3126 cat n an ambulance chassis

jfaulkner said:
I put all new batteries in my truck when I got it, new engine, starter, alternator, brakes, paint etc and about 2yrs later it would randomly not start, would just click and if I was lucky finally take off. Tighten the battery cables and it was good for a few months. Finally got tired of the random chit because it would always do it at the worst time and I became a pit crew at taking the step cover off. Then it finally occurred to me that the cables were original and had 600k miles on them, damn things looked good on top but the bottoms were dark and corroded. Hit everything with a scotch brite wheel on a die grinder and it’s been perfect. You forget that most of the stuff is not new and most have never been touched since they were new.

It’s hard to say how those horns are plumbed. You could spend a day tracing it or just run a line from the tank to the valve.


Not all used is bad, just have to think that a $3000 2016 Honda Civic is probably going to be in WAY better shape than a $3000 2016 BMW M5. If it’s extremely cheap there is almost always a reason and it’s rarely the owner has piles of cash and wants it gone.
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A soft wire wheel on a drill works really well for shining up cables too, Ive fixed quite a few "bad batteries" with one.

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well I took the cables off and cleaned the grounds...helped but ....if I ground the meter on the engine I get 14.5..if I ground it to the frme I get 13..so...I took a #10 wire and ran it to a bolt on the side of the transmission and it went to 13...or 13.2....so its a lot better...but still not right...somewhere in the cables or the connections it is losing a volt...this ambulance thing is a wiring nightmare...it has so much extra crap. took the air comp off and chucked it...

idk boutthe horns...ill get around to it....it has 3 air tanks..isn't 2 the norm?
 
dieselbeef said:
well I took the cables off and cleaned the grounds...helped but ....if I ground the meter on the engine I get 14.5..if I ground it to the frme I get 13..so...I took a #10 wire and ran it to a bolt on the side of the transmission and it went to 13...or 13.2....so its a lot better...but still not right...somewhere in the cables or the connections it is losing a volt...this ambulance thing is a wiring nightmare...it has so much extra crap. took the air comp off and chucked it...

idk boutthe horns...ill get around to it....it has 3 air tanks..isn't 2 the norm?
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2 is the minimum, mine had 3 and I added a 4th, looked at a 4 axle trailer with 12.


I feel your pain, I bought a T800 a long time ago that was part of a Ryder lease/rental program with a fleet. Had lots of maintenance paperwork but when I ran it a while found out that that’s all it was was paperwork. Marking you greased it is somehow not the same as actually doing it. Dumped a pile in that turd before it got shipped.
 
dieselbeef said:
so I'm checking along the wires and all the connections and I realize if I ground it to the engine I get 13.6...if I ground it to the chassi I get 12.1...sooo..I start chasing grounds now..find the main battery ground not very tight and kinda rusty under the bolt. took it off..ground it clean..cleaned the terminals and poof! 13.2 to 13.6 at idle...stays clost to 13.1 on a 10 mi quik trip..i think I got it....beats the 11.8 I was getting!

I even got the air horns working by just hooking the compressor up and letting them blow for a minute or 2 a cpl times..now they work too....time to unload the pos....lol
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You posted this back in April. I'd revisit the cables.

On the horns, what compressor did you hook up? The one you just threw away?
 
yea..idk..must be the cables..its an odd setup..from 1/0 cable to a junction on top of the engine...then to the starter..then to the batts..there are 4 1/0 cbles on the starter lug...its like they used it to make the joint connection..the ground on the chassi is god to the batts but the engine to chassi ground is not..gound the alt to the engine is gets over 14..to the chassi it gets 12.7..gonna try a wire to the chassi direct from the alt next.even tho I grounded the trans to the batts direct last nite...

the horns work but run outta air..that aux comp I took off did nothng except run to keep air in the system when the truck wasn't running...ambulance crap I'm sure
 
SOLD THE *****! 17000 cash.........signed it off at 1130 last night..at least its gone....no more drama and bs over this shizbox
 
This was all your creation Gary. From beginning to end. Thanks for the great story. :)

Good bye *****.
 
To steal a line from an old commercial, I think I speak for many here when I say, "Oh, what a relief it is!"

Happy for you the trauma is over.
 
Finally, now all we have to aggravate you about is your desire to P-pump your '02!

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from fl pos to overpriced I cant afford it brand new!
 

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its all good til the payments come..i thik idi ok tho..50 plus expenses....nothing down
 
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