EGR Cooler leaking

[Ecobummer]

So here's the story I got from Dodge about the EGR cooler. It is covered under 30,000 mile warranty. It is not covered under 100,000 mile powertrain. It's not considered apart of powertrain. The EGR cooler is on back order week and a half or more.(interesting, must be a lot of these cases?) I would suggest any new owners to monitor this to catch it in time. I believe my truck started to show corrosion and a faint smell of radiator fluid at around 45,000 but could figure out where it was coming from until it was to late. My truck currently has 92,000 and the temp is starting to rise in the range of 220's on a cold day 32'. Its a $2200 fix if it requires the EGR cooler needing to be replaced. Not sure what just the O ring replacement costs? Hope this helps someone. I love the truck however it's longevity is still unknown to me with all of the emissions crap that is destroying it. Emissions delete seems to be next step. I run the GDE hot tune. Not sure if thats going to be enough? Any suggestions? Also I noticed over all mileage increased by 2mpg or so running the GDE tune however My mileage has flipped. I now get better in town milage 24mpg and average 20mpg hwy. I commute so thats not exactly what I was hoping for. If your running a stock tune be weary of just using it to drive in town they are not the old leave idle diesels you once had. The EGR will clog and you will be stuck in a never ending regen cycle and eventually kill your motor.

 

[Zachary]

Can't you do a stage 1 EGR delete and just plate everything off? That bypasses the EGR so if it's failed it doesn't matter. A full delete is cheaper than a new EGR cooler for sure.

 

[Ecobummer]

How or where can I get that done?

 

[Zachary]

How or where can I get that done?

I haven't done it so I don't know all of the options, but what I've read on this and other forums you'd be looking at around $1300. You will need a new exhaust (flo pro is what I see most), stage 2 EGR delete kit (Google CFT Performance, there are other kits though), and upgrade to an off road tune from GDE. If you are seriously considering it I suggest researching on here and other forums. It's also asked on Ecodiesel Facebook pages a lot; Ecodiesel Owners and Information page. Then find a local diesel shop to do what you can't.

 

[KWC]

Yeah, so just got it back from major problems number 2!
Oil cooler failure.
After multiple contacts with CNA warranty company and FCA, the dealership the final bill was $4,500.00. I’m out $200 deductible.
New radiator, hoses, several flushes, coulple of valves.
Considering trading this lemon.
Ram built junk with this series and they know it! Now the consumer is stuck with it. Done with Dodge!

 

[KWC]

Yeah, so just got it back from major problems number 2!
Oil cooler failure.
After multiple contacts with CNA warranty company and FCA, the dealership the final bill was $4,500.00. I’m out $200 deductible.
New radiator, hoses, several flushes, coulple of valves.
Considering trading this lemon.
Ram built junk with this series and they know it! Now the consumer is stuck with it. Done with Dodge!

 

[Ecobummer]

Thanks I will look into it but I think I am going to let the truck go. After my experience with dodge reps today it's clear they don't stand behind their trucks. I'm not going to take on the financial burden of fixing a poorly designed emissions nightmare that only looks like it will get progressively worse. Nor do I have the skills to pull off some kind of experimental emissions delete. Appreciate the advice though.

 

[Ecobummer]

So here's the story I got from Dodge about the EGR cooler. It is covered under 30,000 mile warranty. It is not covered under 100,000 mile powertrain. It's not considered apart of powertrain. The EGR cooler is on back order week and a half or more.(interesting, must be a lot of these cases?) I would suggest any new owners to monitor this to catch it in time. I believe my truck started to show corrosion and a faint smell of radiator fluid at around 45,000 but could figure out where it was coming from until it was to late. My truck currently has 92,000 and the temp is starting to rise in the range of 220's on a cold day 32'. Its a $2200 fix if it requires the EGR cooler needing to be replaced. Not sure what just the O ring replacement costs? Hope this helps someone. I love the truck however it's longevity is still unknown to me with all of the emissions crap that is destroying it. Emissions delete seems to be next step. I run the GDE hot tune. Not sure if thats going to be enough? Any suggestions? Also I noticed over all mileage increased by 2mpg or so running the GDE tune however My mileage has flipped. I now get better in town milage 24mpg and average 20mpg hwy. I commute so thats not exactly what I was hoping for. If your running a stock tune be weary of just using it to drive in town they are not the old leave idle diesels you once had. The EGR will clog and you will be stuck in a never ending regen cycle and eventually kill your motor.

Update: Just another quick note you have to purchase the EGR Cooler before hand even though it might only be an O ring because dodge changed their parts policy. I paid the $120 diagnostics fee and am going to trade it in for an older cummins.

 

[abn]

I don't really have anything to contribute, other than to say that I'm really glad to hear this is happening to others (as awful as that sounds) - the ecodeisel isn't popular here yet, and I thought I had bought a lemon since there was no one to compare problems with!

I bought a used 2015 with 44k miles. I had it 3 days before I noticed a coolant leak. Took it to the dealer and was told that it was a water pump, radiator, and egr leak - about 3K to fix.I caught the problem at 46K, and it sounds like I was lucky to have done so based on the other posts. Thankfully, the egr tank was on a 3 month back order (confirming that this is a frequent problem). I was able to get the first two fixed under warranty and simply had them swap the O-ring and leave the egr tank alone - everything seems to be in order...

I think my dealer was a little more flexible on the parts than others because I live in a state without emissions testing, and because I flat out told them the tank was coming off in a week so did it really matter if it was replaced. They were amazed that I was going to void the warranty, but really it sounds like all the problems stem from the emissions equipment, so if it's off they're 90% of the problem, then why not remove them? Maybe that's the wrong approach, but with every account I have come across, I know I'm willing to take the gamble.

This weekend we are doing a full emissions delete and hopefully after some tinkering and cleaning this RAM will last like it should.

 

[KWC]

Yeah, so I traded my Eco money pit.
If u keep ur Ecodiesel, get ready for some expensive up keep the more miles u put on it. They r maintenance nightmares.
I’m out.
Good luck guys.
KWC

 

[Ecobummer]

Here is some good info on imminent EGR failure and possibly why you should NOT wait to delete it.
Such a beautiful engine, what they did to these things will eventually be realized. It is illegal to delete your Emissions system in most states but its better than having a 50,000 lawn ornament. Haven't found anyone creditable that has done it successfully because everyone is waiting till their powertrain warranty is up. Folks, Its not covered after 30,000 and you should see what these manifolds (carbon caked) are looking like just after 40,000 miles. Its my understanding that the GDE hot tune helps but unless you actually delete your EGR you are going to have problems. The EGR takes hot exhaust (carbon present) and runs it thru the EGR cooler and then throws it back into the piston to be burned again (non-combustible) and some how magically you have an exhaust that smells like soap and an engine with a bunch of residual carbon clogging everything from the head out to the tail pipe. Then these geniuses decided to burn your unspent diesel in your tailpipes to unclog it every so often and they call that a regen cycle. Just so I can pass emissions in california by keeping the air clean but using a fossil fuel to do it. Ahh makes perfect sense to me. LOL good luck. I can't even sell mine the resale value is 18,500 on a 2015 with 93,000.
http://www.weatherimagery.com/blog/diesel-engine-egr-bad/

 

[BoostN]

I don't really have anything to contribute, other than to say that I'm really glad to hear this is happening to others (as awful as that sounds) - the ecodeisel isn't popular here yet, and I thought I had bought a lemon since there was no one to compare problems with!

I bought a used 2015 with 44k miles. I had it 3 days before I noticed a coolant leak. Took it to the dealer and was told that it was a water pump, radiator, and egr leak - about 3K to fix.I caught the problem at 46K, and it sounds like I was lucky to have done so based on the other posts. Thankfully, the egr tank was on a 3 month back order (confirming that this is a frequent problem). I was able to get the first two fixed under warranty and simply had them swap the O-ring and leave the egr tank alone - everything seems to be in order...

I think my dealer was a little more flexible on the parts than others because I live in a state without emissions testing, and because I flat out told them the tank was coming off in a week so did it really matter if it was replaced. They were amazed that I was going to void the warranty, but really it sounds like all the problems stem from the emissions equipment, so if it's off they're 90% of the problem, then why not remove them? Maybe that's the wrong approach, but with every account I have come across, I know I'm willing to take the gamble.

This weekend we are doing a full emissions delete and hopefully after some tinkering and cleaning this RAM will last like it should.

Welcome to the forum, we're glad to have you!

 

[abn]

We successfully completed our full emissions delete today at 47k. We got the optimization tune from GDE and pipes from FlowPro and a CFT stage 2 EGR delete kit. Totally worth the 8-9 hours of shop time, cut fingers, coolant baths, and one giant bump on hubby’s noggin. We learned a lot doing this and it definetly isn’t for the novice mechanic. Here’s a few things to keep in mind

1. The catalytic converters is time consuming. There’s a bracket on the side of the transmission that you can loosen and it makes it easier to wrangle the CC out of there.
2. Taking of the passenger side tires off and the panssenger wheel well liner are worth it to reach a few difficult bolts.
3. It rather helpful to have a buddy - one goes in from the exhaust side and one from the engine side and it will get done quicker. And just two people are better than one for some of the awkward lifting.
4. The EGR kit instructions we got weren’t very clear so we had to pause and interpret what they wrote and what they meant.

Good luck to everyone dealing with the emissions fiasco.

 

[BoostN]

We successfully completed our full emissions delete today at 47k. We got the optimization tune from GDE and pipes from FlowPro and a CFT stage 2 EGR delete kit. Totally worth the 8-9 hours of shop time, cut fingers, coolant baths, and one giant bump on hubby’s noggin. We learned a lot doing this and it definetly isn’t for the novice mechanic. Here’s a few things to keep in mind

1. The catalytic converters is time consuming. There’s a bracket on the side of the transmission that you can loosen and it makes it easier to wrangle the CC out of there.
2. Taking of the passenger side tires off and the panssenger wheel well liner are worth it to reach a few difficult bolts.
3. It rather helpful to have a buddy - one goes in from the exhaust side and one from the engine side and it will get done quicker. And just two people are better than one for some of the awkward lifting.
4. The EGR kit instructions we got weren’t very clear so we had to pause and interpret what they wrote and what they meant.

Good luck to everyone dealing with the emissions fiasco.

Thanks for posting. That will benefit many more here !

 

[Ecobummer]

Hey thanks for sharing. How is the truck running? Any overheating or anything that you feel would need further adjusting (the GDE tune)? Are you essentially deleting the EGR with a cover plate, removing the exhaust from manifold to cc, and running a GDE tune.? Is that all that is required. I have heard that just removing EGR will cause overheating.?

 

[abn]

Hey thanks for sharing. How is the truck running? Any overheating or anything that you feel would need further adjusting (the GDE tune)? Are you essentially deleting the EGR with a cover plate, removing the exhaust from manifold to cc, and running a GDE tune.? Is that all that is required. I have heard that just removing EGR will cause overheating.?

The truck is running great. The EGR is blocked at the intake manifold, and exhaust system with plates. The kit we used also had a plate and plug for the EGR coolant lines. All that is left of the factory exhaust is the stock muffler and tailpipes. The GDE tune really made a big difference in how well the truck runs. No overheating problems at all. You don’t have to remove the EGR with GDE’s tune as they disable it anyway. We did because they tend to develop a leak over time. GDE has a great reputation that we feel is well deserved.

However we are driving home over some snowy mountain passes tomorrow and if anything changes from above we will definitely post about it.

 

[Ecobummer]

That's Great! Well safe passage home and keep us posted. I think all that should be required for EGR leak is just the O ring so that could save some headache for others (radiator baths just leaving it on. That sounds like a very doable surgery. Cheers

Hey "BoostN" is there anyone else that you know of that has done a successful emissions delete?

 

[BoostN]

That's Great! Well safe passage home and keep us posted. I think all that should be required for EGR leak is just the O ring so that could save some headache for others (radiator baths just leaving it on. That sounds like a very doable surgery. Cheers

Hey "BoostN" is there anyone else that you know of that has done a successful emissions delete?

We've had a few on here for sure. I don't keep a checklist, but maybe that's a new forum feature we can add. "Deleted" Members club..

 

[abn]

That's Great! Well safe passage home and keep us posted. I think all that should be required for EGR leak is just the O ring so that could save some headache for others (radiator baths just leaving it on. That sounds like a very doable surgery. Cheers

Hey "BoostN" is there anyone else that you know of that has done a successful emissions delete?

We simply replaced the O-ring and then drove 800 miles and didn't have any leaking coming from the EGR. So that seemed to work for us. The dealer was not too happy about doing it...but the simple fix seemed to be all that was needed.

 

[Windell LaRue]

I'm afraid I have some sort of leaking coolant problem.Smelled coolant after towing a three horse metal trailer with three 1k plus horses.About 8k. I had no over heating. Just the smell and about a quart low on coolant. I added a QT. of coolant and the level has barely moved in about a month. when I smelled the coolant,we could never find a leak. Does that mean it leaked into the EGR? or some place where it was burned off? Any ideas would be appreciated. I have 46,500 miles and have towed this same load many miles,with never an issue.