hack or steps they can avoid to save time and beat the book.
 
Originally Posted by P10crew
So the manufactures have specific instruction on how to remove the cab??? I guessed that it took these kick @&$ mechanics to figure it out on their own.
If a mechanic beats the book time does he still get paid per the book? And vise versa. ?


There is a procedure in the manual because you have to take the cab off to replace it. Techs figured out it made the job go a lot smoother to take the cab off to do a lot of the work, even on gas engines. People here act like it is a huge issue, but it really isn't. I have seen people use a forklift and towstraps to pull a cab off.
 
Finished up today, Changed the Fuel Rail Pressure Sensor as well.....It would suck to have it go screwy after all this work & it was easily done with the cab off. It resides under the passenger side valve cover on the fuel rail.

Truck runs great....Delivering it tomorrow after a thorough 2nd test drive.

[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]

[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]

[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]
 
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