Reset camshaft crankshaft thingy? I think....

[CaptainXL]

Technically speaking it doesnt matter what the gauges say for the most part. They could be out of calibration for all we know. There also could be high resistance on the signal wire.

The only way to know if your engine is getting to the proper temp is by using a scan tool. Do you think the dealer checks your gauges to see if the tstat is broken? Didnt think so! They hook up a Tech2.

For instance Torque will tell me my temp is 195 F when the gauge is well below the halfway mark. Although this is fine for the pcm it takes a few miles driving to get it to settle down at the halfway point.

Use your tools.

 

[Voymom]

Technically speaking it doesnt matter what the gauges say for the most part. They could be out of calibration for all we know. There also could be high resistance on the signal wire.

The only way to know if your engine is getting to the proper temp is by using a scan tool. Do you think the dealer checks your gauges to see if the tstat is broken? Didnt think so! They hook up a Tech2.

For instance Torque will tell me my temp is 195 F when the gauge is well below the halfway mark. Although this is fine for the pcm it takes a few miles driving to get it to settle down at the halfway point.

Use your tools.

I don't have a scan tool...that's the issue. I have the torque app, but waiting on the dongle. I know I can't rely 100% on my gauges. The mechanic who ran the tech2 on the truck did say I had a "sticky" t-stat but did not elaborate on the actual numbers.

 

[CaptainXL]

Hmm. Got to pick on you here Tami. All that electronics knowledge as a hammy yet no scan tools. Hehe. Sorry.

 

[Voymom]

Hmm. Got to pick on you here Tami. All that electronics knowledge as a hammy yet no scan tools. Hehe. Sorry.

I have a police scanner...but I suppose that won't do me any good with the thermostat

 

[Denali n DOO]

The 180 limit is where you start doing damage to the cat. Found this out by downloading ths pcm codes and conditions for the cel to be set. I think its on the os. It shows you all theconditions that must be met in order to trip a cel or code. I will see if I can find it again. It a hefty 50 page printout at least.

Hmmm, not trying to hijack thread but I have one question, after reading posts above yesterday for curiosity sake I plugged in the scanner and went for a drive to look at coolant temp. Mine is a 5.3 and maybe different operating temp? Here is what I noticed, warmed up idling temp goes 194-196, drive around town it's 190-192 and when I get on the hiway doing 75 it drops to 186. That is getting close to the 180 mark, does this mean I have potential thermostat issues?

also noticed a crackling tingling sound from under the truck, maybe cat?

Also remember this engine has had oil in the coolant reservoir before as well.

Thanks.

 

[CaptainXL]

Hmmm, not trying to hijack thread but I have one question, after reading posts above yesterday for curiosity sake I plugged in the scanner and went for a drive to look at coolant temp. Mine is a 5.3 and maybe different operating temp? Here is what I noticed, warmed up idling temp goes 194-196, drive around town it's 190-192 and when I get on the hiway doing 75 it drops to 186. That is getting close to the 180 mark, does this mean I have potential thermostat issues?

also noticed a crackling tingling sound from under the truck, maybe cat?

Also remember this engine has had oil in the coolant reservoir before as well.

Thanks.

Sounds like a blown head gasket if its engine oil not transmission fluid. Check the radiator cap and see if oil is in there. Get one of those combustion leak testers you put blue liquid into and pump the bulb to see if the fluid changes color.

[video]http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=QA7KVQq9vKA[/video]

I would post the temp question on the 5.3 forum. I'm not sure if its a 195 stat or not. If it is I would say its bad. Especially if it takes a long time to reach temp.

 

[Voymom]

Sounds like a blown head gasket if its engine oil not transmission fluid. Check the radiator cap and see if oil is in there. Get one of those combustion leak testers you put blue liquid into and pump the bulb to see if the fluid changes color.

[video]http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=QA7KVQq9vKA[/video]

I would post the temp question on the 5.3 forum. I'm not sure if its a 195 stat or not. If it is I would say its bad. Especially if it takes a long time to reach temp.

I would also think the t-stat is bad if it goes by the same temp specs as ours. But with a bigger engine it could be different. It's not a hard job to do, as i'm sure you already know. Although sometimes simple procedures on these trucks can turn into a real pain in the ass quickly.

Now...correct me if i'm wrong, but milky white exhaust from the muffler/resonator would also be one sign of a blown head gasket. I also thought a blown head gasket would be caused by running the truck to hot? Then again it could just be a leaking head gasket and not completely blown? I had a Chevy Beretta that blew a head gasket from this same exact issue though...coolant in the oil. I would get it double checked. If you still have the warranty on the truck, I would drive it into the shop and DEMAND someone to find out what's wrong since this isn't the first time you dealt with this issue. I would tell them you are NOT leaving until they fix the problem. I would get it done ASAP....Not sure about Canada but don't they also follow the same lemon laws? After a 3rd time of the same breakdown, they have to buy back the truck or give you a new one? I may be wrong though.

 

[CaptainXL]

Tami. You dont have a blown headgasket so why are we talking about it? You need to work on your vehicle and stop going on these tangents. Focus. You got a progress report?

 

[meerschm]

Tami. You dont have a blown headgasket so why are we talking about it? You need to work on your vehicle and stop going on these tangents. Focus. You got a progress report?

She is a mom and qualified multi-tasker.

 

[NewfieEnvoy]

Tami the anticipation is killing me!!! I have no doubt that you'll eventually find the solution to this problem, but in the mean time I can't wait to find out

 

[Voymom]

Tami. You dont have a blown headgasket so why are we talking about it? You need to work on your vehicle and stop going on these tangents. Focus. You got a progress report?

It's the day before a major Holiday (Thanksgiving) I deserve a little slack

Newfie- I can't wait either...this has been going on 9 months to long lol. The issue will HAVE to show it's ugly face one of these days

Meerschm- Thank you! But sometimes with 6 kids, a some what crippled truck, and a huge Holiday right around the corner...multi-tasking just isn't enough. I feel like I need 8 arms and 3 brains to juggle everything I have to do every day.

I will have a progress report this weekend!!! Tomorrow is Thanksgiving (Happy Turkey Day!!!) and Friday....well it's black Friday and I'm likely going shopping and then coming home and taking a nap lol. So Saturday I will jump back on the ship and sail into the rest of my tests and scans

 

[Voymom]

Okay, so I tried the CMP again....I DID notice that when I unplugged the camshaft position sensor that the symptoms did decrease. When I plugged it back in, the symptoms went back to being pretty bad. Unplugged I still had a slight drop in RPM's when hitting the gas, but it didn't drop past the 550 RPM area, and no real threats of stalling either.

When I plugged it back in, my RPM's again started to drop to the 200-300 area when hitting the gas, and the truck wanted to desperately stall out. I don't think I drove the truck long enough without the CMP sensor to completely rule it out. So we are just going to replace it and see what happens. I haven't gotten any codes still...I did pull the typical P0340 code for the CMP when I unplugged it, but I understand that the CMP can be functioning just enough to keep the SES light off while plugged in.

EDIT- Well that was a pointless $40.00. I changed the CMP sensor and it did no good. Symptoms stayed the same. Not quite as bad, but still there and still very noticeable.

 

[NewfieEnvoy]

Not quite as bad.....

If you see improvement, even small, than it was probably flaky and needed replacement. Still not the major thorn in your side but doesn't sound like you wasted money. Keep your spirits up and look at the bright side, every test that fails brings you one step closer to the solution.
Go Tami Go
[video=youtube_share;VZ2HcRl4wSk]http://youtu.be/VZ2HcRl4wSk[/video]

 

[gmcman]

Voymom, have you ever changed the MAP sensor? Located at the top of the intake. It's not a cheap sensor but generally throws an occasional code if faulty. If anyone here is close to you perhaps you could try theirs. Also not terribly expensive wither it's just I know you don't want to throw $$$ at sensors based on a hunch.

 

[CaptainXL]

Voymom, have you ever changed the MAP sensor? Located at the top of the intake. It's not a cheap sensor but generally throws an occasional code if faulty. If anyone here is close to you perhaps you could try theirs. Also not terribly expensive wither it's just I know you don't want to throw $$$ at sensors based on a hunch.

The pcm does a sanity check on the map sensor so i woulldnt replace it unless you have a code. You can unplug it to see if the engine runs the same though. Better to do first is to check the engine vacuum with a gauge.

Voymom said she has a Chiltons manual. So she can lookup how to check vacuum. Its a simple proceedure and tells a lot about what might be wrong with an engine based on the type of reading.

 

[NewfieEnvoy]

Tami that 44k must be in a week now, any difference?

 

[Voymom]

Tami that 44k must be in a week now, any difference?

Nope no difference. Combustion test will be done Thursday .

 

[CaptainXL]

Nope no difference. Combustion test will be done Thursday .

I think you mean compression test not a combustion leak test.

Make sure to do a vacuum gauge test as well.

 

[Voymom]

I think you mean compression test not a combustion leak test.

Make sure to do a vacuum gauge test as well.

Compression.....combustion at this point I dont know if im coming or going lol vacuum gauge test will probably be done Friday.

 

[Voymom]

Well, My husband got me a PCMforless tune as a Christmas gift, and we had it put in today as an early gift. I just want to let you all know, that for some reason after the new PCM was put in, we could no longer replicate the stalling or stuttering issue. The RPM's no longer drop when trying to push on the gas pedal either. So it seems as if we fixed the issue.

I will wait another week or 2 to make sure the problems don't come back before I fully claim it 100% solved!

 

[gmcman]

That's great news, hopefully your issues are solved. I wonder if it was a bad connection or just a failing ECM, either way you have a tune!

Let us know how much better the voy runs.....keep us posted.

 

[Voymom]

That's great news, hopefully your issues are solved. I wonder if it was a bad connection or just a failing ECM, either way you have a tune!

Let us know how much better the voy runs.....keep us posted.

I would jump up and down and claim how much better it runs but I would be lying lol. I LOVE the tune, but since the battery took a shit on us when doing the security relearn, the issue is back and officially worse, as now it stutters and acts like it want to stall in idle without anyone even in the truck.

We need to replace the battery

 

[newfie6719]

have u tried resetting the pcm after the engine is warmed up to temp

 

[Voymom]

have u tried resetting the pcm after the engine is warmed up to temp

It is a new PCM but yes we have....I am 100% sure it's the battery as the problem got worse after we had the battery die on us and had it jumped.

 

[gmcman]

When the engine is running your voltage is being supplied by the alternator. Not saying you may not have a bad battery, but at idle all the electronics are very happy at around 13.8V or higher.

Could your issue be a CASE problem with both ECM's, did you perform the CASE relearn yet on the new one?


For the veterans of CASE problems, could the ECM ever lose the stored value if the ECM is never removed and if so, what could cause the ECM to lose the stored value?

Just tossing out ideas.

 

[Sparky]

When the engine is running your voltage is being supplied by the alternator. Not saying you may not have a bad battery, but at idle all the electronics are very happy at around 13.8V or higher.

Could your issue be a CASE problem with both ECM's, did you perform the CASE relearn yet on the new one?


For the veterans of CASE problems, could the ECM ever lose the stored value if the ECM is never removed and if so, what could cause the ECM to lose the stored value?

Just tossing out ideas.

I don't know how these trucks react but some vehicles do all sorts of crazy stuff when the battery is shot, even though it is running off the alternator. My parent's Chrysler did some really screwy things when the battery died. They jumped it and the dashboard was going crazy until they got a new battery installed. Crazy as in gauges spazzing (speedo didn't thankfully), idiot lights randomly going off, you name it.

My truck for example with the TCCM failed was causing my radio to shut down and wouldn't turn back on until I turned off the key and back on. I know, sounds screwy, but the issue went away once I replaced it. Coincidental? Maybe.

With how these vehicles are so interconnected and computerized anymore, one system not working right can trigger weirdness elsewhere.

 

[Voymom]

Well we had the battery tested before we put the tune in and it had a slightly low charge, but other than that it was functioning fine. We got the tune, and during the 40 minute security relearn the battery took a complete crap on us. Mat had our landlord jump the battery and it has been okay ever since, besides the fact that the stuttering issue was back and worse. I could hear the engine bog down from inside my house as I left it idling to warm up. When it would bog down the tach was all over the place..mainly just falling in idle RPM's and going back to 600. It was happening every 3 seconds.

I have not done the CASE yet....Mat needs to take it in.

 

[Phantom]

It wont corrode anything. Its comprised of jet fuel and mineral spirits. Those are fuel oils. It treats up to 20 gallons so I wouldnt fill the tank up all the way. About 1/2 to 3/4 of a tank would be about right. There are no instructions on the can.



And your using the fill method to calculate this ? This figure seems suspicious.

So the hand calculation on MPGs are 15.5 and that's with our heavy feet. Lol.