Dealer is trying to charge both kidneys and a cornea to replace the Turbo unit in my 2015 Ram 2500. As I am rather fond of my kidneys and my corneas, I am seeking alternative Diesel wizards.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Unless it's covered by warranty I wouldn't go to a dealer for that.
I bet the turbo alone is close to 5K with about 4 - 5 hours of labor.
Should be independent shops in your area for that type of stuff.

Why is the turbo being replaced?

I just got one of these this morning.
Turbo faults and the exhaust brake isn't working.
Also has a leaking manifold.

Turbo issue is the small extension harness has an open circuit, one of the pins has a wire broken off. $60 part.

8 hours to reseal the manifold, took about an hour to get the turbo off.

quote:

Originally posted by Fenris:
Dealer is trying to charge both kidneys and a cornea to replace the Turbo unit in my 2015 Ram 2500. As I am rather fond of my kidneys and my corneas, I am seeking alternative Diesel wizards.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

You should have mail from me.

I put one on my truck last year. Fleece Cheetah. Turbo was around $3000. It can be done in a weekend by a shade tree mechanic. Plenty of great videos on YouTube. I would recommend getting the Fleece rubber oil return line if you decide to go that way. It really did help. I dropped mine out the bottom through the wheel well. There is an aftermarket actuator that comes highly rated. It is around 1k. I just couldn’t justify trying it and maybe still having a bad turbo. Good luck. Nothing on these trucks is cheap

Be thankful it isn't a Ford where the cab has to be taken off.

Why does it need a turbo? The Cummins turbo is generally very reliable, even on the newer ones. Turbo failures are in three categories: the impeller seizes and it stops providing boost; they "grenade" and fill the engine with shrapnel; or oil sealing fails and they blow oil into the intake, potentially causing a "runaway" condition where the engine runs on its own oil even with the ignition off. If it is being replaced because the engine light is on and "low boost" codes are stored (generally accompanied by a lack of power), be sure due diligence has been done to eliminate other causes first.

Could be a VGT actuator or the wire harness powering it.

quote:

Originally posted by egregore:
Be thankful it isn't a Ford where the cab has to be taken off.

Why does it need a turbo? The Cummins turbo is generally very reliable, even on the newer ones. Turbo failures are in three categories: the impeller seizes and it stops providing boost; they "grenade" and fill the engine with shrapnel; or oil sealing fails and they blow oil into the intake, potentially causing a "runaway" condition where the engine runs on its own oil even with the ignition off. If it is being replaced because the engine light is on and "low boost" codes are stored (generally accompanied by a lack of power), be sure due diligence has been done to eliminate other causes first.

Lucky for me I don't have to deal with a cab in the way, just tip the hood and stand next to it. Easy money.
Early turbos failed due to the vanes locking up.
They fixed that a long time ago with a software update.
When the engine is shut off the VGT makes a few few sweeps to clear carbon from the vanes.
Rarely see the turbo itself take a shit now days, mainly wiring or actuator problems.
Run around long enough with it acting up can get the vanes seized up which can be freed up with a wrench on the arm and work it back and forth till it moves free.

Never understood why they didn't just use a regular turbo and a simple back pressure device (potato brake) to drive the EGR and provide exhaust braking instead.