So I got the leak detector hooked up and found a leak at the intercooler boots, tightened the clamps and now I'm building 16 and got 18 once but with my truck still having a miss I don't want to push her too hard lookin for numbers.

While on the topic of my truck missing, today on my lunch break I was heading back to my job and all the sudden it felt like I had to almost floor it to get it to wanna build boost or even move like usual. It drove normal pretty easy but if I would have been under load it wouldn't of been pretty. With this happening it made me think back to a few weeks ago she wouldn't stay alive and had me pulled over and I noticed my CPS was unplugged so I plugged it in and drove perfect.

So today when I got back to the job site from lunch I looked under and the sensor wasn't unplugged like before but I unplugge it, wiped it out thinking that could fix something and plugged it back in. 5 hours later I left the job and it drives normal again and the miss has not happened since. Could this mean my CPS needs replaced? And could the CPS cause my miss over 2500 rpm?

 

Since they don't cost much and you have possibly found an issue that could be related to the CPS on two occasions then, yes, I would replace it with an OEM part. Don't use the cheap OEM equivalents. Then throw the old one in the glove box. CPS's can be finicky and inconsistent when they are on their way out and can cause all kinds of strange behavior.

Also, inspect the plug/connector for oil or dirt.

 

Okay so I've inspected my CPS further. While plugged in it does have a little in/out wiggle, idk if that is normal but when I unplugged it I shined a light up in there and there was all kinds of dirt and some grease inside. I cleaned it out as best I could with just a shop towel. I wasn't sure if I could use brake kleen or pb blaster but I chose not to just to be safe. Haven't had a chance to test it out for a miss but still not sure if the CPS could cause a miss in higher rpms.

 

The CPS is one of the central components that track where, what position, the engine is in at any given time. The PCM monitors it and commands the IDM to fire the injectors based upon the position that the CPS reports. So, with higher rpm's, if the CPS is getting weak, it has less time to read the position of the engine due to rotational velocity, thus increasing the probability of an inaccurate reading which then gets reported. The CPS uses the Hall Effect (HE). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hall_effect

Some robots use the same type of sensor on electric motors that turn up to 10k rpm's. A bad sensor won't even detect the difference in the magnetic field at a fraction of that speed ie: 2500 rpm's. So the computer is programmed to shut the entire portion of the platform down that relies on that HE sensor. German built HE sensors used to be and probably still are the best for them. Wish they made one for our trucks.

As for cleaning out the connectors, do you have access to electrical cleaning spray. Alcohol and a few Q-tips will work in a pinch. Just dry it out before putting the connector back in.

It may not be the sensor, but if I had to choose a sensor to replace or keep a spare on hand, which is a good idea, I would probably choose the CPS.

 

I have been reading about all different aspects of diesels trying to expand my brain. Turbos and boost are subjects included in that, previously I was strictly an NA guy (Mustangs).
I recently got a boost gauge, among others, and have started to characterize how the truck runs, what I can expect to see when all is normal. I have read that many people experience up to 17lbs of boost stock. I am only getting about 13.5 or 14lbs and I thought perhaps I am on the low end of normal. I made the boost detector as Trey's YouTube video instructed and pumped it up. I found my boot to the turbo from the air filter is leaking as well as the green tube. I can't find any other leaks including around where the plenums meet the heads. It's of course difficult to spray everything but I got it the best I could.
My questions are this: How the crap do I get the leak at the turbo and the green tube to stop? I have adjusted, tightened, and even loosened everything to try and get it to stop but to no avail. Am I missing something here?
Also, the 10lbs I put in with the leak tester seems to go to 0lbs pretty quick making me think there could be a leak somewhere else. I have tightened all the clamps, especially where there was oily residue on the boots. Any other gotchas I should be looking for?

My tester


The leak I found

 

Don't worry about small leaks before the turbo inlet (including the green tube), that is where the turbo sucks in - not puff up.

 

Yea I woke up this morning thinking about this and thought, duh, there's suction there, not pressure. Those gaps will likely seal up under suction.
I'll give it another go, maybe pump it up to like 15psi. The 10psi just bleeds out too fast to get a good look at the areas I've sprayed.

 

I hooked up my air compressor and set the regulator to 10 PSI. I could run indefinitely while I sprayed the boost components.

 

Yea I was just shutting mine off so I could listen and see if the pressure held. I'll try it like that.

 

How old are the boots? If they are factory OEM then it may be helpful to replace them. If you decide to replace them, don't use the new OEM parts. They are horrible. RiffRaff sells the highest quality replacements that I have seen and they are less expensive than new OEM.

Have you tried tightening all 12 of the clamps? Be very careful when tightening the clamps that hold the boots to the plenums so that you don't crimp them. All others can stand a lot of torque when tightening...

 

So they are factory boots. I have the Riff Raff ones in my wish list. The wife bought stuff off that wish list for my birthday so maybe I get them, maybe not lol. If I don't get those, I intend to buy them.
Do the new boots come with new clamps? Do I need new clamps if mine aren't damaged?
I went around and tightened all the clamps. Just about all of them were loose. The only ones still tight were at the intercooler. I appreciate the advice, I'm glad to know they can stand a little torque. It's also good to know about the plenum boots. Those were the loosest and I don't think I tightened them too tight but I'll make sure. My intention is to check the up pipes and order those if necessary along with RR boots. I want to get this thing clean and running well before I do anything else to it.

 

The boots do not come with clamps from Riffraff, but I would highly recommend getting them. He has a complete set of clamps for around $50 I think. When I changed all of the boots on my truck, I was glad I put up the extra cash for good, strong clamps.

Intercooler Boot Complete Clamp Kit 7.3L 99.5-03 - Riffraff Diesel Performance

I would also suggest getting a set of the plenum inserts, made life a lot easier when clamping the boots down.

RDP Plenum Reinforcing Inserts? - Riffraff Diesel Performance

 

The top clamps are all good, it's the bottom 4 that "blow".

There are two boots that go from the spider to the intake plenums. They need a total of 4 T-bolt clamps, and the plenum inserts as Sous suggested.

 

Perfect! I will add this to the list. I had seen the billet plenums but no the inserts. I think I will go with those for now.

I see what you did there...


Thanks for the advice guys. I am going to spend tomorrow looking for the leak since I will have more time. I am also going to check my uppipes.

Reps to you both but Tugly, I am in jail.

 

Welp, found the boost leak. And being the lucky soul that I am, it's at the plenum where it meets the head! Yay!
Here's a not so great picture. It's on the drivers side just under the turbo inlet. There's more foam under the inlet pipe, I just couldn't get a good photo due to lighting. Any advice guys? If am going to have to pull plenums I am thinking billet ones from RR.