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Engine failure 2015 ram 1500 ecodiesel

8K views 24 replies 8 participants last post by  Haul N Grass 
#1 ·
Hello all, new to the forum and need some help. Here is the background. I noticed that there was water leaking from the back of the engine. Did a little research and found that the water feeder tube has a history of going bad. So I decided to fix it myself. I had already changed the fuel rail on my own so what the heck. Took off the intake manifold and both fuel rails. Long story short, I tore into it and replaced the water feeder tube.
The issue is when I tried to start it. It turned over for about 10 seconds or so. Sounded like it was trying to start a little. Then I heard a knock and the engine would not budge. It acted like it water seized. This weekend I looked a little closer and discovered that the engine is not completely seized, I can turn the crank by hand backwards and it moves fine until I get back to almost the starting position and then it wont go any further. I can then turn in forward almost 360 degrees until it stops again. Any ideas on what might have happened?

The engine has 155,000 miles on it. Ran great up to this point for the most part. Any help would be greatly appreciated!!

Thanks
 
#6 ·
Hey guys, thanks for responding. I have to be honest, I wouldn't consider myself a mechanic. Just fairly mechanically inclined, able to follow clilton diy instructions, and motivated to avoid the VERY large repair bill. LOL..
I did drop the oil pan to see what I could find. There was nothing out of the ordinary in the pan.
I did find the leak. There is about a 3 inch section of the water feeder line that consists of a rubber hose. There was a 1 inch gash in the hose. I feel like I is something that has to do with a valve being stuck down in the cylinder and not letting the piston come all the way up so the crank can rotate over the lob but, I am not really sure what the mechanicals of the head look like or what is entailed in getting them off. Was wondering if maybe I just fell victim of the cam gear slip issue but, I really don't know what the result of that slippage really is?
 
#9 ·
That is what stumped me as well. It ran perfectly fine when I pulled it into my garage. Would the timing being off be a cause of the crank not wanting to rotate fully? Could I take the valve cover off to diagnose the cause or do I need to pull the head off? I also forgot to mention that the injectors are out of the vehicle. The first thing we did was pull them to see if we could turn the crank by hand. first thought was that it was hydrolocked. Now I am kind of wondering if maybe it got hot enough to damage the head and let coolant in the chambers some how. No water appeared to be in the oil though.
 
#10 ·
Please clarify no injectors,no water in cylinders? And engine still locks up ?
Injectors pulled after engine locked up ? No chance foreign object dropping into cylinder ? If I’m guessing this correctly I believe a foreign object fell into the intake then slid into a cylinder....
Because it doesn’t make sense to slip timing....
 
#12 ·
Sorry for not being clear. when I got it back together I tried to start it.. it turned over multiple times then I heard a knock and it stopped/locked up. Took it to a regular Mechanic (not diesel) and he thought maybe the water pump was siezed or something like that. He took the belt off and said it was locked up. He then took the injectors out and said it was still locked up. I went and got it and took it to my garage. I took the oil pan off and found nothing. then i tried to turn it by hand and it was still locked. I then tried to turn it back counter clockwise and it turned pretty easy until it got just under 360 degrees and it stopped again. I could then go back clockwise for almost 360. It spins freely back and forth now but will not clear that one spot. I hope that covers it.
It is always possible that something could have fallen down in a cylinder and I just didnt notice it but it would have to be something metal. I would also think that if something fell down in there it wouldnt have turned over as many times at it did before it locked up?
 
#13 ·
Difficult to diagnose reading internet, Anyhow you need to run a borescope down each cylinder you’ll eliminate questions and possibly find your answer.... Unfortunately if you drop a foreign object into a intake passage it could take a little while before it works it’s way down into the cylinder...Better it happened without engine running ...

Again if I’m understanding and reading correctly your engine will not turn over completely in one direction? You where stating it locks up solid correct?

As you stated it was running perfectly until you pulled it apart and reassembled....
 
#16 ·
I had already changed the fuel rail on my own so what the heck. Took off the intake manifold and both fuel rails. Long story short, I tore into it and replaced the water feeder tube.
The issue is when I tried to start it. It turned over for about 10 seconds or so. Sounded like it was trying to start a little. Then I heard a knock and the engine would not budge. -------I can then turn in forward almost 360 degrees until it stops again. Any ideas on what might have happened?



Thanks
Something found its way into the intake. Either the intake valve or into the piston. It turned over for several seconds maybe as it was priming the new fuel rail. Then what ever found its way into the intake path became jammed.

You can rotate by hand to determine which cylinder is at TDC, assuming the problem is in the combustion chamber. The problem could be in the intake valve track.
 
#17 ·
UPDATE: sure enough. A torx bit somehow fell into the middle cylinder on the drivers side. Now my challenge is how to get it out without removing the cylinder head. Have tried wire with a magnet but the bit has broken in half and is pressed to the top of the cylinder. Tried using the wire to break it lose but cant get it blindly.. any other ideas?
 
#18 ·
I would turn it to raise the piston as far as you can and still reach the bit in the top of the cylinder with a screwdriver or round punch through the injector port and see if you can dislodge it and then get it out with the magnet. If that or something similar succeeds the next question is how severely is the piston damaged and is it likely to destroy itself when running and cause significant engine damage. I am not sure how that can be definitively be determined so it might be st to just give up now and plan on replacing the piston. It will be interesting to continue reading about this story. Good luck for sure!
 
#19 ·
Pictures would be nice , But unfortunately your best option is to remove the head and possibly replace the questionable piston depending on markings.. Making sure you cover the rod end while removing and installing it not to damage cylinder walls or crankshaft..
Most likely this is not what you’d like to hear..... Good Luck....
 
#20 ·
Only if you have good control of the magnet, you can try epoxy on the tip. Let the glue set up to full hardness and then see if that gets you enough grip to pull the torx bit out.
 
#21 ·
UPDATE: First, thank you all for the input. I have tried now for a while to get the torx bit out of the cylinder and have not been able to do it. 1. The bit is made of Pot Metal so it is not attracted to a magnet. 2. I believe the piece is just big enough not to go through the injector hole.
I have determined that the head is going to have to come off. My new question is, has anyone had to do this? Can you tell me if it can be done without taking the cab off the truck? how hard is it?

My other concern is that I am sure the bit has pressed into the piston. I do not know yet if it has created a hole or anything like that. Next question, how complex is it to replace the piston if needed?
Any input would be appreciated!!!
 
#25 ·
I would definitely replace the rod as well As the piston... Again make sure you tape the rod so it doesn’t scratch the cylinder on the way up. Also be very careful sliding the new piston/Rod assembly down the cylinder again tape everything up not to damage cylinder or Crankshaft....Good Luck...

BTW This is a 2 person job ...
 
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