Bruce Amacker

IIRC, and DON'T QUOTE me on this, the scan pid is doubled for actual FP command. This means FPDC at 49% means the pump command is at 98%, which is way too high (possibly indicating a bad FP). Also, fuel pressure (FRP PID) indicated in scan data will be 7-10PSI measured with a guage . From my notes: Vacuum Hose Connected Gauge fuel pressure – 30 psi FRP PID – 39 psi Vacuum Hose Disconnected Gauge fuel pressure – 52 psi FRP PID – 59 psi FP Duty Cycle Command / PCM Status /Fuel Pump Driver Module Actions Less than 5%/ Fault /The FPDM will send a 25% duty cycle to the PCM. The fuel pump will be off. 5-50% / Normal operation /FPDM will operate the fuel pump at the speed requested. FP duty cycle X 2 = Pump speed % of full on. The FPDM will send 50% duty cycle to the PCM. 51-68% / Fault /The FPDM will send a 25% duty cycle to the PCM. The fuel pump will be off. 75% /Fuel Pump Off /The FPDM will not operate the fuel pump. The FPDM will send a 50% duty cycle to the PCM. Over 76% / Fault /The FPDM will send a 25% duty cycle to the PCM. The fuel pump will be off. The Fuel Pump (FP) signal is a duty cycle command sent from the powertrain control module (PCM) to the fuel pump driver module (FPDM). The FPDM uses the FP command to operate the fuel pump at the speed requested by the PCM or to turn the pump off. Example: FP duty cycle = 40%. 40 X 2=80. Pump is run at 80% of full on Note: For the Thunderbird and Lincoln LS models, the FPDM functions are incorporated in the Rear Electronic Module (REM). Fuel pump operation is the same as applications using the stand-alone FPDM. The REM will, however, communicate diagnostic information through the BUS +/- circuits (SCP) instead of using a fuel pump monitor (FPM) circuit. To access the data you will need a scan tool that can communicate with the REM. 50% duty cycle = 100% pump command 25% duty cycle = 50% pump command Since most outputs on a vehicle are activated by grounding the circuit, duty cycle is usually measured as the percentage of time that the voltage signal is low. In the case of the FPDM, the FP data PID displays the duty cycle that the voltage is high. PID Duty Cycle = 25% Scope Displays 75% During a key up, the PCM initially commands a 50% duty cycle high and then it quickly drops to about a 25% duty cycle high. Make sure to reset KAM when done! Good Luck!

I had a policy at my shop that I changed suppliers (sometimes temporarily, sometimes permanently) when I had two defects in a row. Overlay a wire, and change the alt. I recommend new OE in my classes for these units. Good Luck!

Yes, I have SM and the IC4 and have had limited success with it. It has a habit of losing communications so I use the Nexiq USB link with much better luck. The guys at Anthony's dealer are having the same problem and use either the USB Link or NavLink. Go ahead and try the IC4 and see what your luck is- maybe it will be OK. PS to other Ford techs- try to stay with MD as long as you can. SM has a lot of bugs, less info that MD, and a steeper learning curve. If you are just getting SM for the first time, expect to spend some time getting used to it. The last version of MD I remember was about 4.3.

I'd put the doghouse switch thing lower on the diag list and concentrate on why the Gen1 I-line is going low. Check the harness, overlay a new I-line from the PCM to the Alt, or change the alt again. The fact that your I-line is going from 9v to 1.5v is your glowing problem to correct. Alt listings are really weird for these trucks- don't swap out a known good unit from an identical truck because they can have different alts, even though they are the same year and model. Verify PN by VIN if you put one on. Good Luck!

Beware! Take the VCM SN and call Rotunda to see if/when it expired. Here's the deal- if it's expired, your new subscription starts with the expiration date, not today's date. I have two VCMs and I let one expire in May 2009. I renewed it in October 2009, and guess what my expiration date is? May 2010. They'll tell you over then phone pretty quickly at 1-800-rotunda. It's $500/yr to keep it current, or get it current. Good Luck!

Brad's right, the outer gear to housing is really loose, .030". The clearance between the gears may not be a spec but .005" sounds pretty good, but I've measured them closer. I'd change the pump anyway as they are not a low failure rate unit and many times they look "fine" but replacing them fixes the problem. I'd pressurize the oil galley with shop air and chase what sounds the loudest, but this may be a difficult procedure. Are there any complaints besides the oil light, like oil usage, smoking, noises, etc? The pickup tube in the pan could be cracked, but usually there would be an aeration complaint (unstable ICP and stalling). I wonder if a few piston coolers missing would do this, as they break off commonly and are discarded by the LOF guy. I'd pull the drain plug and look for them. Also 7psi seems a bit high for the OPS, I might try another sender. I remember the spec at 3-6 or 4-6 or something. Has it had an LOF recently? IH Specs: Lubricating Oil Pump Type Gerotor End Clearance - inner and outer rotor to housing 0.02-0.08 mm (0.001-0.003 in) Radial clearance between outer rotor housing 0.71-0.81 mm (0.28-0.32 in) Engine Lube Oil Pressure at Operating Temperature At low idle speed (700 rpm) minimum 83 kPa (12 psi) At high idle speed 276-345 kPa (40-50 psi) Good Luck!

If you're looking for ether damage, you won't see it with the heads off. If you have 400PSI in the holes, chances are the ring lands aren't broken, which is common ether damage. I've dealt with LOTS of engines that sat for years, both gas and diesel, and ran fine after doing nothing to them but an oil change after being fired up. I'd put it in untouched, or go through it completely. What color smoke at WOT? Black, right? Donworryboutit. What CID? If it's a 7.3 put it in and run it, otherwise you could get caught up in the "while I'm in there" $yndrome. If it's a 6.9 you might want to do head gaskets or go through it. 6.9s were bad on HGs.... Make sure you use the later bullet style glow plug setup and OEM parts. The aftermarket stuff is cheaper but crap. Good Luck!

Yes, I have a M2 Multiplex book I can sell you at the discounted price of $60. It's in draft right now but I'm sure you would like it. It's 80 and I have the A/C on. I'm gonna take a bike ride down to the beach momentarily....

Jeff: Yes, the M2 class is done but I haven't sold it yet, there seems to be a lot less M2s on the roads than IH's. How they run their multiplex system is really weird compared to IH/Ford.

Why are you doing seals? Oil consumption? Smoke? I worked on zillions of those engines and don't remember ever changing valve seals. Perhaps you should do a compression test/blowby test or rethink this repair. There's no intake manifold vacuum to draw oil into the cylinders. Chris- I used the rope truck many times in my younger days. It works fine, better than you'd think.

There are plenty of bad aftermarket shops out there, just like there are plenty of bad dealership techs out there. Read between the lines- the reason he spent big dollars at an aftermarket shop on warranty work is because his experience with a dealer was so negative that he chose the worst of two evils, and it was the wrong choice (in this situation). We've talked about this before and it's a sad commentary on our industry- there's lots of bad techs and bad shops in both areas. My students tell me unbelievable horror stories about their dealer experiences, and some back it up with invoices. I did an Oasis check one time when I didn't believe a student, and lo and behold, he was not lying. When I had my shop we did a LOT of work at full pay that would have been done free at the dealer. Why? They trusted me to get the truck back on the road. Sometimes money is not the biggest driving force- getting the truck back on the road quickly many times takes precedence. If the cust has a horrible taste in their mouth from previous dealer experiences, they are likely to prefer to pay for the work. I have a fleet of 6.0 vans I teach that chooses to do 100% of their own (warrantable) repairs and eat the cost. This pretty much tells the story.

That's not really a crazy price, the best price I've seen so far was at a truck stop where a 2.5 gallon jug was $9.95. At Mercedes Benz, one dealer quoted me $14.95 for a two litre bottle and another charged me $7.00 for the same bottle. The fluid has very little odor to it, no color, and seems like diluted Windex. It is slippery like soap when on your fingers and dries to a soapy residue.

"Fargo" is a great movie, I've seen it several times. The accents are hilarious, especially Margie. "Prowler needs a jump"! I think of the closing scene whenever I see a wood chipper.......

Location? You mean like gay Key West? Nope- not me. Straight, married, and here with my wife. I'm in Naples, surrounded by rich old fucks. Got a condo here for "snowbirding" and staying sane, with a phone and internet I can run the business almost as well as at home. My big task today was to get a stray chameleon out of the house. Anthony taught in NC this week and I do a DT class in Ft. Myers in a few weeks. Just laying low and enjoying the weather and riding my bicycle, trying to work my gut off. My brother bought a condo in the next building over so we have someone to hang out with. Real estate is very reasonably priced here right now, a very good investment if you're looking to invest. Condos in our development that were selling for 250K+ two years ago are selling between 62 and 70K. It's a good time to get in, if that's your thing. I fart around on the computer for a few hours writing programs and making phone calls, and screw off in the afternoon outside in the sun. It's really quite nice- beats the shit out of freezing my ass off at home. Now that I came down here, the weather warmed up(??) in Cleveland, above freezing and quit snowing. After Christmas it snowed 10 days straight, 2.5 feet, and never broke 25F.

I can see the cust now, under the truck going, "F*cker".

Can Keith or someone with a decent camera (this eliminates Grampa) shoot a couple of pictures of the tool kit and post or send them to me? If the pics don't include the TKIT PNs I'll need those, too. If the kit's that cheap, I'll buy it from Rotunda. Thanks!

It finally warmed up nicely, 78F for a high today, it's in the 60's right now. I've ridden my bike almost every day since arrival down to the beach, but there's more tourists than babes there. I guess it's like the old fishing adage- a bad day on the beach is better than a good day working.....

That was REALLY common on the Gen 1's before they redesigned the heater. Gen 2's were less common but it still happened.

Does Ford supply you guys the VT275 sheets for CF models?

It's been freezing here- high of 65F today. I'm heading out for a bike ride to the beach as we speak.....

Are you sure it's a 6.9? It originally came with a 7.3 in '89. 6.9s were '83-87 IIRC. Check the SN, it starts with the displacement. Common head gasket failures, the 7.3 had larger, longer head bolts. Common pump failures. It was a pig by today's standards and I'm glad it's gone. I made a lot of money off of them.....

It sunds like you are missing some tools. What do you have here? A cracked head is really unlikely.

Yes. Do you have the tools, and what tools do you have? Cyl #7 might give you some grief because of the AC plenum....

Hey Guys: I uploaded all of the IH diag sheets in a .zip file on Yousendit, from old 6.9/7.3 through all the DT's and EGRs to MaxxForce 11 and 13. The file is about 70 files, 66 meg and will be available for 7 days or 100 downloads, whichever comes first. These are the diag sheets that Ford copies for their diag sheets but also include DTC code descriptions, color engine wiring schematics, expected circuit voltages, probable causes, etc. They are really great. Does Ford supply you the VT275 sheets for CF models? [There is a typo on EGED185 (DTE) where it shows pin 37 (IPR) to be zero volts. Voltage on this pin is from 10.7vKOEO to about 12v KOER. I've had guys change ECMs because of this....] https://www.yousendit.com/download/VGlma3ZNNnlRYStGa1E9PQ Have Fun!

Yes, 99% of the time it's a leaking injector sleeve. The procedure to find the bad sleeve is to remove all injectors and pressure test the cooling system while looking down the injector bores. The offender generally shows up quite quickly, we change them all when it happens. You'll need the special tools to do the R&R. Good Luck!