The valve covers have been pulled off before and the Ford plastic safety clips installed back in September/October. It was a bit of a job, so I didn't want to pull the valve covers if I didn't have to. This time I popped off the harness outside the valve covers and checked the 9 pin connector built into the valve cover gasket. Ohms checks for resistance, not power. If you number the pins 1 thru 9, then pin #5 is the center pin. Take individual ohm readings from pin 5 to pins 3, 4, 6 & 7. Those pins correspond to the injector solenoids. My ohms readings were 3.2 to 3.3 ohms each. This means that the UVCH was connected to the gasket connector well enough to give a reading. An open circuit (infinity) would indicate the UVCH had come loose and then I'd have to take off the valve cover to investigate further.

On the flip side, a high ohms reading may indicate some sort of issue with the solenoid itself. I think anything over 5 ohms is cause for concern. (Not entirely sure about this last part though....)

 

Well, I am $181.00 poorer.
Can't believe the ICP costs that much. I went to International. I wonder how much Ford charges? Crazy price....it's just a pressure sensor, right? Geez...
The new sensor looks a bit different from the original unit. They both have the same part number though...

Oh well, wish me luck. If this doesn't fix the problem, then I'll have to wait for my AE bundle to arrive.

 

Ed "ThePartsGuy" would have been cheaper. Item Number F6TZ9F838A, MSRP $177.10, Price $127.51. Just sayin' for next time you need a part.

 

D'oh! Darn.
Thank you for the info. I will remember for next time.

I will remember "Ed ThePartsGuy"....
I will remember "Ed ThePartsGuy"....
I will remember "Ed ThePartsGuy"...

(vague Simpsons reference...)

 

I tried to rep you but rep police got me blocked.

 

Thanks Ed. It's the thought that counts.

 

Ok,
I replaced the o-rings on the HPOP hose fittings and replaced the leaking ICP sensor. Today I connected my AutoEnginuity Scan Tool and ran some tests. First code was P0603-Internal Control Module Keep Alive Memory Error. I used the AE to reset it and it seemed to work. I then ran a contribution test and received the following results.
P0281 Cyl 7 contribution/balance fault
P0284 Cyl 8 contribution/balance fault

After this test, the SES light turned off. I drove the truck around the block on the off chance that I had air in my HPOP. How far do I need to drive the truck to purge any air out of the HPOP?

After my short trip around the block, I turned off the truck and ran a buzz test. Results were P1277-Cylinder 7 High to Low side open. This sounds serious. Do I need to pop off the valve cover to check out cylinder 7? If so, what am I looking for? Loose wire? Bad solenoid?

Thanks for your help.

 

It takes a little while to get air out of the system. Here is a bump for you.

 

UPDATE:
The AutoEnginuity Scan Tool is awesome. I wish I had bought this thing much sooner. The RHN site has some helpful links for using the AE tool to check various systems. I performed the HPOP health check and all the pressures and percentages were in range. So, I felt good about ruling out the HPOP as a source of my issue.

If you read my previous post, the contribution test said Cyl #7 and Cyl #8 contribution/balance fault. The buzz test said that cyl #7 had high to low side open. By this time, I am pretty much a pro at pulling off the valve covers. I think the passenger side is much easier than the driver's side. (I found that pulling the right front wheel provides excellent access to get those last 2 lower bolts.)

When the AE runs the buzz test, what order does it use? Cyl 1 thru 8 or does it go through the firing order? Seemed like it buzzed in numerical order. The second to last (cyl 7?) was weak sounding.

I started the truck and checked for oil discharge. 1-3-5 were shooting out about a table spoon full of oil each time. #7 was shooting blanks. I noticed puffs of white smoke coming out of the discharge area.

I then shut off the truck and pulled the #7 injector solenoid and took a ohm reading. The ohms were 3.5 or so so I swapped the solenoid with #3 and put it all back together. I noticed something odd though. Under the solenoid, there is a metal plate with a pin in the center. The metal plate on #7 was much looser than #3. Meaning, I could easily spin the plate with a flick of my finger. The plate on #3 was quite a bit harder to rotate. I also noticed the bottom of #7 solenoid had a little abrasion on it. Very lightly scuffed. I'll post some pics at the end of this post. Should the metal plate under the solenoid be easy to rotate? Could this be an indicator that something is lodged in the poppet valve and not allowing it to close all the way?

So, continuing on...
After I swapped the solenoids, I started the engine without the valve cover and noticed that #7 was still not discharging any oil. Buzz test still says that #7 was high to low open. I pulled the valve cover gasket and UVC harness and checked all the wires for any faults or breaks. Everything checked out good so I put it back on. I then tried to find the Injector Driver Module. Man, that sucker is really hidden! I didn't even know there was a little hidden area behind the F250 badge! At any rate, I eventually found the darn thing and pulled the connector.

Using Technical Bulletin #103 from GB (IDM manufacturer), I used my multi-meter to measure resistance between the power feed and each injector's ground circuit. I took these measurement from the IDM harness connector. All circuits measured about 3.3 ohms.
Next I checked for any injector circuits that could be shorted to ground. I found none, so that was good. Lastly I checked for damaged injector wiring by measuring the resistance between each injector power feed and the ground shield for the injector wires. Again, this was an open circuit, which was good.

I did notice some crud in the female side of the IDM harness connector. Looked like dry, flaky, lightly colored residue or corrosion. I cleaned the harness connector with electrical parts cleaner, applied some dielectric gel and buttoned everything back up.

Started the truck and it seemed much smoother. No SES light either. I let it warm up and took it for a ride. Much smoother but still not perfect. I drove it for about 20 miles to see if maybe the HPOP had some air that needed to be purged. As I drove the truck, it seemed to get better but I may have just been wishing really hard and my brain was trying to convince me that everything was fixed. At the end of the drive, I used my AE to run some more tests. No codes (except for AIH, because I deleted that thing...), but the contribution test still says #7 and #8 have a balance fault. Buzz test passes though. No errors this time.

Drove the truck to work this morning and still no SES light, so I suppose that is good. But I am still unsatisfied. It accelerates smooth and with good power, but it seems to up shift a little sooner than I remember. Also, it shudders when trying to accelerate in top gear. Before this issue surfaced, I could normally cruise at 50mph @ 1500 rpm and then lightly roll into the throttle to quickly pull up to 60 mph without any real effort. This morning was a different story, the truck shuddered and complained like it wanted to downshift. Almost felt like a motor mount was broken. It just doesn't feel quite right yet.

At this point, I think I am going to drive the truck for a few days and give the HPOP time to purge any air from it's system. I think that maybe I have some bad fuel in tank as well (????). Last fill was 1/8/10. Should I be concerned about that free spinning metal plate under the #7 solenoid? Here are some pics...

 

Someone smart will know, I'm not in a place right now to look up the armature clearance you should have on the #7 injector. Unfortunately, sounds like there is to much clearance, and is not serviceable on the engine. Thanks for the good write up with pics though!

Found a place to look here:

http://www.diy-injectors.com/Diesel%...20Feb%2008.pdf

That should give you some insight on the injector stuff.

 

I think you need to replace #7 injector too.

 

Agreed. I was just going to pick up the phone and call Clay. I drove the truck yesterday and it still has a little miss. Buzz tested it when I got home and the test passed, but I can hear #7 sounded quite muffled. Contribution test still says #7 balance fault.

I will get an injector ordered and let everyone know if it solved the issue.

Thank you.

 

Another vote for replacing #7, just swap the solenoids back first since the old #7 showed some wear.

 

Was thinking the exact same thing. Thanks for watching my back!

 

I am pleased to report that #7 injector was indeed bad and all is well now that it's been replaced.

Thank you to everyone who offered their helpful comments.
You guys rock!