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Hey everyone an intro with a question

2K views 14 replies 6 participants last post by  techtoME 
#1 ·
Hey all, long time occasional lurker, I had made a few posts on an old account around the first year or so after I first got my truck, but I can’t remember any of that info.

A quick intro of my truck and myself; 2014 Outdoorsman 4x2 with about 170K miles, GDE tune that I’m disappointed with and rear airbags but otherwise stock, engine replaced around 45K and a long list of other repairs to go with it, the majority of the miles on the truck are from daily towing of about 6000 lbs; I’m born and raised in AZ, have worked as an auto tech for the last 17 years but have just recently switched back to school for mechanical engineering with a concentration on energy and environment.

My question is...would it be beneficial for enough people for me to do a write up on cylinder head removal of these engines? I've got a seized glow plug and my first emissions test coming up so I'll be tearing into it starting in about a week. I've not found an existing write-up for the procedure outside of All Data and would like to contribute to something like this, but it's expensive even for DIY so I'm questioning if a comprehensive write-up is warranted. What do you all think?
 
#2 ·
Taking pictures during the project , and then making a PDF file ,
is welcome here on the site .
I made such a tutorial for EGR cooler delete , step by step ,
some have used it , I'm sure a lot of people would download your
description of the cylinder head project , no pressure , posted when you feel it is presentable .
..
here is my exemple ,,, had to break PDF file in 2 parts , the site does not take big files .
: https://www.ram1500diesel.com/forum...8-egr-cooler-stage-2-delete-instructions.html
..
I have seen posts that contained many images , and text , but I have no idea how they posted more than 5 images in one post ,
5 images has always been the maximum I could put in .
 
#3 ·
#4 ·
..
did you see the threads about stuck glow plugs ??
maybe youcould avoid removing your heads using tricks and advice in the threads....
Yes I do remember seeing those early in my research. I've come across different broken glow plug tool kits but they're either too generic for my liking and the high quality kits are engine specific, and there aren't any kits specific to our engine from what I can find. I've done enough repairs on blown out spark plugs from Ford 2V engines to lose faith in cheap helicoils, and my biggest concern is effectively removing every aluminum chip that falls into the cylinder through the small bore of the glow plug.

Good advice on putting in a PDF! I've always seen step by steps just written in forums but that would make it easier!
 
#9 ·
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No Helicoil stuff , just removing slowly ...

first link , posts 15,20,21 ( specially 21 )
..
second link , posts :# 14,17,22.
OP noted "" 20 hours "" labor from dealer replacing his cylinder head for a seized glow plug ....
Yep book time on All Data is 19.3 for both heads. Going slow with multiple soaks was the first thing I tried before even turning to the internet, I have given it several hours already of of soaking and slowly turning, soaking and slowly turning, and I've had no luck removing it. Perhaps more attempts at that will do it but at what point do I call it and pull the head? Trust me I'm not excited about tearing into this thing I'm still upset and convinced that it should've been done under warranty when I still had one.
 
#5 ·
Welcome to the forum - First and second post.

Sure the forum can benefit from any information on maintenance and repair. Go for it at a level comfortable for you.

Would be nice if you did a follow-up to explain why you are disappointed with your GDE. You speak to that early-on with no details. Inquiring minds want to know.
 
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#6 ·
Yes any and all information would be highly appreciated. I doubt many here have attempted anything as in depth as cylinder head removal. Also as the Captain mentioned above, more info as to your disappointment with the GDE tune.
 
#8 ·
So regarding the GDE...I’ve had it for a couple years now. Aside from the more aggressive tow mode that I paid the extra for and the lower cruise set speed I’ve seen zero changes with that ECM. No increase in fuel or DEF efficiency, no noticeable acceleration or lag changes. I read so many glowing reviews about it I expected significant changes but not for me.

I reached out to them, admittedly too long after install my fault not theirs, just to see what help they could offer. I wasn’t looking for a refund, I was just asking if I could send it back to them to have it checked for whatever might be wrong after explaining that I’ve seen no results; I’m a mechanic but no programmer so I don’t know if it’s possible for a tune to be written incompletely or something and I paid a lot of money for no results so was just looking for some customer support. They told me “if the cruise sets below 20 then the tune is present”. They did offer without me asking to give a 50% refund in exchange for a stock ECM but I decided on keeping it because I did appreciate the tow mode, but damn that was an expensive tow mode modification.
 
#14 ·
You are essentially missing the main reason for GDE. It is NOT a performance modification. No NO NO.What it is a modification to turn off the EGR system, quiet down the DEF sensors and make your engine run clean without as many CEL issues. It is a very successful modification that many feel is essential to longevity and clean operation. You obviously are intelligent but seemed to have missed the entire point of GDE.

Tried to explain it to you. Sometimes people struggle to understand.
 
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#10 ·
Maybe a dumb question but while you are soaking it and turning it are you tightening it as well as loosening it back-and-forth? I just did one yesterday on my truck with 218000 miles, I was really dreading it. I ended up taking an air blower and blowing out everything I could in the vicinity. Then I sprayed some good lube on it. I used quarter drive hand tools and just loosened then tightened it while counting the turns then stopped for a few minutes to let it cool down. All in all it took about 30 minutes before I felt comfortable enough that it would come out. I may have just gotten super lucky but it went better than I thought it would.
 
#11 ·
Yes I’ve done that over a number of tries, the last time I worked it, it felt as if there is so much buildup on the the tip of the plug that it can’t back out. Since time is no longer a luxury with the emissions test coming up its time to bite the bullet unfortunately
 
#12 ·
Just wanted to provide a quick update on this...torn down to the timing chains, the aftermarket cam tools I purchased did not align properly so I'm waiting on tools from Mopar Essentials before I can proceed. I have about 10-12 hours into it so far which includes figuring out certain tools needed, and I'm working on the write-up to this point since I've got some down time. More updates coming soon!
 
#13 ·
Looking forward to your write up! I don't have a need to replace any injectors at the moment but I appreciate the time, effort and frustrations with projects like this - I've done write ups with pictures and instructions for engine swaps, suspension upgrades and drivetrain R&R's and understand the extra time it takes to document the entire process.

Thanks again!


Bob
 
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