74dart

I am thinking about upgrading my 96 2500 for a 00-02 3500 quad cab and was wondering how bad the relibility of the vp-44 is if the truck is left completly stock. I have my eye on a 01 4x4 quad cab 3500, 120,000 vinal seats, rubber floormat, posi-track, 3.55, 5 speed, everything I want but I am worried about the injection pump problems. How hard is one to change on the side of the road if you have a spare on board?.

RowJ

Pretty expensive unit to be carrying a spare.
It's a 2-3 hr job.... especially the first time.
Average life span seems to be 100-120,000 miles... with some going out as early as 80,000.
Many last over 200,000 miles, especially on stock trucks.
A fuel pressure gauge and a good lift pump are a must to keep the VP-44 healthy.

IMO, very few actually just up and die while driving. We hear about those because it's 'news'.
Most throw a CEL warning and get weak first, or develop dead peddle syndrome, or just won't run over 20-40 mph.

I would not shy away from a good buy because of the VP-44. If worried, put a new Inj & lift pump on it and sleep easy for quite a while.
Keep the used units as spares!

RJ

nickg

If you spend any time reading, you will notice most guys who loose a VP lost a LP before that and/or that they never had a fuel pressure gauge to monitor their pressures. I do not believe leaving it stock will make it last any longer. also if it has a "newer" IP its likely had all the updates and should out perform the earlier VP's. I dont think you'd be happy with the performance of a stock truck, judging by your sig of your present truck, you'd miss the power and would soon tap the VP

Weak to no fuel pressure seems to allow the VP to wear out (0216) or overheat taking out the electronics, Install a good LP system and I think you'll be good to go.

Mine has had an EZ box within 2 months of me getting my truck (May 07) about a yr later I put in a new VP because I was worried about its condition,not because it was working bad or was even showing any codes. my truck is a courior truck and it's driven 8-10hrs daily, there was nothing wrong with the orginal and it had 330,000kms on it. in Nov 08 I upgraded to an Edge J/A. From Jan 09 till now I have 950hrs of run time. in theory that would be 90,000kms(55,000miles) in 7months if I was on the hi-way

It took me 2hrs to replace my VP. If I had to do it on the side of the road it would be a pain for sure! but if you had time I guess you could

boertje

I've got 200K miles on my '99. I have the 3rd lift pump on it however and I check the fuel pressure at every oil change. I think these guys are right one that weak to no fuel pressure will kill that VP-44.
I think I'd be more concerned with not getting the 53 block as I did although mine is holding up so far.

74dart

The mods in my current truck have caused me so many problems that I am putting it back to stock. The only mods I plan on doing on the dually is a set of 6" miter cut stacks.

nickg

I guess the disadvantage of a 12v is you have to keep tweaking things to get it working the way you want, then if the conditions change (towing vs normal driving etc) you have to play/adjust things. I guess the advantages of a chip/box are at a push of a button you are back to stock or you can limit power/smoke at your whim.
Still back to your orginal question, I used to worry about my VP and I did replace it for no reason other than piece of mind, if I had to do it again I should have banked my money and drove it till the VP failed, that way I would have gotten my moneys worth out of it. I would strongly suggest a different LP (AD/FASS/ Raptor....) and a fuel pressure gauge, just so you can keep tabs on it

74dart

I have been looking at the Quadzilla Scout monitoring system. If I get an auto ( I would prefer a manual) I will have to put 3 gauges on the pillar and on on the steering wheel, with the scout I will have only one display screen.

RowJ

Probably same as the Pulse Controller that comes with the Adrenaline? If so, works well... 2 screens with up to 4 readouts each.


RJ

74dart

Its the same screen it just dosen't come with the fueing box but it can be added at a later time. I have to fix and sell my current rig, then I will save my mone and start looking for another one.

high bid

In TX covering the a/c vent...doesn't present cooling problems? We've only had 33+ days of over 100*.

RowJ

Believe it or not (I'm from SAT originally) we get hotter up here than you do! Just doesn't run as long into the fall.

I blocked off the vent with a rag so it reroutes that air to other vents.... but no decrease in cooling that I can tell.
Could not find any other good place to mount it since I'm still unwilling to give up my analog gauges on the A-Pillar.
Quad's A-Pillar bracket is sharp, but can't use it.
Personal preference but, I just don't care for mounting on top of the dash.

RJ

supr

The VP44 can fail with a pressure gauge and a good lift pump. They normally give warning before a complete failure, like dead pedal & codes. It is not wise to go too far, especially with a load under these conditions. The Blue Chip VP44 rebuild seems to be a good option, with it's new computer, but there are many opinions on this subject.
Do a search on VP44, reading for months!!!

rich

i put 270k hard miles on one truck never had a vp problem and i even tapped the wire for the tst box. had a fuel pressure gauge on it and made sure that my lp never let the pressure get below 8. the other 98.5 never had any ip problems

derceg

i know i will probably jinx myself by saying this, but here goes. my truck lost a transfer pump while my dad had the truck because he complained to me something was wrong. shortly after that he passed away and i inherited the truck. i pulled a 24 ft car trailer through the ouchita mountains, pedel to the floor running 80 mph for 200 miles. drove truck for several more weeks before i took the truck in to the dodge dealership. diesel mechanic was outside when i pulled up and when i got out he told me my tranfer pump was out before i even said a word. put in a new transfer pump, added a lift pump also, and somehow the vp44 didn't go (knock on wood.) 4 years and 15000 miles later its still plugging away. i should have gone and bought a lottery ticket that day.

FFmike

Mine went out with no signs at all. Parked it one afternoon in the driveway and it sat for four days when I then changed the oil. Would not start after that. Only then were codes present. No problems while driving before parked. Except for number of LP's over the years, original IP had around 180k miles on it.