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CAN-BUS

Truck Shop

Senior Member
Joined
Dec 7, 2015
Messages
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Most or 95% of of problems I deal with in the shop is located in connections and the wire it's self. And some of the trouble shooting is easy like harness to DPF is MELTED. As far as anything
related to the computers or sensors - those folks can have it at the dealer. I'm not a TV, Appliance repair turd. You can't do it all folks sometimes you have to blow the dust and cobwebs off
your wallet and keep the young fellers at the dealer employed . Or go back to basics and use a rock and a rock to tenderize your chuck steak. And when I get to a point in life I will throw the
keys away and take the bus.
 

Birken Vogt

Charter Member
Joined
Nov 30, 2003
Messages
5,323
Location
Grass Valley, Ca
Mike, does your boss have enough clout at the dealer to get the bill reduced when it turns out the young feller was just wasting time with the computer because he did not know what he was doing or was not properly trained?

We go to great lengths to keep the electronic stuff in house for fear that the dealer will just screw it up worse. Our problem is the manufacturers are so secretive, they won't tell you how it is supposed to work (or don't even know) but they don't really know how to work on it efficiently either.
 

Truck Shop

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Dec 7, 2015
Messages
16,980
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Dealer covers it, And I know what your talking about when it comes to a dealer working on it. We have a select few to send them to. But I'm not playing privet eye on electronic crap either.
Most of the electronic/computer wear in trucks/or anything really is all about marketing and they don't want you tampering with it. I started working on computers on electronic fuel injection
back in the 70's-----Anyone ever hear of D-Jetronic? I'm hoping for the day it's all robotic, robots design it, build it and repair it - and man can set and do nothing and whine about what he
created-and no one works.
 

DMiller

Senior Member
Joined
Feb 21, 2010
Messages
16,574
Location
Hermann, Missouri
Occupation
Cheap "old" Geezer
I am with ts on this
Started working with mechanical diesel points carbs lp conversions on gas
Saw the onslaught of varied electronic ignitions fuel induction systems proprietary bs you could not get info on as the first Caddy electronics that were the predecessor to CAN systems.
Detroit dropped the first DDEC systems on us we could not do much with where they would not warranty much.
Then everything went proprietary in nearly every industry the Fed stepped in to drive common technical diagnosis on cars that did not last long where here again all has become proprietary a PITA and increasingly troublesome to diagnose.
Needs of special tooling computer programs and equipment that obsolesces faster than the systems designed for.

I take much to dealers as no longer have the money to throw to this stuff or the time to learn it as it seems without expending a lot of money so may be already getting on that bus.
My Harley is two years before CANBUS
My pickup antique my old tractors nut and bolt simple but are all getting to the lack of hardware stages as the manufacturers obsolesce repair parts.
Can still make some but not all of the needs.
 

Truck Shop

Senior Member
Joined
Dec 7, 2015
Messages
16,980
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One big problem especially with Daimler, Detroit, Freightliner the only way you can keep your warranty intact is repairs have to be documented by Detroit. If not they can and will step out
from under. Plus you can't keep equipment past warranty.
 

kshansen

Senior Member
Joined
Mar 11, 2012
Messages
11,164
Location
Central New York, USA
Occupation
Retired Mechanic in Stone Quarry
A bit off topic, computer wise, but this reminded me of back in around 1970 I owned a 1966 Corvair that the four speed transmission went out in. I had no place to work on it so took it to a Chevy dealer. After a couple days check with dealer and got the story that nothing had been done to it because the mechanic assigned the project threw a fit and said he told them he wasn't going to work on those things and took his tools and left! Hate to think what that guy would think of cars these days if that Corvair freaked him out! We actually moved it to another dealer next town over and a few days latter had it back with a good used transaxle.

Jump ahead a few years I had another Corvair, yea I was sort of addicted to them at that time, it had this noise in the clutch area. I had an old cow barn to work on at that time so dropped the drive train and replaced the clutch thinking it was weak damper springs. Some-of-a-bitch! still had the noise. Stopped by the dealer, as I was told they liked Corvairs, near me, a small maybe three stall repair shop and display floor that was lucky to hold two cars, at that time. Service manager came out and listened to it idle and said "Bad flywheel" they have a flex-plate riveted to the flywheel, rivets get loose. Parts department actually had one on the shelf. Drove home and had it in and car back on the road early next day! Nice thing about doing the same job two times in a row nothing is rusted up and you know where every bolt is!
 

Truck Shop

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Dec 7, 2015
Messages
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Case in point--A little over a year ago one of our Freightliner Cascadias had a major issue with the DT12
transmission. It refused to talk to engine controls, it was at a dealer for six weeks while they tried everything
which has to be run through Detroit Transmission before any repairs are made. Detroit tells them what to do.
Finally Detroit authorized replacing the transmission. A DT12 costs $18,500. I can't touch one of those in the
shop, I repaired/rebuilt Eaton 13's, 10's, 18's for years but the autos have put me out of work in that area.
Now for you automatic lovers just go out and buy a dump truck with a DT12 and about 400,000 miles on it.
You will be crying all the way to the bank, If you can't drive a stick then you shouldn't have a CDL. But the
industry has made us lazy as hell.
 

Tugger2

Senior Member
Joined
Mar 22, 2018
Messages
1,379
Location
British Columbia
We were doing a tandem lift on an engine module up in the Yukon a few years back ,we had the old P&H 125 ton set up on one end and the 90 ton Link Belt on the other. Go to lift and the Link Belt craps out ,no one around to figure it out until a guy from the local Cat dealer rescues us. Something to do with its cleanout burn. After that id bug the guys ,the old triple nickel Cummins in the P&H chugging away blue smoke coming out the twin stacks. Its just doing its cleanout burn id tell them. Another old machine always ready and reliable.
 

kshansen

Senior Member
Joined
Mar 11, 2012
Messages
11,164
Location
Central New York, USA
Occupation
Retired Mechanic in Stone Quarry
Case in point--A little over a year ago one of our Freightliner Cascadias had a major issue with the DT12
transmission. It refused to talk to engine controls, it was at a dealer for six weeks while they tried everything
which has to be run through Detroit Transmission before any repairs are made. Detroit tells them what to do.
Finally Detroit authorized replacing the transmission. A DT12 costs $18,500. I can't touch one of those in the
shop, I repaired/rebuilt Eaton 13's, 10's, 18's for years but the autos have put me out of work in that area.
Now for you automatic lovers just go out and buy a dump truck with a DT12 and about 400,000 miles on it.
You will be crying all the way to the bank, If you can't drive a stick then you shouldn't have a CDL. But the
industry has made us lazy as hell.
I know they are probably not the best transmissions ever built but have to believe if you totaled the price of the parts I put into Mack Quadraplex transmissions over 30 years working on them I would probably not have much more total in to all them!
 

Truck Shop

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Dec 7, 2015
Messages
16,980
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I know they are probably not the best transmissions ever built but have to believe if you totaled the price of the parts I put into Mack Quadraplex transmissions over 30 years working on them I would probably not have much more total in to all them!

I would average about $1,800 in parts on a Eaton 13spd.

Freightliner---when everything goes dead in the cab-nothing works-dome lights, AC what ever you don't
need anything but a multi meter to check the alternator out put. If alternator only slightly over charges
the system will lock out to stop the surge. Sam
 
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