This is Gonna Hurt!

[RandyH]

Was planning on an update soon so now is as good a time as any. I found a reputable non-dealer shop and paid for another eval before accepting the big $$$$ quote from the dealer. They checked it out and we're basically only concerned with the injectors that were causing the white smoke. First thing they did was downloaded the latest flash then the injectors that originally looked weak seemed to be performing okay and smoke was minimal to not there. So decided to take it home and run it a few more days to see if smoke came back, which it did. They did not see any concern with head gaskets or turbo and no codes showing up. So I decided to go back to plan "A" which was to do the work myself now that heads were off the list. So, I priced out all the parts along with a few upgraded ones and some maintenance items. Spent three straight days working on it and everything went surprisingly smooth. Replaced the oil cooler, EGR cooler, and 8 injectors. Found a torn screen in the oil cooler sump. Updated the turbo oil drain tube, the stand pipes and the dummy plugs in the oil rails. New drive belt, oil and filter change, fuel filters, thermostat, coolant filter, flush and refill with Zerex EC1 rated ELC and upgraded HFCM water drain. New Bilstein 5100 series shocks. One of the most challenging jobs of the whole project was getting to the passenger side valve cover and oil rail bolts next to the evap cover. For the first start it took about 6 long cranks before she fired up. Then if I shut it off it would start right up but if it sat for 15 minutes would go back to taking a long crank to fire up. Took it on a 15 mile drive to purge the air from the fuel system and from then on it has always fired quickly with no problem. What a relief! After all that I still have one remaining issue with the turbo. I took the turbo apart and cleaned the unison ring and surface that the ring and vanes pivot on. Everything seemed to go back together okay but after I started it I was getting no boost at all. Found I had not finished tightening the v-clamp on the Y-pipe after getting the exhaust aligned and the turbo settled onto the pedestal. Tightened it up and boost came alive and feels pretty much normal except now I still get an under boost Code and CEL. My next plan is to pull the turbo back off, recheck the unison ring and actuator slot, make sure I cleaned all the right surfaces that could stick and put it back together. Then verify y-pipe alignment is good, check all the CAC boots for tears, etc. and see what I get. The code (P0299?) was not there before I tore everything down so not suspecting ICP, BARO or EBP sensors at this point. My best guess is the unison ring hanging up slightly in the center or possibly the Y-pipe is still not quite aligned perfectly. So, after writing a book here, that's where I am. Spent a total of about $470 on the two diagnostic sessions (and flash) and about $3400 on parts including maintenance upgrades. So about $4k total. Will post a pic later of the EGR cooler. Could see where it appears to have been leaking, had black soot colored streaks at one end of it. Will also include the best parts pricing I found. Injectors alone were about $1800. Enough for now!

Also, my ECT/EOT delta is about 2-3 degrees now.

 

[azbb17]

P0299

You probably already know but Diesel Tech Ron has a great P0299 video on youtube. It goes through all the common air/exhaust leak problems and breakdown of the turbo clean/reassemble. Good luck. 2-3 degree on eot/ect is great. Good job!

Was planning on an update soon so now is as good a time as any. I found a reputable non-dealer shop and paid for another eval before accepting the big $$$$ quote from the dealer. They checked it out and we're basically only concerned with the injectors that were causing the white smoke. First thing they did was downloaded the latest flash then the injectors that originally looked weak seemed to be performing okay and smoke was minimal to not there. So decided to take it home and run it a few more days to see if smoke came back, which it did. They did not see any concern with head gaskets or turbo and no codes showing up. So I decided to go back to plan "A" which was to do the work myself now that heads were off the list. So, I priced out all the parts along with a few upgraded ones and some maintenance items. Spent three straight days working on it and everything went surprisingly smooth. Replaced the oil cooler, EGR cooler, and 8 injectors. Found a torn screen in the oil cooler sump. Updated the turbo oil drain tube, the stand pipes and the dummy plugs in the oil rails. New drive belt, oil and filter change, fuel filters, thermostat, coolant filter, flush and refill with Zerex EC1 rated ELC and upgraded HFCM water drain. New Bilstein 5100 series shocks. One of the most challenging jobs of the whole project was getting to the passenger side valve cover and oil rail bolts next to the evap cover. For the first start it took about 6 long cranks before she fired up. Then if I shut it off it would start right up but if it sat for 15 minutes would go back to taking a long crank to fire up. Took it on a 15 mile drive to purge the air from the fuel system and from then on it has always fired quickly with no problem. What a relief! After all that I still have one remaining issue with the turbo. I took the turbo apart and cleaned the unison ring and surface that the ring and vanes pivot on. Everything seemed to go back together okay but after I started it I was getting no boost at all. Found I had not finished tightening the v-clamp on the Y-pipe after getting the exhaust aligned and the turbo settled onto the pedestal. Tightened it up and boost came alive and feels pretty much normal except now I still get an under boost Code and CEL. My next plan is to pull the turbo back off, recheck the unison ring and actuator slot, make sure I cleaned all the right surfaces that could stick and put it back together. Then verify y-pipe alignment is good, check all the CAC boots for tears, etc. and see what I get. The code (P0299?) was not there before I tore everything down so not suspecting ICP, BARO or EBP sensors at this point. My best guess is the unison ring hanging up slightly in the center or possibly the Y-pipe is still not quite aligned perfectly. So, after writing a book here, that's where I am. Spent a total of about $470 on the two diagnostic sessions (and flash) and about $3400 on parts including maintenance upgrades. So about $4k total. Will post a pic later of the EGR cooler. Could see where it appears to have been leaking, had black soot colored streaks at one end of it. Will also include the best parts pricing I found. Injectors alone were about $1800. Enough for now!

Also, my ECT/EOT delta is about 2-3 degrees now.

 

[RandyH]

Yes, I watched several of his videos before tackling this project. They were very well done and made this much easier.

 

[NASCAR Mike]

I went through 4 turbos due to the vanes sticking on the unison ring. The dealer changed those under warranty.

When it happened again after the warranty expired, I took apart the turbo and cleaned the soot off the vanes and unison ring.

I put Permatex nickel anti-seize on the vanes and unison ring. I have not had another issue with the vanes sticking for three years and counting.

FYI, the nickel based anti-seize withstands temps up to 2500 degrees F. If you go past 1800 degrees, your turbo probably would have melted by then.

 

[RandyH]

I've been on the run for the last several weeks and just now getting ready to pull the turbo back off this weekend or next. I already have the high temp anti-seize ready to go. By the way, here's the pic of the EGR cooler.