CdnHO
Well-Known Member
One thing I have learned since owning this truck for almost four years now. A lot of stuff about it make no sense. Sort of like being married to the damn thing. 
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Idle hours?
- Thread starter Clayinfl
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ErikTheRed
Well-Known Member
If the hour/idle meter is so incredibly inaccurate, makes me question all the other gauges and meters on this jalopy that are run by the same computer....
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In all reality it's not that inaccurate. It matches my 24 hour timed regens to the best of its ability (lack of a decimal makes some of them 23 or 25 hours on the "clock") and also matches the trip meter hours accurately.
Idle time does seem to count at slow speeds, less than 3-5 mph from what I can tell, but otherwise it's accurate enough in my experience to monitor.
Quite often when someone is surprised at their idle hours they use remote start frequently and it's always longer than they realize.
But to your point the oil pressure and oil temperature gauges are fake and can be ignored.
ErikTheRed
Well-Known Member
But.... 151 hrs on a truck with only 3800 miles on the odo? The only way I can figure thats even possible is if the truck has spent it's entire life so far (since July 2024) creeping around @ 25 mph. I'm the only owner and I can assure you, that isn't even close to the case. Ive used the truck almost exclusively on longer highway trips, very little in-town stuff and I intentionally keep idle time to a minimum. I dont use remote start because if I do, I can't idle it up using the cruise buttons. Something is definitely amiss with the hour meter.
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How many hours were on it when you picked it up?
Most average speeds are much much lower than people think they are too.
ErikTheRed
Well-Known Member
Hours I really dont know, I never even thought to look.... or even that I could look. But it had 160 miles, and I probably put 20 of those on it myself during the test drive. Also I know the dealership I bought it from has two locations, one in Reno and one in Fernley, and the truck had been at both dealerships at some point so they had to drive it from one to the other at least once.
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I'd put money on an accurate hour meter with lots of dealership idle time, they like to do that.
ErikTheRed
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Well I guess I can't argue with that possibility. But man that sure seems like an awful lot. So, note to those looking to buy a new truck-- CHECK THE HOUR METER, NOT JUST THE ODOMETER, BEFORE YOU BUY!
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Absolutely, especially since FCA could try to deny warranty with high idle time. (Cummins states anything over 16.6% idle time is excessive).
I was frustrated with the 50% idle time when I pickup up my truck, but I’ve gotten it back down to right at 11%.
I really questioned mine also when the truck was newer and nothing has changed. Some of these trucks seem to count as expected, others not so much. I have a not so much truck and maybe you do too. I do not use the truck in town. It is basically exclusively long distance towing with long periods of no use in between. Typically will hook up the TT and tow 2 to 6 hours to a campground at mostly highway speeds and then repeat the next day. My idle hours have been crazy high since the start. Right now at just under 15,000 miles, Idle 102, Drive 304. Obviously incorrect but what can you do. I even use the high idle up as much as I can so almost no idle at lowest rpms. Only concern I have is that I have seen some people say when they have an issue with the emission system, dealer will tell them it is because their idle hours are too high, which in a case like mine, might look like it, but is not.
Edit: FWIW my 24 hr regens are right on the money, it is just the idle vs drive hours that are not accurate.
Yeah that seems off. As I just posted my idle hours are high like yours but now I am at 15,000 miles with 406 total hours. If you extrapolate your 3800 miles out to my 15,000, you will have over 600 hours on the truck compared to my 400. Could just be because I am at higher speeds cause of towing almost exclusively, but still unless you spend your driving life at red lights it does not make sense to me. And you describe your driving as very close to my style anyway so weird for sure.
Mine is still at 25% idle time even with my driving style. Maybe the % has come down a bit the past couple of years but not as much as yours. Not sure how you could get yours from 50% to 11% unless you have 100,000 more miles on the truck than I do on mine.
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50% at 60 miles to 11.1% at 27K miles, didn’t actually take long. I had it down to 15.7% by my first oil change at 1,575, and 11.7% by 7K miles. I’ve been in the 11’s since.
Your idle hours aren’t “obviously” incorrect by any means. Campground time has always surprised me with how quick it adds idle hours, even on my 2018 that I sold at 8.1% idle time. It only had an average speed of 34.3.
I’ll bet if you monitor it closely it will add up quicker than you think. Startup, cool down, less than 3-5 mph maneuvering, trailer hitching and un-hitching, etc.
Gen 4.5’a could be more accurate, like the 4.0’s were, but they are predicable in my experience (not just my truck).
You may be right. It seems like 10 minutes to maybe 15 at most except for the most unusual circumstances coupled with a then several hour drive at mostly highway speeds would not be a recipe for 25% idle time. But maybe if tracked exactly it is. Especially if the computer's interpretation of idle is not what most people would consider idle.
56ram2500
Well-Known Member
Don't forget all the sitting at the stop lights an the drive through lanes also add plenty to your idle time 
ErikTheRed
Well-Known Member
Well theres probably no sense worrying about it, its just a meter. The truck runs fine and I know how I use it, regardless of what the stupid meter says, I know damn well the truck is not excessively idled. Heck, I rarely even drive the thing. For the most part its a very expensive yard ornament until spring/summer rolls around and we start camping again. Just for funsies I'll keep an occasional eye on the meter to see if its getter better or worse.
As for FCA trying to deny a warranty claim because of the "high" idle time, all I can say to that is.... good luck. That would be so full of holes my attorney would think its his favorite golf course.
As for FCA trying to deny a warranty claim because of the "high" idle time, all I can say to that is.... good luck. That would be so full of holes my attorney would think its his favorite golf course.
ZFORCE
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Since posting this,
“I upgraded to an Evic 7 and the hour meter was about 1/2 of the engine hours. Does AlfaOBD or JSCAN have the ability to set the hour meter? If so, can anyone link or post the procedure? Thanks!
no one has addressed my question, can the idle hours be adjusted with AlfaOBD…how about JScan? Thanks
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ramblinChet
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Here is information that I have collected over the past four years. First record taken with 1,000 hours on the engine.
Second record taken with 2,000 hours on the engine. Note inset which was taken earlier in the day to record accurate mileage.
Most recent record taken at 3,000 hours of engine time.
Here is a summary of the data collected and the information provided. I trust my gauges.
Second record taken with 2,000 hours on the engine. Note inset which was taken earlier in the day to record accurate mileage.
Most recent record taken at 3,000 hours of engine time.
Here is a summary of the data collected and the information provided. I trust my gauges.
Dave01
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I idle too much, my own fault for much of it since I use remote start and warm it up. Other times I'm out and about for work and stop to take care of email etc. on my phone, and when it's cold out I'm sitting there idling.
Here's my question - if you knew you would be spending some higher than usual amount of time idling, would you rather be doing it in a 6.4 gas or 6.7 diesel? They both have issues with extended idle time, but not sure which is the lesser of the evils.
Here's my question - if you knew you would be spending some higher than usual amount of time idling, would you rather be doing it in a 6.4 gas or 6.7 diesel? They both have issues with extended idle time, but not sure which is the lesser of the evils.