Doubletrouble

I found this random black wire that was just sitting on top of a bolt near the abs unit. Not sure what it is, looks like maybe a ground wire but not sure. Anyone know what it may be for? It seems to split from the harness just before the abs. See pics, hopefully you can see where it comes from.

Yes it is. Union job to so there is a level of security in a sense as well. I'll just ride it out and see what happens. Unemployment will get me through for the time being.

Mine radiator is already like that. I have plans once it warms up to flush the cooling system, pull the radiator and flush it out separately, then degrease it. Going to replace the thermostat and maybe the water pump as well just as a precaution. My engine temp doesn't stay where it should and the heat from the vents could be better. Driving down the road she will be a hair over 190° on the gauge but when I stop even for just a red light it will start to drop and level off about 170° at idle. I have plenty of maintenance to do simply because I'd didn't know the previous owners and their maintenance habits.

So far other than the breather can in front of the engine I believe mine is leak free. Very little oil under the truck from that. From there back she is dry as a bone.

Moper1973man, That's basically where I want to go with my truck. Longevity and reliability. If I pick up some extra horse power and economy along the way so be it. Will be staying with the stock tire size and don't really use my truck to its full potential. Just wanted a long lasting platform hence the Cummins

I've been hanging out here quite frequently, just reading and learning about my truck and what others are doing. Very interesting to me and a great bunch of people here.

JAG1, I don't want to jack the thread so I'll be quick. I drive a car hauler for a living, automotive industry is up and down with certain times of year. All in all the job/pay and benefits to me are worth waiting for. They project a 2-4 week lay off tops. That's what I'm hoping for. Fingers crossed! I really do like the job, hate to jump ship.

Being a 2nd gen owner and living in Northwest Ohio I have some rust on my truck. Most do around here. I have been reading, searching and reading some more about rust prevention. I have some rust on my '01 3500 that will get repaired/replaced with new metal but I am curious to see what everyone on the site here is doing to prevent this vehicle eating monster from getting their truck. I have read that an oil based undercoating that is applied annually seems to work pretty well. It would have to be included in your maintenance program in the fall for winter preparation but has been pretty effective. There is also a DIY variant that could be done at home with used motor oil and diesel fuel mixed 50/50 and a hand pump sprayer. I have not tried this yet but I am giving it a lot of thought. I'd like to hear from others on the site to see what their rust preventative measures are. Not looking to start a debate about EPA approved this or that, just what works for you and no judgement on your regiment. Thanks

If I were back to work I'd throw out an offer. Been laid off for over a week now, hoping to get called back soon. I'll check back when I do to see if you still have it.

I haven't seen any bio around here but I really haven't been looking for it either if that makes sense.

Honestly with the Cummins I am not planning on oil additives just using synthetic. I was curious if anyone here had used it. I have been using 2 cycle oil in the fuel lately per some discussions on this site. I have noticed a bit of improvement with it in the tank.

$1000 is a lot of money wrapped up in lighting. They look awesome in the pic, I'll give you that. I don't have that kind of coin to spend on it for now. Maybe down the road. They look extremely bright though. Nice work!

Since I recently bought this truck (see sig) I noticed the PO had installed the left front wheel cover incorrectly. The center hub cover is on right but the large dish that covers the wheel itself is off center. Do I have to remove the lug nuts to straighten this cover? I haven't messed with it yet but planning on it later today just because it's irritating me. Lol I believe these are factory covers but not sure. I'll try to zoom in on a pic and post it.

Does anyone run an oil additive (IE: lucas oil stabilizer) or anything such as this? I have a 1995 GMC K1500 with 360,000 miles that I would use this in. 1 quart of Lucas in place of 1 quart of oil. It seemed to help with oil consumption on that high milage engine. Just curious, I know alot of people refer to them as "snake oils" but I did have some results with that stuff so thought I would ask.

Waiting, I need new headlights as well. I know what you mean, soooo many choices

The cruise in my manual '01 isn't setting itself but when I set it there seems to be a long delay before it takes over. I set it and usually it won't kick in until I let off the pedal and loose 5-10mph then it kicks in.

This is a project I will definitely be doing at some point. It may be a while but it will be on the list. I will try to have all the pieces and parts needed before tearing into the dash in an effort to make it a little quicker and smoother with good end results.

I have a vacuum pump and gauges for the a/c. I will probably have a buddy help as well. I will try to not have the truck down any longer than needed as it is now my only truck. I am selling the other 2 GM's I have. Time to thin the heard in a sense.

How long does it take to pull the dash and replace the top along with the heater core and evap? Just curious, I'll need to do this at some point, my dash is cracking badly and have a couple pieces missing already. I would go ahead and do the HVAC service while I have it all out and accessable.

Ok, this morning the temp is 15°F. Went out turned the key on popped the hood and felt for heat at the grid heater, seemed to be warming. Cycled the key to run the grids a second time then cranked and she fired right up on the 2nd or 3rd revolution. Must have been something I did. I will have to pay more attention to what I am doing when I start her up cold like that. Chalk that up to inexperience with this engine and truck I guess.

I'll plug in if it gives me trouble again. It may very well be me not being used to the truck yet, my first diesel pickup. I need to know how to cold start it for when I'm at work. It'll sit 8-12 hours at night when I'm working. I've watched several videos of 5.9 vp engines cold starting and mine does seem that bad now. Lol I'll try it again in the morning and report back. On a side note, how do I resize a pic to fit in my sig?

Temp overnight will be close to last night, I did not plug her in just to check things in the morning. I will cycle the grids twice and make sure I hold the dang key longer this time and see how things go. I'll also put a hand on the intake near the grids to feel for warmth.

Is it possible that I simply let off the key to soon? The first time I was thinking gasser, as soon as it fired I let off of cranking.

Pretty flat around here, may have to back it up on to something. Also, how would it loose prime? Something not sealed properly? Wouldn't that leak while under pressure? Assuming it's on the pressure side of the LP.

So this morning the temp outside was 14° F and I went out to fire up the truck so she had time to warm up. It started but reluctantly. I am new to this diesel truck world other than the large semi trucks. This is how it went: Turned on key got the wait to start light, waited for it to go out and cranked the motor, as soon as she started to fire I let the key go, she died. Cycled the key, WTS light went out and cranked again. This time she fired I held the key to start a bit longer. Thought it started to run, she died. WTS light again, then cycled key, WTS light a second time, cranked til she took off. She ran then. Grid heaters are working from what I can tell (after it's running lights dim, amp gauge drops when they cycle). Am I doing something wrong here or could there be a problem? How easily or difficult should it be to start at about 14° (real feel was 4° with wind chill, truck was facing into the wind as well). With my lack of experience with the dodge/Cummins combo I don't know if there is something I may be doing wrong or should do differently or if I should be concerned at this point. Thanks for any replies! Also, just some extra info, the lift pump does run, checked the fuel pres. Not long ago, had 18psi at idle.