[Rauch]

Hey guys,

My brother just recently (last Sunday) picked up an '04 Powerstroke. At first it ran perfect with no issues. It survived the 500 mile trip back home without any sort of issue. It also had no issues Monday.

Out of nowhere on Tuesday, he told me the truck stalled after the first start but started and ran roughly the second start until it warmed up. He said it was also accompanied by a little bit of white smoke with an unburnt diesel odor.

Same think happened Wednesday morning without the white smoke.

Thursday morning, everything seemed to be normal. Although, I believe he had some issues first starting when coming home from work.

Now, this morning, it won't fire at all. It'll just sit there and crank, but won't start.

I fell bad for my brother, he always gets the worst luck with cars. Now, this truck set him back $12,000 (on a loan I got for him, in my name) and he is just upset and moping. He knew diesels were costly, he just didn't think he'd have this bad luck at that price tag.

Now the fun part, I don't know ANYTHING about Diesels. I wouldn't even be able to begin diagnosing it. Put me in front of a gasser and I can easily diagnose it, but I hop up onto the tire and look into this engine bay and start looking at this monster thinking "what the hell is this?"

To sum it up:

-All fluids remained full, clean (except for the oil which went from new to dark quickly :rofl and do not appear to be contaminated. No diesel odor in the oil.
-Starting a few days ago, it'd die on first start but than start and run roughly the second time, blowing a little white smoke. It would remain running rough until it's warmed up.
-This morning, the truck will just crank and won't fire. I don't know if it's normal with diesels, but I hear some clattering/clinging metal from the motor during cranking. Not absolutely sure if that's a normal diesel sound of cranking or not.
-These past few mornings it has generally been a little colder than normal for this time of year.

Thanks guys,

Derek

 

[NYC F-350]

FICM. Here is how to verify the diagnosis. Test your FICM
I would like to say that the stock unit is VERY well known to fail. There are a few companies that are rebuilding them, Swamps Diesel being the "Top-dog" of what is available at the moment.
They have a 58 volt and a 48 volt version. The 48 being the stock voltage, the 58 being a touch more but not enough to cause any issues with the injectors.
Swamps rebuilds FICM's using superior electronic parts. Very very few failures have been reported (I know of two in the last couple years).

If you are capable of electronic board soldering, you may be able to fix it yourself. Keep in mind that if you attempt it, and fail, nobody will accept your FICM as a core. This will cost you $$$

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
EDIT:

In case you decide to go the route of a self-repair, I have attached a pdf file for the procedure.

If you have no idea what a FICM is or where to find it, click HERE for a whole book about this engine. It will show what is what and where it is.

 

[Rauch]

Thanks very much for the quick and well detailed response. It's almost like you had all that stuff saved for reference.

I just tested it:

KOEO: ~48.x volts
Cranking: ~17 volts

Hopefully, that's the issue. Otherwise, I just spent $610 at the dealership for something to not fix the issue. :hehe:

All I can say is.. :icon_ford:. My Chevy's never have these issues haha.

Although, I will say upon digging in to this engine bay it's quite intriguing how everything is set up. It's so much different from everything I've ever worked on, yet everything is so easy to remove/move out of the way. I will admit it actually seems to be easier to work on than my '00 Camaro.

Thanks again!

I'll report back with my findings in about an hour when the part comes in!

 

[NYC F-350]

Yep, 17 volts is a killer. Should stay in the 48 volt range. That is your problem.
If you dont need the truck NOW, order the Swamps FICM. You won't be disappointed.

 

[Rauch]

Okay...

So I picked up the new FICM.

Same issue. Still cranks & no start.

I took the cover off and it's a 4-pin. The original was a 7-pin. Are they interchangeable?

I tested the pins and they're staying at 48v. So that's good.

They're 2 identical plugs. Are they interchangeable, or will they only work a certain way?

 

[NYC F-350]

2 plugs? Should be three plugs on the back it....
The 4 and 7 pin FICM's interchangeable as far as I know, but I don't know much about FICM's beyond what I have already stated.
It might need to be flashed by the Ford dealer, but you would think they would do that before handing it over to you.?.?

 

[Rauch]

Yes, there are 3 plugs, but 2 identical ones. I found there is one dongle For each set of cylinders. Now with KOEO I'm receiving 48v.

Now the flash process for FICMs.. Time to do research

 

[NYC F-350]

Like I said, I don't know much about these things beyond the testing. It may or may not need a flash. I would call the Ford dealer and ask them if it needs one

 

[NYC F-350]

If you were asking if the plugs are interchangeable as far as the location where they plug in, that is a big fat NO.
This just dawned on me that you might have been asking that question....

 

[Rauch]

If you were asking if the plugs are interchangeable as far as the location where they plug in, that is a big fat NO.
This just dawned on me that you might have been asking that question....

Precisely what I was asking. I didn't figure they were. Plus with how they're routed and the lengths of the harness, they won't fit into the other plug.

Now, I just found out that ones purchased through Ford DO need to be flashed. :doh:

Just got to find out if they just need the FICM itself, or if they need the truck as well.

 

[Bax]

If your high pressure oil pump goes bad you will have the hard and no start problems

 

[viper_09]

Something else to consider is the ICP sensor (Injection Control Pressure) that can also go bad with the FICM and give you that no start condition, stalling, loss of power and so on. I also have an 04 Powerstroke and have the same problem right now and currently fixing. I read the OBD code which said ICP Sensor Circuit Low. Is the check engine light on in your truck?