tired of this 6.0

[440MOPAR]

bought an 04 350 w/130k , drove it 5 days ..
put egr delete , hpop ,branch tubes , o rings , connectors,lpop cover and gears , studs and gaskets....3000 dollars gone.
now 1500 miles later cold start its shaking and chugging for 5-30 seconds and also takes about 5 seconds to fire after key turn only on initial cold start
so i guess ficm voltage is down so thats another 550 bucks gone for the 58v swamps unit
is there any end to this crapp my wife says sell sell but i really love the truck except for the engine of course and the additional 3500 dollars gone

might need a peptalk or advice ???

[jesilvas]

Why do you think it's the FICM? Are you saying you tested it or guessed? Could be injector stiction.
Heck, you did the EGR delete, studs/gaskets. That's most of the battle right there.

[Galaxie]

Dont Stress! Start with your next oil change sporting 5/40 or 5/30 synthetic diesel oil. There is even a product called Rev X which helps with cold starts as well. The 6.0 isnt different than any other compresion ignited motor, it doesnt start like a gasser.

[JumpinJack]

Try plugging the block heater in and see if it helps the cold start. I have just a bit of sputter on initial fire but only if its cold and I don't plug in. All of our diesels at work are the same way when started cold takes a few seconds for them to smooth out.

[440MOPAR]

i'm checking the ficm voltage this morning , it is suspect because of the cold start chug and the fuel milage is going down was geting 16-18 now 13-14
when i plug it in it doesn't chug
i'm still wondering where the ball plug is from the first hpop never found it ???

[Galaxie]

Originally Posted by 440MOPAR

i'm checking the ficm voltage this morning , it is suspect because of the cold start chug and the fuel milage is going down was geting 16-18 now 13-14
when i plug it in it doesn't chug
i'm still wondering where the ball plug is from the first hpop never found it ???

You could have a supplier that has a winter blend of diesel? I know I do and I DO see a loss in milage. There is a lot of misunderstanding about Winter Blended Diesel Fuel, what it is, and what it can do.

You can improve the cold weather characteristics of diesel fuel in several ways. You can remove some or even most of the wax. This lowers lubricity, reduces Btu?s (causing lower mpg and engine power output), lowers the fuels viscosity, and raises the refining cost.

Prior to the rules regarding Ultra Low Sulfur Diesel, you could add #1 Diesel, Kerosene, or Jet A to the #2 fuel. This would lower the CFPP and PP by approximately 5?F for each 10% of the lighter fuel added to the #2 Fuel. You could also treat with additives commonly referred to as an anti-gel (cold flow improver, wax modifier, or solvent) to the #2 fuel to lower CP, CFPP, and PP. You can also use a combination of two or more of the above to achieve the necessary reduction in gel point.

Under the new EPA mandated ULSD rules you can no longer use High-Sulfur Kerosene, High-Sulfur #1 Diesel, or Jet-A for winter blending of diesel. You can only use ULSD #1 or an additive containing 15 ppm or less of sulfur.

This new ULSD #1 has significantly different characteristics than the fuels previously used for blending. It has lower aromatic content and much lower solvency. These new characteristics mean that blending 10% of this fuel will improve CP, CFPP, and PP by only 2?F or sometimes 3?F. In the past you would have expected a 50-50 blend to reduce CFPP by 25?F. With today?s new fuels a 50-50 blend will reduce CFPP by only 10?F to 15?F and in many cases there can be even less improvement.

Also, many of the so called ?anti-gel? fuel additives no longer work as well as before. In many cases testing has found that some of these additives provide little or no improvement in CP, CFPP, and PP of ULSD fuels.

These various ways of treating have advantages and disadvantages depending on a wide range of variables.

In the Northern States fuel suppliers offer ?Winter Blended Diesel Fuels? for use during cold weather. This is a poorly defined term that can mean almost anything. Unfortunately there are a few fuel suppliers that take advantage of these poorly defined terms to the detriment of their customers.

Unless your fuel comes directly from a refinery (most does not), it is made to a ?pipeline spec?. The pipeline operators require fuel in their lines to meet certain minimum specs to protect their equipment from cold weather damage. The pipeline CFPP is generally 15?F lower in the winter than it is during the warm weather months.

In the past distributors had stocks of kerosene and or Jet A in stock and they could easily blend a percentage of this fuel with the #2 as they loaded their trucks. This meant they did not have to stock any special fuels or additives for cold weather use, fuels or additives that might sit in a mild winter or be left over at the end of winter. Kerosene and Jet A was something they could always sell, ULSD #1 is not as easily moved in warm weather.

The Kerosene or Jet A used to have a cost very close to that of #2 diesel, so there was not much disadvantage to distributor. However there is a large differential in the selling price of ULSD #1, anywhere from $.30 to as much as $1.00 per gallon.

As winter spec #2 ULSD fuel is generally safe to 0?F as it comes from the pipeline in the winter some distributors will claim to be adding kerosene or additives, when in fact they add nothing. If you have ever had a distributor who brings you ?free? kerosene when the weather is predicted to be unusually cold you should probably be checking to see what is actually being delivered to you in the first place. There is no free fuel.

[Dave]

Where do you live? Winter blend fuel destroys your mileage

[440MOPAR]

i live in middle georgia we have about two days of winter so i don't know if we have winter blend or not . this am it was 45 deg. now at 10 am its 70 deg
i just checked the ficm it holds 47.5 volts all time it never dipped went up or even moved from key on position all the way through about 4min running
so on to try rev-x
i forgot my wife drove it one day last week so my milage is probably off because she only knows wide open and how many trips to walmart and around town driving she did?
where can i get rev-x. does the parts store have it?
and i always get fuel at flash foods , its blended fuel but they are american owned and operated by a family in waycross ,I will push my 350 before i buy from an "un-american" if you know what i mean