1999 Dodge Ram Quad Cab 1500 5.9l

Okay, here's my story:

About 6 months ago, I went off roading, through some mud, creeks, and such. Immediately, on my way home, the truck started missing. The next morning, I barely got it started with it missing real bad and pretty much not drivable.

I tried the cheap easy fix first, just becuase it was that time anyway. I replaced the plugs and wires. It actually started and ran better. It still missed a little but was drivable. It also bogged down heavily when flooring the gas pedal. However, over the next couple of months the missing and bogging down got worse.

We got some terrential rain here in Virginia last week. After that, the truck wouldn't start at all. I was under the hood and noticed that the distributor cap was loose. I took it off, sprayed it with WD40 and put it back on. The truck started and ran fine.

Unfortunately, this was short lived. It rained again. The truck wouldn't start. This time, I bought a new cap and rotor button. Again, it started and ran better than it had in quite sometime.

It rained yesterday here in VA. Take a guess? It wouldn't start this morning.

What do I try next? I am offering a small unique gift to who nails this one. Of course, I am not into spending a bunch of $ just on a guess.

Thanks in advance for the help,

Rondall in Powhatan, VA

 

Computer.

i have a neighbour that has a mazda protege. will never start wehn its reaining, and when it does it runs like ****. i think their fix was plugs and wires, but it still never runs great in wet weather.

another friend has a 98 intrepid. he brought it over for us to clean real good. after we were finished it wouldnt start. we let it sit a little and it started but ran like crap. he ended up taking it to the dealer because it was barely drivable. he ended up having to replace the computer. i think it ran him $300CDN for it a couple years ago. but its just something else to look at.

make sure its casing is nice and tight too.

 

I agree with mason... however i'd start with the coil.

edit: oops, didnt finish my thought... the coil could have a crack in it and when moisture is heavy in the air it's causing it to fail. another thing to look at is the wiring to the coil. most of the time when you have mositure issues it's ignition related.

 

When you replaced the plug wires and coil wire did you use the "dieletric grease" usually supplied with the wires to help prevent moisture and corrosion? You might also try a coating of that grease around the bottom edge of the dist where the cap meets it to see if sealing the cap better helps. I had an old Furd a long time ago that was a real pain in the butt when it rained due to the dist being in the front. I bought some "ignition sealer" (it's like a clear coat almost) at the parts store and sprayed it liberally over the dist., plug wires, and coil. Problem solved. You might try a can of that on all the above stuff and other elec connections related to the ignition......

 

tonight when its dark out, pop the hood a little bit with the engine running. make sure there are no lights on. stick your head under the hood. you'll probably see some wires arcing. its a blueish color.
ive also read somewhere that if you cross your spark plug wires, one wire could arc to the other wire and cause misfiring. ive also read that if youre spark plug wire is too close to an injector it could cause misfiring. and when theres humidity in the air that would help the wires to arc.

 

Well, I agree for the most part with the other guys, the basic tune up checks are in order. And a real easy way of checking for a cracked coil or bad spark plug wires is to go out at night, turn the truck on, and see if you have any electrical arcing anywhere. But, I'm not so sure that this addresses the bogging down issue, to me that sounds like your catalytic converter is clogged. Sounds like you might have to much backpressure due to the clogged cat or some type of exhaust issue. Try tapping on it to see if it rattles, check to see if you have the normal amount of exhaust coming out of the tailpipe, and inspect the exhaust system for kinks or crush points that may have happened while you were 4wheeling. Just my .02, good luck bud!

 

tune up and plugs and wires, i had the same problem, changed mine and now i run like a beast!

 

I know that a friend of mine had a jeep cherokee with a 4.0 that did about the same thing maybe check the crank position sensor....

 

I'm going with a plug wire issue; I had a truck that was doing the exact same thing. Turned out there were two plug wires and the coil wire all touching each other and the block in the same area; when the area got wet everything would short out and loose spark at the plugs. The truck wouldn't run until everything would dry out and then it ran perfect. I was checking it out one time by spraying water on the engine while it was running (carfully, started with cool engine) and heard a popping/crackling sound which led me to the problem. Hope this help some.

 

Thank all of you for the help. I replaced the coil yesterday (which I should have done with the wires plugs and caps in the first place) and it started up and ran great. The old coil was cracked at the bottom too. The true test will be after it rains though. We are expecting some tonight and tomorrow. I will keep you posted.