Debated this all day because the recommendation above was my first instinct as well. But it's not clear how cleaning sump now would mitigate any future risk on injector contamination. The sump screen was replaced. The IPR will be replaced. Any debris in the system downstream of the IPR will remain there no matter how much I clean the sump now. In other words, injector contamination risk remains constant no matter how far back I clean. The only thing that could possibly mitigate the risk of injector contamination now would be removing the rails and trying to flush them - which seems like a fool's errand at this point.

 

I had already written down what should be done. Rail flushing how I do it:

 

Probably your only real shot at success though! Buying an engine that got that hot might have some significant challenges that keep popping up for some time to come as well.

I truly HATE to see overheated engines!

A number of nice posts above, and I would take Harwig's advice.

What is your "goal" for this truck Mike?

If you don"t mind me asking, what do you have invested in it at this point?

 

I think ECTs were fine. I believe EOTs were high based on delta and condition of oil filter standpipe. Engine itself does not act or appear cooked. But based on the temp delta, I had it replaced within about 7 miles from point of purchase.

I paid $4k for the truck. I have $2k in repairs / fluids. So I'm in about $6k.

The plan was to use the former utility-owned truck to haul totes of gear lube and hydraulic oil for a local energy facility. The truck is clean, straight, and has a 12' flatbed that is valuable to me. It starts very well, run well (excepting the current IPR issue), does not leak, and does not burn oil. But I agree with your concern about hidden damage from high oil temps.

Clean used 550s are not easy to find around here. I like the way the truck is set-up.

 

Thanks for the link.

 

We know that the plastic in the oil filter BEGINS to melt at 300 degrees F (significant deformation). So it wasn't simply a slight over-heat. With any significant melting at all, it was easily 10+ degrees hotter than that. IMO this will damage almost all o-rings and gaskets. And if plastic "flowed" into the engine internals, who knows what may have happened.

 

Yeah, I think you are correct about that EOT guess. And I have a similar concern about incidental damages. Based on standpipe condition, I think the plastic deformed, but plastic from it did not flow anywhere. But I get the point. And I wish I had more information about what they saw when they did the oil cooler. But that shop stopped communicating when I asked about the condition of the old sump screen. I wanted to know if the old sump screen was torn or displayed signed of heat damage. Based on the fact that the wiring harness was not re-secured anywhere, the EGR cooler is missing a bolt, a CAC tube blew-off, and the intake bolts are finger tight, I'm guessing they phoned-in the re-assembly and do not want to talk about it.

Based on that, I should probably go back to the sump (and possibly pull the rails as recommended above) and re-do everything.

I hate to sell it because, before the IPR plugged open, it cold starts and runs perfect. The 12' flatbed is handy to have around.

 

Oil filter standpipe starting to melt around 300 degrees F isn't a guess btw ................ so plastic component softening, maybe begins 20 degrees or so cooler.
Cheezit showed us that years ago.

 

If you’ve gone that high in oil temperature, you are also at risk for cam and lifter issues with that engine.

Gatr4d (sp?) over on the org bought a truck without understanding 6.0L issues, but after learning about the criticality of oil temperature, he started monitoring it. It turned out he was up to 240°F. I believe he changed out the oil cooler, but later lost two lobes on the cam, so the engine got rebuilt.

 

Interesting. I'd would have assumed that more than just a high EOT would be necessary to suffer that kind of damage. We talked about those risks but concluded that because the running statistics were all healthy (after the oil cooler / EGR replacement), because there are no leaks, and because it starts and runs well, it may have avoided catastrophic injury.

I think an oil scan would reveal just the kind of issue you raise, so I'll pull a sample and send it off. Thanks for brining it up.

 

Sorry- I meant "guess" in reference to how hot the utility ran EOTs, not in reference to when the standpipe begins to melt. I wish I had the standpipe the shop replaced. And the sump screen. And the oil cooler.

 

Found a photo of the oil filter standpipe that was replaced at the time of the oil cooler and EGR cooler.