supersonictoys

my stock 06 dodge with 18k miles dropped a valve on flat ground while I was just cruising along doing 50mph. after taking a fuel sample and checking the trucks computer for any traces of a chip my local dealer pulled the head off the truck and found the carnage. there was no trace of the valve left because it had been crushed to pieces and went out the exhaust port and through he turbo. the service department concluded that a defective valve caused this and that the motor and turbo were covered by my factory warranty. one thing I really didnt like was that they didnt install a new motor. they put in a cummins "remanufactured motor". I argued with them for a week and even talked to the service manager and the dodge warranty person for northern california and even called dodge and was finally told that it was written in all dodge warranties that they can repair my vehicle with new or factory remanufactured parts. thats when I shut up and just decided to bend over and accept it. took 2 weeks and cost dodge a repair bill of $12,000.00. $8000.00 in parts and $4000,00 labor. looks like they did a decent job and seems to be quieter and smoother than the original motor. one thing I did notice though while looking at the inside of the motor that gave me cause for concern was the build up of carbon in the combustion chamber. I have been running walmart super tech 2 cycle oil in my fuel and have noticed that as soon as I started adding it the rear fender of my white truck started getting alot more sticky hard to get off black soot. the inside of the head was totally black with maybe a 32nd of an inch of carbon on it and the valve faces were also totally covered with no trace of any color but pitch black. it looked just like the inside of my exhaust tip but thicker. now I never let my truck idle for more than a couple minutes and can only attribute this to the 2 stroke oil not being completely burned cleanly and building up as carbon. keep in mind this motor only had 18k and this soot showed up imediately when I started adding the oil to my fuel. it apeared on my other truck also but its dark blue and not a dually so its not as noticeable. my engine oil on both trucks seems to get black alot quicker as well. it has me concerned enough to stop using 2 stroke and start looking for another option.

Raspy

That's a very interesting story. Wow, only 18,000 miles.

I'm wondering how much 2 stroke you were running? Not that it contributed to the valve failure, just the carbon. I Think the "normal" ratio is about 1 qt to 30 gallons or about 128 to 1. Is that what you were doing? And were you running it hard sometimes, like towing, or mainly around town?

Hope it turns out well.

John

tritont

Yep, I was told by several people ( Cummins/Dodge ) that anytime you have work like that done... you get a reman engine. Otherwise, they'd have to pull one off the production line and that don't happen. Nothing wrong with them though. They're built to the same specs as the original.

Using the two stroke oil isn't a problem. This is directly from a recent Cummins service bulletin about fuels you can use in the truck...

" Mixing of engine lubricating oil
In some fuel systems, engine lubricating oil and diesel fuel are used in close proximity to each other for lubricating and sealing purposes. This interface is a function of fuel pump and/or injector design. Under certain operating conditions, a small amount of lubricating oil can mix with the diesel fuel and be returned to the tank, causing the fuel to appear dark in color. It takes a very small amount of lubricating oil (less than 0.1 percent) to cause the fuel to become visibly darkened. This small amount of oil in the fuel will have no adverse affects on engine performance, durability, reliability, or emission levels. "

Carbon build up is normal to a point. You may be using too much 2 stroke or, it's just not burning away completely. It could be many things though...??

ratlratl

Having a reman is nothing to be afraid of. IMO I would have the reman. Instead of an assembly line that produces many motors, these are handled by a much smaller division. More personal attention to that motor. Nothing is cut down or bored. All the pieces replaced are new. I'm pretty sure our bores are sleeves anyway, and they just get swapped out. Pistons will be new as all rings and bearings. Also if there are any updates on the new assemblys, you can bet that these were passed on to your motor.

Chris

bigwheels94

B series engines are NOT sleeved.But I agree that the remans are well built engines. More attention to detail by the reman shop.

gunny

I'd have no problem with a reman,if it had the same warranty as a new one.

Why the 2 stroke oil? If you are seeing an unusual amount of soot and carbon, there's your answer. Bet that if Dodge was paying real close attention and the 2 stroke oil subject came up, they would have used that to deny warranty.

There is no need to add anything to your diesel fuel unless you are addressing a particular issue/problem such as cold weather gelling, algae, a water dispersant, etc. Anything else is a waste of resources and adds to pollution.

In days of old you could tell that a diesel was making power if you had a good cloud of black smoke following you. The tree huggers didn't like that and now we have laws, regulations and the EPA to prevent things like that. Making smoke when you don't really need to (I personally don't mind laying out a good black cloud when passing mopeds) and burning weird stuff like ATF, 2 stroke oil (your engine is not a 2 stroke if you hadn't noticed) power steering fluid, or Dr Hook's snake oil is not a good thing to do and will result in further EPA restriction, an increase in fuel prices (ULSD is an example of that) and is just a bad idea.

Hounddog

Do you ever tow heavy? One reason they run better after pulling heavy for a extended period is EGT stays up there and lots of carbon goes out the tailpipe. Lots of REMAN factory parts are NEW.Has something to do with tax/business structure.Most of the REMAN gas engines I saw put in under warranty in a D.C. store were NEW engines.Painted a differant color and marked reman but they were not remans.

Bark

As has already been said, dont sweat the rmf engine. My uncle (worked 42 years on CAT and Cummins) firmly believes that a good rmf engine is better than new because everything (bearings, pistons, crank) gets mic'ed and fitted to a block and head that have had time to "season".

DiEseLjunKy

Wal Mart Supertech TCW3 is an ashless oil that's not supposed to create additional soot when burned. Specifically engineered not to. I'm pretty sure that's what the "TCW3" means and why that type of 2 stroke is what everyone recommends for our fuel. But a good place to ask about that and find out a definite answer about additional soot from burning 2 stroke oil in your diesel fuel would be the BITOG "Bob is the oil guy" forums do a google search..

truckjunkie

So I'm assuming you're installing gauges for the 'new remanufactured motor' ? You were asking about thermocouple locations in this other thread: https://www.dieseltruckresource.com/...d.php?t=178400

I was paranoid about installing the thermocouple in a location where Dodge might try to burn me for grenading a turbo, or an entire engine, so I installed mine post turbo - it was a ton easier to do, and I didn't worry about having pieces fall into the motor - I just unbolted the exhaust from the turbo and drilled carefully, then I wiped the inside clean.

Yeah - I know it's not as 'accurate' as pre-turbo, but I don't tow THAT heavy, and mostly use the gauge for shutdown purposes and looking for possible anomalies. I'm not adding any power adders until the warranty is up.

Pics are in my gallery.

Hounddog

www.bobistheoilguy.com

Blueboy

I had my motor replaced at 1800 miles. Bad oil pump.
The new motor came in on a pallet ready to drop in
wiring and all. I was told it was a brand new motor,
Now I am wondering if it was a reman motor.

Hounddog

Thats BRAND new off the assembly line.There is a mileage cutoff.Big differance from 1800 miles and 18,000 miles.But REMANS never come through with wiring,injectors,turbo etc.They were trying to keep you happy,fix as quickly and neatly as possable and NOT have to replace the truck,fix the broken one,sell it used,loose even more money etc.That was a REPS decision due to mileage.

John Halter

The turbo's are factory rebuilt also , I hope they did better on the engine rebuild my turbo only lasted 10,000 and is in the dealer right now waiting for another . This truck has turned into the most undependable truck I have ever owned and I can't understand why , I tow about 10% and car truck it the rest . Last time it took almost 3 weeks wait for the turbo but they claim they will have it fixed next week this time , so only one weeks down time . With injectors twice , 2 turbo's , steering u joints , vibrations in drive train , carrier bearings 6 week wait , drive shaft u joints I am about to give up on this truck . It amazes me how so many can put programmers on these engines and I can't get it to hold up to just normal use .

tiebox

I have to go w/Gunny on this, whats with the 2 stroke in the fuel?
I remember we used to use ATF for the lube effect and for a cleaner burn off (less carbon build up) but I'm talking 1970-80s I can never recall the shop using any oil eng. or 2 stroke.. and there was a big debate about the ATF as well Kinda went like this: if the manufacturer (Cummins or Mack) felt the pump or whatelse needed more lubrication don't ya think they would be the first to sell the end user a product for this, more money, less warranty work, etc...
Is there some actual fact/proof that we now should be adding something to the fuel for greater lubrication of the pump that will not void the warranty or promote greater carbon buildup or exhaust temps?
I myself am stock, towing everyday with no additives I asked our shop mechanic before I bought this truck and after reading forms on the subject,
should I be adding anything to the fuel? his reply was for what?
He will be retiring from Cummins in 7 years.
The remans are as good as the guy who puts it all together on that day, I myself would not second guess it the guys turning the wrenches are the pros its the guys up front ya gotta worry about.