Power lost intermetant

[Frustrated 2001]

I have power loss sometimes. 

Sometimes going down the road empty I am at 50% throttle to do 70 mph and turning 1700 rpms this is when I have power loss.

ALSO EGTS GO UP TO 1200 AND BOOST GOES UP TO 28

When running good I am at 23% throttle to do 70 mph 1700 rpms. boost 9 ish and egts 650 ish 

Things I have changed.

All electronic sensors.  

Vp pump has about 20000 miles on it.

Updated the programmer and re flashed the eco in the truck. 

 

This problem comes and goes. I can be driving down the road and all of a sudden it loses power.  Then maybe the next time I drive the truck it will have power again but not always. Really noticable while towing.

somtimes it will run good for a month sometimes a day.

Sometimes it runs bad for a month sometimes a day. 

When running bad it will get 6to7 mpg towing and 10 empty. 

When running good I get 11 towing and 16 empty.  Which I am happy with 

I tow a 4500lbs all aluminum toy hauler and I will get passed by an f150 towing a larger trailer then me up a 3% grade.

Very embarrassing. 

Any advice appreciated 

 

 

[Mopar1973Man]

 

More than like a cause is excessive AC noise. Test the alternator for AC voltage and report back.

 

If the alternator is failing or marginal then you'll want to replace the alternator.

 

After the alternator is replaced, I would suggest you do the W-T ground mod.

 

Then if this is too confusing I've got my simple version of the article.

 

[Frustrated 2001]

Can I do this with a volt meter?

 

Never mind I am reading the instructions now 

Sorry didn't realize there was a link there.

My bad

[Mopar1973Man]

2 hours ago, Frustrated 2001 said:

Can I do this with a volt meter?

 

Yes but the voltmeter has to have a 2V or 20mV AC option. If you volt meter only has like 200V option then it's not going to work. If the volt meter responds with a 29 to 31 volts its too cheap of a meter. Typically a good DVM around $100 buck will do it. Like I've got a old Fluke 75 which can measure multi-frequency down in the mV range AC.

[dripley]

My $30 Innova will do it also. I only have one ac setting and it does the adjustment automatically. I checked against my electricians Fluke that had only one ac selection also. The readings were very close.

[skyhigh4by]

It might be worth your time to check/clean any grounds you can trace down too. I replaced diode in my alternator and cleaned up all my grounds and battery connections and it was suddenly like a whole new truck. I was having all kinds of driveability issues before that. 

[Mopar1973Man]

8 hours ago, skyhigh4by said:

It might be worth your time to check/clean any grounds you can trace down too

 

Umm... That ground is here... This is the important one! All the other grounds are rather meaningless subsystems. (lights, horn, etc) You might do the ground wire mod and never look back to this problem again.

 

 

[Frustrated 2001]

Thanks for the info I will work on it in a few days when I get a day off of work.

 

[Frustrated 2001]

So I checked ac volts and I am at .05 volts.

I am guessing my next steps would be 

Ground mod

Diodes in the alternator 

And clean all other grounds. 

 

[int3man]

So I am having Intermittent Cut out issues, like the Engine shuts off for about 20 minutes then runs strong for the next 8 hours really confusing,  Not related to Bumps in the road either.
 

Alternator was replaced by previous owner.  I should check the output voltage for AC Ripple on the DC output.  I think my Fluke is a True RMS meter.

 

I'll Read more on this.  Thanks!  Great info!!

Edited August 29, 2018 by int3man
TYPO

[Mopar1973Man]

1 hour ago, int3man said:

Alternator was replaced by previous owner.  I should check the output voltage for AC Ripple on the DC output.

 

I was replacing alternators every 3 months last year. Just because the last owner replaced it doesn't mean it working correctly. I've found 2 alternators in the box that failed on the test stand...

[int3man]

So rereading the original post this miss-wiring can cause the torque converter to Lockup and Unlock intermittently?  I was sitting in a gas station and was reaching to put the truck into park when it Jumped.  I think that the torque converter locked up.  And driving down the road and if it went out of lock up it would slip and feel like a loose of power.

 

Michael

[Mopar1973Man]

If you wanting to do mystery switch I suggest that you talk to @IBMobile on his lock up switch it works way better than these hacked switches you see out there. 

[JAG1]

On 8/20/2018 at 12:56 PM, Frustrated 2001 said:

So I checked ac volts and I am at .05 volts.

I am guessing my next steps would be 

Ground mod

Diodes in the alternator 

And clean all other grounds. 

 

When doing these, esp. W-T's grounding mods, made a huge difference on reducing AC ripple. The truck even seems to run better, and idles with a perfect smoothness. Could be my imagination, but the truck sounds so good you just want to sit and listen to it.

[int3man]

1 hour ago, Mopar1973Man said:

If you wanting to do mystery switch I suggest that you talk to @IBMobile on his lock up switch it works way better than these hacked switches you see out there. 

The Previous owner has a switch installed that locks the converter in second for towing a hill. that way...  well you know..

 

Michael

[Mopar1973Man]

Might still take a look at his design. He's got a floor switch for holding lockup for deceleration for exhaust brake use and self cancelling if you touch the brakes this way you never coming to a stop locked up. Like I said his design is well beyond the simple mystery switch. 

 

 

Edited August 29, 2018 by Mopar1973Man

[int3man]

Now that is sexy!  Plus you don;t have to take your hands off the wheel.

 

Lots to learn.

Thanks again.

Michael.

 

[Mopar1973Man]

The wild part is I've seen this truck in person twice now. Once to install his first VP44 and the second time to just have dinner as they passed through Idaho. @IBMobile is a very talented man and got some wonderful ideas for these trucks. 

 

(Psst...) we are currently working on another secret squirrel project for these trucks too... 

[Rogan]

I had a similar issue with an 01 automatic.  From initial startup to about 140-145*F coolant temp, it would not go above about 17-1800 and had no power.  As soon as it reached 140+F, it ran like normal.  Come to find out, it was an issue with the circuit board inside the VP44; this is considered a non-serviceable part, requiring VP44 replacement.  What was occurring was than when the engine was cool, there was a 'break' in the board's circuit, causing the VP to limp, basically.  Once the engine reached a certain temp range, the expansion of parts regained circuit contact, closing the circuit, and boom! Rand normally..   I never fixed it, just drove it accordingly.  Just food for thought...