The Killer Dowel Pin

[Kota]

When I bought the 95 I did a little research on the care and feeding of the Cummins 5.9. The killer dowel pin seemed to be the hot topic. All of the 12 valve and some of the early 24 valve engines have a potential catastrophic event lurking for the perfect opportunity to make your day suck.

Cummins used dowel pins to align the timing gear case with the block. Two are captive this little bastard can work its way out.



You can see it between that bolt and the housing wall. Mine had migrated about 3/16" out. Another 1/4" and it would been free to go through the gears. Would it have continued to move? Who knows. It did tap back in with a small hammer and drift.



The fix is cheap and simple but a PITA to install on the 360.





There are many YouTube videos on the procedure. I'll share the procedure of getting to it on the Classic 360 diesel pusher.

[Kota]

After dealing with the overheating issues on the 94, I decided to pull the radiator/charge air cooler on the 95. It was running fairly cool unless you really pushed it in hot conditions. I pressure wash the radiator regularly so I was a little surprised with what I found.











I'm estimating about a 25% blockage. There is also an unused "oil" cooler sandwiched between the radiator and the CAC. It's only purpose is to trap dirt and impede airflow.

I'll add more pictures tomorrow as I reinstall the radiator.

I did get the timing cover back on tonight to keep the dirt out.

[GCinSC2]

Been there done that but it was after the pin walked out, tore up the gear case. Bought the truck after pin failure. Lots of labor, towels and lots of hand cleaner. I had to pull the camshaft to replace the gear case. I didn't own the truck when it happened. Well documented on several Dodge Cummins forums. Still running strong 7 years later.

[idroba]

Years ago on my 310 with the 454 I had a constant overheating situation. When I finally took all the front end apart to get to the radiator, I found the AC condenser, and the transmission cooler blocking the front of the radiator. They were not the problem, but over the years cottonwood silk, straw and oil from the road had plugged the lower half of the actual engine radiator with a matt so thick that no air could get through it at all. At least half of the surface was plugged up. This could not be seen from the front at all until the other things were removed.

After cleaning the grunk off, and re assembling it, the rig ran cool as a cucumber and would climb any grade in the West on a 100 + day with no issues.

So, you do need to do what you did, see the actual radiator surface. You can get quite a surprise when you do.

[NavyCorpsman]

If it was mine I would drill and tap and use red Loctite.

[SebasSF]

When doing research for my motor rebuild, this was always the first thing that came up in articles and threads. Looks like anyone with this vintage of pusher should clean out their radiator and CAC, and install the KDP repair kit...two major potential problems fixed, money well spent.

[Kota]

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[GCinSC2]

The KDP has been well documented on multiple forums. The tabs have been aftermarket supplied, made in garages and this one is shown on a Cummins package. Tabbing works and the pin keeps things lined up in the gearcase. Newer cases are step bored and the pin cannot come out.

[Kota]

Found some leaks in my CAC. It's in a shop in Whitehall MI getting re-cored. The frame of the unused "oil" cooler between the CAC and Radiator provides baffling and support. I cut it out and will reinstall it. The core is steel and weighs about 50lbs. Dropping unused lbs is always a good thing.

[Kota]

Shop still has my radiator and CAC. They say they are both pretty thin and fatigued. Before spending big bucks on getting obsolete parts re-cored, I'm looking at alternatives. I can get a new pair that fit a Freightliner that will fit nicely and have more capacity. I'll have to fabricate mounting, baffling, and modify the fan shroud. It would be nice to have parts that are modern and readily available. Just about anything shaped like a barn door will fit back there.

Since dirt is an issue on these pushers I'll mount it such that the radiator can be removed separately with the CAC staying in place for cleaning.

[SebasSF]

Here you go: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Spartan-Moto...c96a84&vxp=mtr

[Kota]

Wonder if that's a scam? Looks like it parked at the factory. Engine and Transmission are worth well more that the asking price. Wheels and tires alone would be worth $5k.

[Kota]

Decided to weld up the leaks in the CAC and patch up the radiator. Got them back pressure tested and cleaned for $141. I'll get it together tomorrow and test drive it. There are quite a few options to replace them with readily available modern technology with some fairly minor modifications to the mounting and baffling. The cost would be less than re-coring the existing units. Performance would be better and about 50 lbs weight savings.

Here's the stack ready to go back in.

[SebasSF]

It actually looks like it's for sale by Spartan, so probably not a scam.

[Kota]

Originally Posted by SebasSF

It actually looks like it's for sale by Spartan, so probably not a scam.

It's on Craigslist too.

http://lansing.craigslist.org/rvs/5057612180.html

[SebasSF]

Not that I could afford it now, but I wonder how hard it would be to lift off a94/95 body and drop it on that chassis? Just a fun idea...you would have an epic motorhome!

[Kota]

Don't think it would possible without having to use a step ladder to get in and out. That chassis is built for one of those big box MoHos that you can park your car under.

It would be a huge job but the drivetrain, axels, and air ride could be swapped in.

[Kota]

Its back together and running. In 83,000 miles the pin had walked about 1/3 of the way out assuming it was fully seated during assembly. Would it have been an issue? Who knows! But it's price of mind knowing it's been incarcerated. The crap I found obstructing airflow between the radiator and CAC was a bit of a surprise. I'm expecting a bit better cooling system performance in those hot high desert conditions. The leaks in the CAC was a bit of a surprise. They were pretty minor but I might see a little improvement in boost and a little drop in EGT. And I've been wanting to remove that unused oil cooler. It's only purpose is to collect dirt and obstruct air flow.

All good PM items on a 20 year old beast.

[Kota]

Pics of baffling