there is no nice way to put this dude. but light colored smoke plus loss of power indicates the engine is starved for fuel. the year range of truck you have is notorious for the lift pump dieing. when that happens and u keep driving you will wreck ur injection pump. this will result in a 2600 dollar repair bill total to get a new lift and injection pump. you may get lucky and it only be a fuel filter needing replaced or bad fuel. but until that is narrowed down DO NOT AND I CAN NOT STRESS THIS ENOUGH DO NOT DRIVE THAT TRUCK

 

im sorry to go against your all's wishes but shes my daily driver.....and i gotta put atleast a few miles on her a day. like i said a bit ago, since the only time it does it is when im full throttle and topped out in RPMs, i'm gonna be very easy on it.....im gonna get a fuel filter today at cumberland cummins in south chas. WV and replace it tomorrow. while im at it im going to get the hand pump. if it ends up being hte lift pump gone bad, im gonna wait til my taxes come in and get a FASS system and hook it up, it seems to be the easiest to install (or atleast has the simplest instructions).

i really appreciate the replies guys....i know i dont post much unless theres a problem but im kinda useless like htat anyway lol. you guys rock.

 

One more question......this VP44 part....and the lift pump....let me know if this assumption is right. as logn as the truck runs, the VP44 is working. with the problems i have, its possible its the lift pump. if the lift pump is working improperly then it can cause the VP44 to strain and go out.....so if i change the fuel filter and dont have the problem anymore then thats the problem. but if its not the fuel filter andi put on a FASS pump then i can save my VP44 from going out, right?

 

If you starve your VP-44, it WILL die and you'll spend at least 1200.00 smacks to repair it ( if you do the job yourself )

Changing your fuel filter may or may not solve your problem. The ONLY way to know if you are starving your 44 is with a fuel pressure gauge. Any other way of trying to determine how well fed your 44 is is merely a guess

Installing a FASS right now GREATLY increases your chances of never having a problem with your 44, however installing a FASS after you've starved your 44 will NOT bring it back from the dead !!

Bottom line ... Get a fuel pressure gauge, and get a FASS. It's not a matter of IF your stock lift pump will die, it's a matter of WHEN


I'm not trying to scare you at all, I'm trying to help you out. I'm sure others here will agree.

 

no i totally agree that lift pumps go out and that VP44's normally dont unless a bad lift pump goes ignored. I'm going to go replace my fuel filter and read the post about it but mine looks nothing like drew's, it looks like yours. can you tell me which bolts i need to take off and any lines i need to unhook (if any) to get the top of that damn thing off? lol.....

and do i need a canister filter or just a regular stock filter? im askin u this since apparently we have the same fuel filter setup

 

Yeah, we should have the same filter canister. It's not that difficult to change.

Look at the center of the top and you'll see a nut. Unscrew that nut and the filter cnister will drop from below it. The lid to the canister stays put. Basically there is a long bolt running through the center. Before you start thoug, you'll want to drain the fuel out of it with that yellow lever.

This is what it will look like when you remove the canister



This is what the canister and filter look like. Well ... not the filter because in this filter I cut it all up, but you get the idea



This is what the inside of the canister looks like ( minus the brown lip that I cut from the old filter )



The reason I did all of this was because when I installed my FASS I ran the FASS lines through this canister because I wanted to continue to use my fuel heater ( located at the bottom ... you'll have to unplug it before removing the canister ). I had to cut that top lip off of the fuel filte because it holds the gasket that keeps it from leaking. My fuel filter bowl is now empty ( except for fuel ).


When you re-install the new filter, fill the canister with fuel before screwing it back on. This will help in the priming process. Before starting the truck, bump the starter a few times to totally fill it up. It's take a few tries, but eventually the truck should fire up.

Best of luck. Any questions, feel free

 

Just some heads up......I had a 2002 that I was having problems with. It started out that I would lose power like you were talking about (although never did burnouts), but it was only a slight power lose at high speeds. Anyways, I had the fuel filters changed hoping that was the problem. Then it started to get worse. I would lose power at lower RPM's, and the motor would boog down. If I let off the pedal, and the reapply it would be fine. Now it would only do this when I was on long trips. Soon it started doing it all the time. It would lose power, I would let off the pedal, and then it would be fine. Then it got to the point where even if I let off the pedal it wouldn't come right back. I would have to stand on the pedal, and the motor would run like Sh*t for a couple seconds, and then it would be all right. It finally got to the point where I could hardly drive across town at 35 mph. In the middle of all this I took it to the dealership because the motor was still under warranty. They replaced the fuel pump, shich helped for a couple days, but then it was right back to the same. So I brought it in, and they had to replace the lift pump. I would have to say you better get the pressures checked ASAP.

 

oh i believe i just F-ed up totally......i need some help here emergently kinda

i did everything right except i forgot to fill the canister with fuel....i left the drain valve open and let it fill up, but i didnt tighten it up enough and it was spilling out around hte edges so i stopped, tightened it up where it was supposed to be, then did it again, left the drain open til it drained dry.....cranked it over and it fired for a seconcd then died. i cranked on it fr a minute or two and got nothing.....now, when i bump the starter, i cant even hear the canister fill up.....did i do real real bad here?

 

OK, start over. What's goin gon now? Is the canister filled or not? If not and the nut isn't tight anyway, take it off and fill it. What you've probably done is allow too much air to enter the engine. What you'll have to do now is bleed the air out. Crack open the first injector and bump the starter intil you see fuel comming out of it. Tighten it back up and try to turn the engine over. If no go, crack the next injector. So on, and so forth. It'll take a little bit of time, but you'll get it.

Actually, since you have to loosen the injector anyway, no need to prime the canister. Just tighten it up ( and CLOSE THE VALVE ... ) and open the injector. Keep bumping the starter until you see fuel.

You'll get it ... don't panic. We've all been where you are right now.

 

next dumb question......where are the injector bleed valves??? lol

and no the canister isnt filled and i tried the bump method after i screwd up and wasnt getting any fuel at all and couldnt even hear the pump running the second time i did it