I'm new here but have reading on this site and cumminsforum for a couple weeks now. This site has had some pretty serious technical knowledge in lots of threads. I need some help troubleshooting though. I can't come to a conclusion about what to fix on the truck. Most recently I am considering toying with the fan clutch...

Truck details:
03 2500 cummins 5.9l w 5 speed, stock other than exhaust, suspension, engine brake.
Also - it's my girlfriends truck. Some regular maintenance things that should be done (emptying the fuel filter canister, cleaning, etc. had been getting missed because she was taking it to different mechanics).

About two weeks ago the truck started cranking for a long time before start. Eventually it progressed into a crank forever / no start situation. It's always been hard to start under 45 degrees or so but this seems like a progression of the same issue. I changed the oil (regular maintenance) and the fuel filter this weekend, after the fuel filter was changed it started right up no issue, ran for three days, and died while running. Won't start again.

I tested the lift pump by bumping the starter and letting about a quart of fuel out of the fuel/water separator, which sounds like plenty to me based on flow discussions on this forum. It's been converted to the in-tank lift pump btw.

This led me to believe its the injector pump, but it sounds like there may be quite a few other electrical issues that could cause it to happen - so I pulled the codes using the key trick. Here's what I got.

P0602
P0480
P0477

The same day I changed the fuel filter: The battery terminals on the truck were looking pretty rough and had not been taken care of for some time so I used some baking soda/water mix to clean lightly with a toothbrush as well.

I'm really reluctant to take the truck in to have the pump replaced for $2700 or whatever they want. I'm going to tow it to my place so I can fix it. In the meantime, I bought her a 93 Mazda 323 for $850 to fart around in.

Looking forward to hearing from you guys. Cheers
John

 

I would take fuel line off at pump, see if you have fuel that far.
Do you have someone near you that you can change AFC with
to see if that helps,you can buy a new one for $115, if
yours is bad. Did you try clearing codes to see if they come back.

 

P0478 High Voltage On The Engine Brake Driver
P0480 Fan 1 Control Circuit
P0602 Checksum Error

The really concerning code is the P0602, that is an ECU death code. The rest could be the result of the 602 code. They all, including the hard start, could be the result of bad connections at the battery cables. All you can do is clean all the battery connections and the grounds under the hood and see if you can get the codes to clear.

The hard start could also be injectors. Try a squirt of some tye of starting fluid and see if that makes it fire faster. If it does and you can get rid of the codes you have a place to start looking for problems. You don't list miles but on an 03 if it has been driven much it is probably in the zone for injector problems.

 

If you are having hard start issues feel free to call in and talk to Mitch. He can help you trouble shoot.