Stuck in the desert - sudden power loss - piston damage

Ashe350.. any updates? Interested to know if it was the #5 piston.?.?.

I opted for the MB remanufactured engine. Turbo was OK but that's the only hard info I've got. Expect to have an autopsy report eventually--will post results whenever that happens.

Really appreciate the interest and support from this forum.

Vanski--Just got autopsy result on my 06 Winnebago View (05 Sprinter T1N)

From Andy Bittenbinder

"cyl. #3 piston has a crack extending almost all the way [around] the outer circumference from pin boss back to pin boss.. A small opening developed at a location on the crown along that crack which allowed the compression in that cylinder to suddenly pressurize the crankcase and expel engine oil out of the dipstick tube.

A single piston with metalurgical or manufacturing flaws? Possible, but certainly not helped by your 'tune'."

Ouch.

I'm sure failure analysis is complicated. This is all I have to go on.

I've learned of two other T1N Winnebago Views that blew engines and also had GDE tune. On top of that, Andy reports two additional low-mileage Views that did the same. I don't know if those were T1N's or not.

I'll probably never know if my $600 tune wound up costing me $11K for a new engine.

But here's the thing--if you go w/ GDE and your engine blows, you may never know either.

Ouch indeed... truly sorry to hear that.

Any fueling map balances power output against reliability... and emissions, and economy, and drivability, and...

But-- Engine components all have physical mechanical limits - how much force and heat they can transmit, and how many loading cycles they'll undergo before failure. There are low loads that can be cycled almost forever, and high loads that will cause an instant failure. In between are the levels that cause fatigue and incremental damage, and these are the load levels that lead to predictable premature failures. You approach them at your peril.

Unfortunately, your piston has become a data point of when a piston failure will occur with a GDE tune.

-dave

ashe350 said:

I've learned of two other T1N Winnebago Views that blew engines and also had GDE tune.

Click to expand...

I know of engines that have blown up while the driver was eating a McDonald's hamburger. Definitely another reason to stay away from fast food.

I have the greatest sympathy for any View brother with any on-the-road failure, much less a blown engine, but to be fair it has to be noted that the automotive world is full of 'it could be' anecdotal stuff and without a lot more evidence the reason for the failure can be nothing but pure speculation.

I did have the gde tune as well.. but, I’d be curious if the failed motor had been over heated. Mine was prior to my piston failure/swap. Not super bad, but ran it up to the orange line for a long grade. After the swap I took a deep dive into the cooling circuit to remedy those issues. I don’t own that rig any longer but I stay in touch with the new owner. 65k miles since that swap and running strong. The new owner averaging 25mpg where I was averaging 21-22. Lead foot syndrom May have had something to do with it.

No Vanski, no overheating history.

Nautamaran -- appreciate it. That's a logical theory I guess--no expertise here.

Hypothesis -- heavy Sprinter T1N RVs and GDE might not go together.

smiller, thanks too bro. who knows? reason for suspicion, that's all. Don't eat and drive.