To start this thread off, first a bit of info leading up to the point of me sending in the FICM for a once over and a tune. I bought this truck back in late July with a "rebuilt FICM, new injectors".....long story short was a salvage yard unit and had one new injector. The alternator went out two days before I bought it, unbeknownst to me until I drove up to drive it and buy it.

So, after my HPOP R and R two weeks after owning, things seemed to be going ok. Readings were all looking good, truck running great, or so I thought. I did notice a gradual decline in fuel mileage and what I though was just a little lack of performance, turbo lag to be more specific. I guess I just chalked it up to colder weather, since it sits longer now to warm up, but it always bugged me a little bit I could hardly break the tires loose from a dead stop.

Well, finally after the 16 yr old kept hounding me for a tuner to which he knew I would not give in, I thought it best to send the FICM in for a once over, this was something I wanted done soon after I bought it, and then get the Atlas 40 after much review.

Imagine my surprise when I got a call from one of the guys that the power board was more or less toast, on it's last leg. I thought how can that be? She runs good, numbers are right on the money? Scott explained to me that one of the channels, or circuits I think as he called it, was more or less hanging on by a thread and was popping the circuit on the test bench. He then started asking me about the alternator, batteries, numbers........"All good" I told him, however the lights started to come on after I told him about the sequence of events BEFORE I had bought the truck. We all know that a bad alternator will take out a FICM, but a bad alternator will also take out another FICM(duh, right?) The owner of the truck had taken the bad FICM off, went and got a used one, had it reflashed to the latest Ford flash, the power robbing crappy mileage version, stuck it back in and a couple weeks later realized he needed a new alternator after it finally gave up the ghost for good. My guess is the alternator was barely hanging on before that, then just crapped out finally.
Things started making more sense to Scott at FICMrepair and myself after we talked about those chain of events, before that we were both a bit confused as to why a healthy charging system would nearly toast a power board. Yes, it cost me more money to replace, but it beats the crap out of being 250 miles from home. I had planned to take the truck to Cedar Falls a few days before, luckily for me the FICM was sitting down in Norwalk!

Now for the good part.

I was nicely surprised to find a brand new looking unit when I opened the box like a little kid on xmas morning.
After a double check of static battery V's, stuck the FICM back in and got the other stuff buttoned back up. It really is a shame that shiny box is buried under the degas bottle.
Right away at KOEO I noticed this strategy was different in the injector pre-clatter, and after glow plug light was off lit the burners. This was the coldest start yet I have done, 30 degrees.....not cold cold but at any rate she popped right off.
After a warm up to 130, we meandered down the the local station to get some fuel. By the time we were done I was up to temp so out of town we went a few miles. I could tell right away without laying into her that it was going to be different, just the pep and responsive feeling. I turned off on a gravel road to head back into town, straightened things out and after laying the pedal flat my *** end was almost sideways. Ok, not sidways but at least a 45 degree angle
I have never had the tires break loose like THAT. We kept driving around for a while, did some good WOT bits, went over the folks to pick up the dog and did another dead standing short tire spin, at this point Jr. is asking when he gets to drive. The things that really surprised me was we actually gained .6 mpg on the lie-o-meter, and this was NOT gentle driving. It was not hammer down all the time but not the kind of driving you would expect to see an increase in MPG.
I would also add Scott did tell me, since I had the latest version of the crappy flash from Ford, I would see the most bang for my buck, and I am very pleased with this rebuild.
I think the take away is not so much a review of the Atlas 40, but a good reminder for everyone to be aware of the hidden issues that you might come across even with good readings.
Now my biggest concern will be keeping Jr from getting a ticket for something.

If Ed has anything to add to this thread I'm sure he will chime in, but count me as another of many happy customers.

 

Great to hear, making me want to get a 140amp alt on here sooner than later. i noticed this morning 30* outside that my FICM was bouncing 47.5-48v for awhile even while driving down the road. my drive into work is 16miles and the truck never got above 175*.

 

Great story. And another example of how "once you figure it out, with the help of FTE" how nice the 6L can be.

 

Your truck is like the old pair of shoes that feel comfy, in time you realize the change or that things are not right. You see 48 volt and think Gee my FICM should be good but you have another half of the puzzle Ed can fix.

Fortunate for you we have a great bunch of guys here on FTE with a vast knowledge and willingness to help another owner out. On that note, I need to go check and clean the grounding points on my frame and engine... been quite a discussion on keeping the electrical system healthy lately.

A short Winter check list this year should be, batteries and charging, fresh oil and filters and most of all fuel pressure.

 

The radiator does a very, very, very good job, so good in fact it cools to well in the Winter. I for one and not playing the thermostat game I have my trusty piece of closed cell cardboard that slips in front of my radiator when Winter gets serious. Works like a charm every time.

 

I was actually going to ask the others here from the northern tier if that was something they did? I see it often on the larger trucks but was not sure if it was something I can do? I do know there are some out there that do it, was just wondering if it might cause problems. The one's I do see usually have a circle cut in the middle.

 

Well, the latest report from Jr. who took her out for an open road drive with Gpa to Lowes is 19 mpg on the lie-o-meter...........sure it's maybe a lie but never hit a number that high. I will set the SC II up to read things closer but it's a definite improvement over what I was seeing, no doubt about that. Now I am wondering about running 5W-30 syn versus the 10W-30 blend I currently have, maybe pick up another .5 mpg?.....will have to wait another few thousand miles.

 

I am only blocking the center section, not the whole radiator, never had a problem.

 

We are so very glad to have been given the opportunity to take care of your FICM needs!

If ever you need anything else for your 6.0, give us a shout - we carry nearly everything you can get for these trucks - just for less money than what you'll find elsewhere.

 

I sent my FICM to FICMrepair.com on Monday and got a call from their office on Wednesday that my FICM was done and ready to ship-all they needed was a credit card. Amazing that we can still do business like a small town with the folks at FICMrepair.

I sent the unit in because I noticed the main voltage was 20 vdc at start up and took 30 seconds to reach 48.5. This FICM has only 10k on! I bought the van used with dead batteries.

As I am anxiously waiting for the FICM to reach California, I decided to test my 2 frame rail batteries with my 25 year old DVM. Since I did not want to drop the batteries as it was almost dark, I found the red jump starting **** and the black grounding strap.

The 25 year meter read 12.6 volts. I turned the ignition, radio, blower, and head lights on. Voltage dropped to 12.

My 15 year old jumped into the driver seat. I asked him to turn the engine over. He turned the key towards him (LOL!). Nothing! He does not drive nor has ever started a vehicle. We laughed.

The voltage dropped to 9.90 while cranking the engine. Could be a problem. I have the stock 110 OEM alternator still in the vehicle. It did not start because there is no FICM. Just a pre-test.

Should I install the new FICM in the vehicle and test it with the old alternator and suspected bad 2 batteries?

I talked to a rep for Odyssey and he mentioned that I could use a high output alternator without to many issues. I know I need to replace the OEM alternator with something better.

Odyssey is having a sale right now for the Extreme AGM batteries @$230 and change for the highest cold cranking amp battery.

 

Honestly I would replace the Alternator before you put that new FICM in. Mine has a 200 amp that I purchased from a local Alternator shop a few years ago. I had 2 FICM failures within 1 1/2 years to 2 years before I changed it.
Edit: Also, I just recently purchased the Optima Red Top batteries. What a difference those batteries are over the normal ones you buy at the parts store. They really helped when I had to crank and crank the truck while troubleshooting a HPOP issue.

 

My alternator is probably not the original, but it't still stock OEM.

 

No way would I chance a FICM to questionable batteries or a questionable alternator. If you do need an alternator, we are offering a free upgrade to the 250 amp unit with the purchase of a non-colored 190....saves $80! See FICMrepair.com for the details!

Ed

 

Won't give you an issue to block the whole rad. If it starts to heat up too much, move some cardboard around until it cruises at a good temperature. My whole radiator is blocked by cardboard at this time and i still only see 188C/192O even on a grade.

 

As I was driving into my complex this morning after mens fellowship, I passed the mail lady and parked my Subaru. Waiting at my door was my present from FICMrepair.





I am pulling the $%!! alternator for bench testing.

I tested the batteries yesterday by cranking the vehicle with the lights, stereo, and fan on. It dipped down to 9.9 volts. Is this an issue?

Costco has 850 cca group 65 batteries with a 42 month warranty for $200 out the door for 2.

I can get a set of 2 Odyssey Extremes for $500 shipped.

I get it that I am not supposed to use this alternator...maybe I will shorten the life of the AGMs. Does it really matter? It's a sweet deal.





From my understanding, we are still using antiquated methods of topping off vehicle batteries whether we go with the an alternator sort of designed for AGMs.