JoeH Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 I guess I should start a new thread to document this task. Truck got put in the ditch Nov 11th 2023, busted the cab pretty good. Most of the obvious damage to the cab was to the passenger side, but from the twist applied from impact, the driver side of the cab has some buckling and cracking in a few places. Secondary fuel filter housing magically disappeared in the accident, ripping the ends off the fuel lines, which is a good thing because it helped starve the engine for fuel so it didn't idle too long on its side. I pulled the crushed passenger door and unbolted the crushed step assembly the other day. Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/73737-2003-mr688s-rollover-cab-swap/ Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeH Posted January 9 Author Share Posted January 9 (edited) Today we pulled the secondary filter housing off the replacement cab cutoff assembly we bought a few weeks ago, replaced the damaged fuel lines, installed a new secondary filter (I guess we should have done the primary filter while we were at it...), primed it up, hooked up the laptop, and turned on the key. All active codes are related to the torn ABS sensor on the passenger wheel. New sensor gets picked up in the AM on my dad's way in to work. (Hopefully we can get all the codes cleared up before we have to start gutting the cab.) Engine shutdown light was on, a bit of coolant and that went away. Engine wouldn't start, laptop showed voltage dropping below 9.5v, which I think is about where the EECU won't fire off. Battery charger on, my dad shot a little ether in the intake, and we managed to stop cranking while it was chugging on ether, and with the voltage spike back up to normal I think the EECU was able to kick in and start firing in some diesel! It coughed through whatever air got into the injector lines and the idle steadied right out. We pulled the bumper, pulled heater core hoses and butted them together, pulled the passenger cab latch off, rear engine heat shield, scratched our heads a few times, and called it quits. Not rushing into this too aggressively, it's a bit of a Gordian knot. I'm not Alexander the Great, so I won't be untying this one with a sword. All looks good on the electronics side, so now we have a baseline of systems functionality before we gut the cabs and put all our wiring from this cab into the replacement cab. The engine does have a slight miss, which it had before the rollover. @Joey Mack any tips on what to look for? Broken EUP springs? It has no codes, so whatever it is it'll likely be mechanical. Edited January 9 by JoeH 1 Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/73737-2003-mr688s-rollover-cab-swap/#findComment-544832 Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeH Posted January 9 Author Share Posted January 9 Truck has about 430k miles and over 27,000 hours. No idea if the engines ever been rebuilt, so maybe injectors are squirting a little funny. Would be curious to look into injector spray pattern testing tools, no idea if there's anything affordable for occasional use. Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/73737-2003-mr688s-rollover-cab-swap/#findComment-544833 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joey Mack Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 Did voltage go up when it was running? In the past, when we had a major voltage drop, I would take a separate battery and ground it to the truck, then connect the positive to the EECU fuse socket, with the fuse installed. If the truck fired up, it would indicate a bad starter.. the starter was pulling too many volts.. as far as a miss, not sure yet, I assume valves were adjusted recently? Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/73737-2003-mr688s-rollover-cab-swap/#findComment-544845 Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeH Posted January 9 Author Share Posted January 9 Starter is relatively new, changed it 2 years ago during our frame overhaul. Batteries relatively new, but they did lay on their side for a few hours during the rollover and then sit for 2 months. Truck has a battery kill switch on the battery box, but it is underrated IMO. It gets hot from excessive cranking. Once the truck was running under its own power it was charging at 14.250 volts according to the laptop. Restarted on its own no problems after we let it run for a few minutes. Voltage issue doesn't concern me, but it's helpful for people to know how bad voltage can affect trying to start an electronic truck. The slight miss is going to need to be looked into, while this EUP system is good, there's nothing better than PLN for durability. We have not adjusted the valves, never even had the valve covers off. I keep hearing the term CCRS. What is CCRS, and how's it fit in the ETECH/ASET family? Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/73737-2003-mr688s-rollover-cab-swap/#findComment-544847 Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeH Posted January 9 Author Share Posted January 9 Fortunately I have this gem of a 14,000 original miles ETECH 300 spare for any SNAFU's 🤠 Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/73737-2003-mr688s-rollover-cab-swap/#findComment-544848 Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeH Posted January 10 Author Share Posted January 10 Photo dump from today. Only trust a Mack to work on a Mack. 2 Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/73737-2003-mr688s-rollover-cab-swap/#findComment-544904 Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeH Posted January 10 Author Share Posted January 10 Chassis is sitting in the garage, not sure there's anything left to do today. Need to pull the spare cab off the cutoff, steal whatever we need for the radiator/CAC assembly on this truck, install/gut new cab, swap guts from our cab to the new cab. Hopefully we can work in a coat of paint on the new cab before it goes onto the truck. Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/73737-2003-mr688s-rollover-cab-swap/#findComment-544905 Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeH Posted January 10 Author Share Posted January 10 Old cab staying warm and dry. 1 Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/73737-2003-mr688s-rollover-cab-swap/#findComment-544906 Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavCut Posted January 11 Share Posted January 11 Sorry to hear about the accident @JoeH . Hopefully all involved are okay. 🤞 I see from your photos that you’ve pulled the mixer off. Was there much damage to it? Enjoyed your build thread from when you assembled this rig. I’m sure that she will rise from the ashes better than ever. 1 Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/73737-2003-mr688s-rollover-cab-swap/#findComment-544914 Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeH Posted January 11 Author Share Posted January 11 I had hoped to avoid Plan B on the cutoff, but seeing as we couldn't get any of the aluminum bulkhead connectors to unplug, I had to cut the big harnesses on either side. About all that remains is the oil gauge pressure line going to the cab from the filter housing and the transmission shifter cable. Should get those done pretty quick tomorrow afternoon after concrete, then hopefully we'll have time to lift the cab off the chassis and get ready to bring it into the garage to strip down, patch a hole in the floor, and a few other things to get it ready to go on the truck. 1 Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/73737-2003-mr688s-rollover-cab-swap/#findComment-544947 Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeH Posted January 11 Author Share Posted January 11 21 hours ago, DavCut said: Sorry to hear about the accident @JoeH . Hopefully all involved are okay. 🤞 I see from your photos that you’ve pulled the mixer off. Was there much damage to it? Enjoyed your build thread from when you assembled this rig. I’m sure that she will rise from the ashes better than ever. Mixer is largely fine, a little porta-power work, a little welding, and a couple small covers and the mixer should be (almost) good as new. 2 Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/73737-2003-mr688s-rollover-cab-swap/#findComment-544950 Share on other sites More sharing options...
mowerman Posted January 12 Share Posted January 12 OK, thanks for that. I entirely missed this that sucks. I was trying to figure out which truck you had and what was up with the cab swap. It’s the same one you just cleaned up a while ago….. bob 1 Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/73737-2003-mr688s-rollover-cab-swap/#findComment-544988 Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeH Posted January 12 Author Share Posted January 12 Cab is off the cutoff. Hopefully we will get it into the garage on Monday so I can start stripping it down. Might be a bit of a juggle to decide what to put where in the garage. Might make a wooden cradle of sorts on wheels to hold the new cab that my forklift can pick up and move around. 2 Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/73737-2003-mr688s-rollover-cab-swap/#findComment-545019 Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeH Posted January 12 Author Share Posted January 12 9 hours ago, mowerman said: OK, thanks for that. I entirely missed this that sucks. I was trying to figure out which truck you had and what was up with the cab swap. It’s the same one you just cleaned up a while ago….. bob Yea the one we did the major framework on 2 years ago is the truck that went into the ditch. 😭 Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/73737-2003-mr688s-rollover-cab-swap/#findComment-545024 Share on other sites More sharing options...
mowerman Posted January 13 Share Posted January 13 Yes, sorry about that but that cab looks amazing and you are certainly a go-getter. I’m sure you’ll be back in service shortly. Best of luck for a speedy recovery my friend.…bob Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/73737-2003-mr688s-rollover-cab-swap/#findComment-545027 Share on other sites More sharing options...
mowerman Posted January 13 Share Posted January 13 I usually don’t come to this section since it doesn’t usually have an anything to do with what I got. I do like the anthem and the vision. And of course the trash version I’ve mentioned before I broke in on a 68 R model trash compactor leach body back hopper when I was only 19 in 1975… bob Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/73737-2003-mr688s-rollover-cab-swap/#findComment-545028 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post JoeH Posted January 19 Author Popular Post Share Posted January 19 So far since the last update we've replaced the steering gearbox, pitman arm and drag link because the insurance company recommended we replace them Incase there's any cracks from collision. We've replaced a few brackets on the passenger side that got damaged: rear cab mount frame bracket, and the V bracket that holds the cab tilt piston. Also replaced the driver side hinge bracket as it got bent in the accident. Need to drop off the cutoff's radiator somewhere in Ambler, PA that can pressure check it. I know my old radiator had a weep from before the accident, so now is as good a time as any to replace it. Both cabs are in the garage so I can swap guts and weld up the floor that salt rotted out on the new cab. 3 Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/73737-2003-mr688s-rollover-cab-swap/#findComment-545319 Share on other sites More sharing options...
mowerman Posted January 19 Share Posted January 19 Excellent great progress,,,, let’s keep it up … bob Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/73737-2003-mr688s-rollover-cab-swap/#findComment-545328 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post JoeH Posted January 25 Author Popular Post Share Posted January 25 A couple days of labelling, disconnecting, cutting rusted cable clamps, we slid a "spatula" through the back window, under the cab harness, then pulled the whole assembly out! MR cabs are the best to work. 4 Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/73737-2003-mr688s-rollover-cab-swap/#findComment-545586 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post mrsmackpaul Posted January 25 Popular Post Share Posted January 25 A bit of fair sized task your under taking I did something similar on a farm ute years ago I was stunned when I put it all back together that everything worked first go Paul 3 Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/73737-2003-mr688s-rollover-cab-swap/#findComment-545592 Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeH Posted January 25 Author Share Posted January 25 46 minutes ago, mrsmackpaul said: A bit of fair sized task your under taking I did something similar on a farm ute years ago I was stunned when I put it all back together that everything worked first go Paul I'm about $200 into a label maker, between buying it and buying 4-5 roles of the vinyl cartridges that go in it. Pricey, but the utility value is massive. This harness will go into storage incase we ever need to utilize it and the engine. I'm sure hoping everything works once I get it all together. Still need to strip this cab down further, patch a hole in the floor, replace some seized rivnuts, pull windshields, sand down and paint the cab, and a myriad of other tasks. Probably needs a heater core. The rear window in this cab was a slider, but I'm opting to put the solid rear window from our busted cab into it instead, since the VECU is located just inside the rear window. Not taking any chances on rainwater finding it's way to the VECU. 2 Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/73737-2003-mr688s-rollover-cab-swap/#findComment-545595 Share on other sites More sharing options...
70mackMB Posted January 26 Share Posted January 26 2 hours ago, mrsmackpaul said: A bit of fair sized task your under taking I did something similar on a farm ute years ago I was stunned when I put it all back together that everything worked first go Seems l remember videos of an R model all apart not too long ago Paul. .....Hippy 1 Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/73737-2003-mr688s-rollover-cab-swap/#findComment-545610 Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrsmackpaul Posted January 26 Share Posted January 26 41 minutes ago, 70mackMB said: Seems l remember videos of an R model all apart not too long ago Paul. .....Hippy True, it takes a lot for me to work up to a big operation like this though, it isn't something I just jump into These big jobs are a huge undertaking, even for people that have done a few of them Paul 1 Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/73737-2003-mr688s-rollover-cab-swap/#findComment-545612 Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeH Posted January 26 Author Share Posted January 26 This project chose me, I didn't choose it! Big difference lol! I didn't want my truck put into a ditch! 2 Quote Link to comment https://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/73737-2003-mr688s-rollover-cab-swap/#findComment-545614 Share on other sites More sharing options...
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