07 Vision Aset EGR Question

[alcoon61]

Thinking long shot here and looking for advice. A week ago I blew off a radiator hose and lost my antifreeze. Hose wasnt busted blew off the radiator on top. Put it back on, let it cool down for two hours and filled it with water and ran it on home. Left out two days later on a 300 mile run to Dallas and no problems running down the road. Noticed at the truck stop that night I was getting some overflow coming out the overflow tank cap. After idling a while it quit but it was sloshing out the radiator cap pretty good with the cap off. Truck was not running hot pulling a load and finished up that load and the 300 mile return home. Assumed heating up problem may have been due to mostly water in radiator and drained, flushed and installed new anti freeze coolant blend. Ran test run and several hours idling and not problems surfaced. Left out with a load 700 miles to Kentucky. Watched on the run in 95 degree heat and nothing showed up to be a problem. When pulling out of the truck stop in Kentucky the truck coughed and spit like it was running out of fuel or had water in fuel and it had never done this before. It caught up after coughing and took off. It ran 600 miles of the 700 on the return trip with no problems. About a hundred miles from home I started getting a code light coming on but it would not stay on long enough to read it. Temp was running a little high but not out of the ordinary in the heat pulling a load. (200 average mostly with fan cycle occasionally.) Made it home with no problems and finally was able to get the code that was coming up. (5-8) Egr Temp Overheat. After all I could read on the net I suspect a cracked EGR cooler. Antifreeze was two gallons low. Being a single truck independent Owner/op under a load I thought maybe it will limp on to dallas and get rid of the load I am under. WRONG. Ten miles or so from the house it coughed again, like bad fuel or water. Stopped when I got to the interstate and checked everything water wise and no leaks was not overheating (180 degrees) so took off. Didnt get far and mostly after deceleration on small grades when the cruise picked back up it would cough and spit and sputter a few times then catch and go on. This went on for ten miles or so. I pulled off a exit ramp which coasting to a stop. Before setting the brakes engine died after coasting a good ways. Raised hood and water was spewing out vent hole on overlow tank cap and sight glass on steel tanks appeared to have a lot of bubbles in it. Let it sit and cool down for 2 hours. Fired right back up idled ok and shut it back down. It held a gallon and a half of water. There was a drop yard where I load all the time across the interstate at that exit where I load all the time I decided to try and see if I could get over there to get off the side of the road. When I started to take off it spit and sputtered bad like it did not even want to take off. I drained some fuel out of the secondary and it was clear of water. Idled in granny gear across the road dropped the the trailer and after sitting there idling it would take acceleration ok. I decided to try and make it bobtail back home and see what it did without a load. Got on the interstate it spit a couple of times and finally lined out. Ran her about 55 down the interstate and it may have spit/ coughed once or twice like a miss on the 20 mile interstate ride. After getting off the interstate and due to stops and starts and more acceleration and decelaration it coughed and missed and bucked a lot more leveling out at times.

I apologize for the lengthy description of symptoms. My question does it sound possible that upon decelaration and extended idle that water leaks our in the egr cooler getting to the combustion chamber or does this sound like I have more problems than just the egr cooler?

thanks in advance for any advice,

[alcoon61]

Reading over my post I should have put in it that water apparently has soot in it to. It is getting really dirty over a short period of time. i drained some in a clear container and after two days it did not seperate so I do not believe it is oil. I had recently changed the oil in the truck and it is still full and no water in the oil. I have not been able to see any excessive smoke from the exhaust. Once on the trailer (van) it appeared wet where the exhaust hits is but it was night and I wasn't sure.

Edited August 20, 2012 by alcoon61

[staxx]

Sound like erg cooler is down leting coolant into mass flow pipe causeing engine miss and compression in coolant system , if you drive it to long this way it will burn out your mass flow pipe sensors they dont like water. Egr cooler can b tested on truck to confirm its leaking.

[rhasler]

Sounds like the EGR cooler probably overheated and cracked internally after the radiator hose blew. A cracked EGR cooler would allow antifreeze to mix with the intake air and cause the sputter you described, and also the coolant pushing out of the surge tank. If you pull the mass flow pipe off of the cooler outlet and look inside you will probably find traces of coolant.

[alcoon61]

Thanks guy's I finally found a brand new EGR cooler (Garrett Heat Exchanger Part # 28GB519 piece of Junk) brand new for less than half of what the dealership wanted. Input side was nice and dry just light soot but out put looked like ink running out when I took it off. Got her all changed out and test drove it for about 10 miles so far so good. No spitting and sputtering. Still have to pull the oil cooler screen and replace it and flush a couple more times then put some antifreeze back in it.

I could go on and on about what a ripoff that Garrett heat exchanger is. A doggone heater core in a steel box. For $2000 lord help. In looking there are aftermarket ones out there in the $700 range for every commercial engine on the market except Mack. The after market changes from this fin style heater core to a commercial style heat exchanger with coil pipe tubing and carry a lifetime warranty. I plan to experiment with the old one and cut it open gut it and put in coiled pipe from a true heat exchanger. Who knows if you ever need one you may have the option to buy a aftermarket from me that will not pop/crack everytime the engine overheats.

Lets go trucking!

[staxx]

Keep us updated on making a new egr cooler and how it goes, but I think it would be cheaper to just eliminate the egr system instead.

[alcoon61]

I sure was tempted to try and bypass it. Wasn't sure that ecm would not have to be reset after taking the exhaust out I was afraid it would be burning too lean or something? On top of that those epa fines look pretty serious. It is really sad too because without a doubt all trucks would be in the 8mpg range today if the epa went away, when america needs it the most. Due to their epa garbage and ultra low sulpher diesel still have to work hard to get 6 mpg. But if I was making 13% of the fuel like the government is I would like for it to be 2 mpg and $10 a gallon would be a lot nicer than $4. And everybody is supposed to believe they are trying to help us. I am waiting for all the engine manufacturers to join catepillar's solution.

[tkobes43]

Glad you got it all figured out! Sweet looking truck!

Tom