so got a 98 dogde 2500 12v and and it wont even get over 2000rpms or get over 50mph even with the pedal all the way to the floor and alot of white smoke would come comes out the exhaust i dont know much on diesels so any help would be good

Check all of your boost/turbo hoses under the hood, sounds like you had one come loose or break.

White smoke aka steam is usually a head gasket/ running coollant through the engine. = not good

will do thanks someone also said it might be my fuel water separator could that be somethin

White smoke aka steam is usually a head gasket/ running coollant through the engine. = not good


i just changed the oil and it wasnt milky and all fluids are fine

headgaskets can fail in more than one way

I am not 100% sure on the cummins but on some engines it is possible for a part of the gasket to fail allowing coolant into the cylinder but not into the oil.

An injector dumping fuel or timing too retarded will cause whiteish smoke.

ya cause it used to blow a shit ton of black smoke :D now it dosnt blow any black just all white

As previously stated, check all air lines, sounds like you have a leak

I too am going with those who think it may be an air leak, if you have no leak than i suspect a head gasket. If it was dumping fuel then smake would be black as said before. How is the coolant level? Have you done any mods to this engine?

Either a bad boost leak, fried turbo, or timing slip.

IMO, its a timing slip.

Did it happen while you were driving, or it stat you started and it happend?

I too am going with those who think it may be an air leak, if you have no leak than i suspect a head gasket. If it was dumping fuel then smake would be black as said before. How is the coolant level? Have you done any mods to this engine?


the coolant level is fine i havnt added any for awile the only thing iv done to the truck is kn intake and 6in exhoust

Either a bad boost leak, fried turbo, or timing slip.

IMO, its a timing slip.

Did it happen while you were driving, or it stat you started and it happend?


ya it happened when i was driving it but i had allready been drivin it for abou 3 hours then it all of a suden started

ya it happened when i was driving it but i had allready been drivin it for abou 3 hours then it all of a suden started

What were you doing when it happen, where was the boost, was there any noises or anything?

Agree with k5, I say timing jumped.

Agree with k5, I say timing jumped.

Agree here as well. Its likely not a head gasket, and its also prolly not a boost leak either. Boost leak means more fuel than air which equals black smoke.

Agree here as well. Its likely not a head gasket, and its also prolly not a boost leak either. Boost leak means more fuel than air which equals black smoke.



ding ding ding...........


Timing jumped. it's all the symptoms especially the inability to rev above 2000 thats a major trade mark

on the old 12v's when a boot lets loose it's black smoke or atleast a heavy haze depending on fuel settings, high egt's and no power

The other option or thing to check is air in the fuel lines but that would also equate to stumbling and hard starting most of the time. on some trucks if the fuel heater and prefilter develop a leak..... commons where the wires go into the unit air can seep in slowly over the evening and the engine will loose its prime. it will fire up and run till the fuel filter runs out of fuel then you have to beat the air bubbles out and once it is running it will have some white smoke at times but usually white smoke is a retarded timing issue.


you are in grass valley. if this really stays an issue run it up to J&H in redding. I have few people i would let toouch my 12v's in the past not a single one of them is in the Sac area.

So... Would that mean that the timing chain actually skipped teeth? Is this common? Any way to prevent it?

If it is not consuming coolant I would agree with this diagnosis but I would like to know why the timing could change like that.

It has no timing chain, it is all gear driven. We are talking about pump timing. If you want it back at stock there is a way to "pin" the motor and "pin" the pump to get them is time.

Agree here as well. Its likely not a head gasket, and its also prolly not a boost leak either. Boost leak means more fuel than air which equals black smoke.

Actually when a boot or turbo blows, its white/greyish smoke.

Actually when a boot or turbo blows, its white/greyish smoke.

when my boot let go it was balck as night. I agree white'ish for a popped turbo though.

when my boot let go it was balck as night. I agree white'ish for a popped turbo though.

Yea thats right i wasnt thinking:homer:

It has no timing chain, it is all gear driven. We are talking about pump timing. If you want it back at stock there is a way to "pin" the motor and "pin" the pump to get them is time.

Pinning the pump and the motor is nowhere near accurate. Both the timing pin on the motor and the pin on the pump are adjustable and if they have been messed with you will have no idea what your actual timing is set at.

Add me to the list of guys who think the timing has slipped, but the only way I would ever set the timing is by finding TDC and measuring plunger lift or using the spill port timing method.

Pinning the pump and the motor is nowhere near accurate. Both the timing pin on the motor and the pin on the pump are adjustable and if they have been messed with you will have no idea what your actual timing is set at.

Add me to the list of guys who think the timing has slipped, but the only way I would ever set the timing is by finding TDC and measuring plunger lift or using the spill port timing method.


If this truck has the stock pump and the front of the motor has not been torn into and even if it has then pining the pump and the motor will get him close enough to figure out what happened to his truck. From his question I am guessing he does not have the equipment to do it any other way.

If this truck has the stock pump and the front of the motor has not been torn into and even if it has then pining the pump and the motor will get him close enough to figure out what happened to his truck. From his question I am guessing he does not have the equipment to do it any other way.

Assuming that nobody has ever messed with anything then yes, I would agree that pinning the motor and pump would get it close enough to drive it around. Unfortunately, this is 2009 and the last 12v truck was produced over 10 years ago. You have no way of knowing what the previous owners or repair shops have done to the truck in that amount of time. The motor was largely unmolested in my current 12v truck and guess what? The tit on the timing pin was broken off. This was a motor that had never even had the front cover off of it to fix the KDP or anything.

The only special tool required to time a truck by measuring plunger lift is a delivery valve socket. Other than that, everything else should be readily available or already owned.

Assuming that nobody has ever messed with anything then yes, I would agree that pinning the motor and pump would get it close enough to drive it around. Unfortunately, this is 2009 and the last 12v truck was produced over 10 years ago. You have no way of knowing what the previous owners or repair shops have done to the truck in that amount of time. The motor was largely unmolested in my current 12v truck and guess what? The tit on the timing pin was broken off. This was a motor that had never even had the front cover off of it to fix the KDP or anything.

The only special tool required to time a truck by measuring plunger lift is a delivery valve socket. Other than that, everything else should be readily available or already owned.


I can't count how many broken motor pin tits I have removed out of the back of the pump gear in a 12v. If the motor has been apart which you are correct it most likely has been and was put back together correctly and the pump was the correct pump for the model and year then pinning the pump and motor should get the timing close enough to know if the timing jumped or not.

For that matter pull the plug on the pump turn the motor/ pump over untill you see the tab/lever/ what ever you want to call it. Then pull the motor pin, stick your finger in there and see if you can feel the hole or broke off tit in the back of the gear.

Untill I made my living working on 5.9 Cummins I did not have the delivery valve socket to check plunger lift so I doubt he has one but he might. I however only owned a 12v for a short time (a 98 quad cab shortbed auto 3/4 ton 4x4) that I should have held onto but didn't so I never worked on the 12v before I did it for a living.

Untill I made my living working on 5.9 Cummins I did not have the delivery valve socket to check plunger lift so I doubt he has one but he might. I however only owned a 12v for a short time (a 98 quad cab shortbed auto 3/4 ton 4x4) that I should have held onto but didn't so I never worked on the 12v before I did it for a living.

A delivery valve socket is something that every 12v owner should have IMHO, because I'd say that there are more 12v p-pumped trucks out there that need the timing readjusted than not. It is only $35 or so for the socket. I have the whole Miller kit, but it certainly is not needed.

He might have to wait for a week or so if he has to order the socket, but he might as well do it the right way if he is going to go to the work of adjusting the injection timing in the first place. He might as well advance it a few degrees while he is in there too.

The 12v trucks are stupidly simple and don't require much effort to keep them running, but having them run good takes some skill and understanding on what is going on in there.

A delivery valve socket is something that every 12v owner should have IMHO, because I'd say that there are more 12v p-pumped trucks out there that need the timing readjusted than not. It is only $35 or so for the socket. I have the whole Miller kit, but it certainly is not needed.

He might have to wait for a week or so if he has to order the socket, but he might as well do it the right way if he is going to go to the work of adjusting the injection timing in the first place. He might as well advance it a few degrees while he is in there too.

The 12v trucks are stupidly simple and don't require much effort to keep them running, but having them run good takes some skill and understanding on what is going on in there.

I agree that every 12v owner should own one, and that the 12v is simple, and that it takes more understanding than pushing a few buttons on a programer to make one run right. I have the Snap On SP500 kit plus the baring tool.

If he needs the truck ASAP he could go the pin route.

thanks for all the help i was told to check the fuel water separter and fuel filter so far i changed those and its back to blowin black smoke but im have to wait for my friend to check the timing i dont know how to do it

thanks ill have to get one of those tools




I agree that every 12v owner should own one, and that the 12v is simple, and that it takes more understanding than pushing a few buttons on a programer to make one run right. I have the Snap On SP500 kit plus the baring tool.

If he needs the truck ASAP he could go the pin route.