Matt Saunoras

apprenticeship? Our last guy got put flat rate one month after graduating ASSET. I got put flat rate the day I moved into the place I'm at now, not even one year after I graduated. I finally had to break the terrible news to my service manager, flat rate is why you can't get guys to work here. Sorry for stating the obvious but the gas well/oil field companies are eating up all the techs in this area.

Anymore I've been so busy that I don't have anything left at the end of the day. Sleep comes easy but I'm pretty tired in the mornings. The shop I work in promotes lethargy which is probably why I get so much done after everyone leaves. Before the last time I tried to quit I never slept well. Flat rate never made sense in my mind when there's only 30-35 hours of diesel work around per week. What am I supposed to fill in the rest with? It was really starting to affect me mentally. You can't work 50+ a week, get paid for 30 and feel right in the head.

It's literally going to be a pinhole. Holding it up to the light works well.

Got one that totally threw me for a loop today. 09 F-350 6.4 ZF6 complaint of a speedometer inop, customer already installed a new diff sensor. So I piss around for a while totally missing the fact that the ABS datalogger shows rear diff speed fine but the PCM VSS doesn't read anything and VSS_FM fault pid reads yes all the time. So I run a KOEO, P0500 and P215A show up on-demand and I'm thinking okay, the fault is present now, find it. P0500 is no help but P215A has a nice little pinpoint test in the PC/ED surprisingly. There is a VSS signal wire from the ABS module to the PCM, a quick check of the wiring diagram shows that VE822 also splits off to the wiper motor and the 4x4 module, any of which can cause problems with that circuit. I've had problems with wiper motors before so I pull the cowl, check the connector, nothing. Check the inline connector down by left wheel well, nothing. Load test the wire, nothing. No shorts, no power, no resistance. I went so far as to unplugging the wiper/4x4 module and rechecking the PID, still showing yes fault. Hotline time and I've gotta do some other stuff before the end of the day. Hotline doesn't lead me anywhere just back into rechecking everything, I am out of ideas at this point. So I'm thinking, start over, clear every code in this thing and start over. Cleared the codes and nothing has come back, drove it 15 miles, vss reads fine, no fault, speedo works normally.

Had another one for the last few days, cust complaining of a hesitation but I didn't feel anything and even drove the truck home. No DTCs in memory but it sets a P1249 KOER. Of course pinpoint test KA passes with flying colors so I orded a wastegate solenoid for it. No dice, still setting P1249 KOER and no other DTCs while driving. I have to let it go for now. I've got a strong feeling this thing is very close to needing EGR coolers. I took a peak at the core through the up-pipe hole, very plugged up. I remember hearing similar reports of lack of power or hesitation on other P0401 trucks I've done. I never actually drove them though to see what driveability concerns arise from a plugged EGR cooler core.

I have IDS v40 on my one laptop. It doesn't even know a 6.4 exists

All the 6.4s I saw with front cover cavitation never had a whole lot of loose coolant in the oil but the oil was very thick and sludgy like you describe. Also I would be looking at the horizontal cooler for any clean spots on the inside, that seems like a pretty good tell for one that's starting to fail. I've had a few mystery coolant loss, no smoke complaints that wound up being the horizontal cooler.

I did ASSET at a lincoln mercury dealer roughly 5 years ago. I was a good place to get started, good friendly guys, not a lot of shop tension but the work was nothing like what I am doing now. I felt like I fit in well there but I also didn't know any better. 4 years where I'm at now and I still don't like anyone.

wow

The pump fittings I did today released easily with the 45 degree disconnect tool(which I own) but the last set I did I couldn't get them popped loose. The die grinder tool worked fine though.

Went in today with a clean bay and nothing lined up. Right now I'm in the middle of exhaust manifolds on a 6.0. Tried to diag a hesitation in a 6.7 pickup but I don't feel anything abnormal. It does set a P1249 KOER though so I ordered a wastegate solenoid for it. Drove it home tonight and still didn't notice anything. I meant to take a peak at the EGR cooler core but I forgot today. Outside is a 7.3 leaking oil from the rear hpop fitting. Also my 6.7 alternator wire quick fix is back. Cust states it wouldn't start, started fine for me right off the flatbed. Belt is squealing though so I took a peak underneath and the A/C compressor is clearly locked up with the clutch/pulley ready to fall off. Looks like I'll be getting a chance to put a main harness in this thing.

Thanks Mr Science!

you mean the die grinder collet tool?

Nothing in my bay, nothing on the schedule, diesel dry spell coming? I didn't leave work one time before 7 for the last 2 weeks. The good thing is the new shop is coming along nicely. I'm getting two 18k lb lifts and the other guy I work with is going to get a 12k right next to me. Then the 5 car racks will be on the other side. The 3 truck lifts are already in place and since they're reusing 2 smaller lifts from the old shop they're going to have to move us two down there early.

Don't forget about the importance of MAF and it's use in DPF load calculations. I learned the hard way the DPF pressure sensor isn't the only input.

We've got a new guy. Going to a local tech school during the day studying to be a "diesel tech." Working 2 to 6 every afternoon and doing mostly used cars. I don't even know where to begin really but he serves no purpose at the current moment in time nor does there appear to be anything brilliant coming up on the horizon. It has to be apparent I haven't touched anything but diesels since he started and he hasn't asked one question. Don't ask don't tell?

Same 2 hour wait time for hotliine here too. I shouted them a quick question about the one I had with the 6.7 charging problem (fuseable link not replacable). I was so mad afterwards I just hotwired the alt and let it go. Put the request in at 2:30 and by the time they got back to me it was well past the order cutoff.

Ambulance had a cracked nozzle in cyl 8. Pulled the injector out today and first glance I'm thinking what the hell, it's all in one piece? Not quite, I didn't see the crack until I cleaned it up. Slammed an injector in it and ran the smoke show down the road. Cleared up pretty quick but it sets an underboost code right away. I can tell the turbo is stuck for sure so I'm gonna do that tomorrow AND put an oil cooler in the thing. Took quite a few pics to trying to get a good one but that didn't happen with my phone. The crack is so fine half the people I tried to show it to couldn't see it.

Picked up one ambulance and dropped off another. 08 E-350 6.0 absolutely plumming thick gray smoke with some black in it. #8 is all over the place on power balance. Won't relative compression test, my guess is it's hydrolocking on fuel. It has a bad knock but that could be fuel too. I just put injectors in this thing 50k ago but the oil smells cooked. I told them this damn thing needs an oil cooler about a year ago but somehow it's managed without one. <sigh> RIght now I'm right in the middle of coolers in a 6.0 f-series, this one got pushed to the front of the line when the job got sold at 3:30 today, all the black paint chips everywhere tells me this was a reman complete at some point. Outside is a 2012 6.7 cab and chassis dump that has a battery light on and is slightly overcharging. The vpwr going to the 3 pin alt connector has 9 volts on it and will not light a test light. My guess is a chafe somewhere that cooked the fuseable link "a". Hotline agrees, it looks like this one is getting a main engine harness. 29k on it.

Finished up 8 injectors, a vacuum pump, heater hoses and a radiator in the 6.0 ambulance. The side of the pump was blown apart.

I've never worked on an econoline that didn't have dual alternators

Snap-on flat blade screwdriver. Get it under the clamp and twist. The snap on drivers allow you to get much better grip. Penetrating oil does help a lot too.

Got the oil out but it took a while. I manually flush as much as I can before I start the simple green flush. This thing was so bad I don't know how it would have faired without first clearing the rad, heater core, waterpump and opening both block drains. The initial amount of solid sludge I cleaned out was atleast 3 quarts. With the t-stat removed I'll run the engine for a half hour or so, shut it off, let it sit a minute and suck the oil layer out of the degas bottle with the coolant flush machine. Did this 3 or 4 times occassionally adding more simple green and water. Then when most of the oil seems to be out I'll nose down the truck while it's running, pull the rad petcock and stick a hose in the degas to keep a fresh water supply to the engine. 5 minutes or so of that will have the water running clear. Tomorrow I'll VC-9 it and reinstall the thermostat. Oh and another ambulance showed up today. 08 E-350, needs injectors and it's making a weird sound from the vacuum pump. I guess it's the pump, I don't think it could be anything else.

I do take all the front shit out but I've never had anyone to show me any tricks. Everything I've learned has been on my own.

The more you do the more you'll pick up pace, at first the labor times seem ridiculously low. I've only been doing e-series 6.0s for a little over a year now and I'm finally meeting book times with ease. The left mount is not bad. I use an expedition bottle jack and a 4x4 8" long piece of wood on the bellhousing. Loosen the right mount so the motor moves around easier and take the isolator half of the whole deal off the left side, leave the left adapter bracket on the engine. I do service one Quigley 4wd conversion, that one needs the oil filter housing removed to get the left mount out. I did 13 hours on the last front cover and 11 hours on the last set of injectors.