Diesel Repair for Idaho Springs Trucks That Live on the I-70 Grades
Diesel repair for Idaho Springs, CO trucks starts with the road they live on: long I-70 grades, thin air above 7,000 feet and winters that go hard on glow plugs, batteries and four-wheel drive. Our shop sits at the bottom of that road in Golden, and Idaho Springs is one of the mountain towns we see the most trucks from.
17.7 mi straight-line. Farther by road.
Specialty diesel work is a downhill drive from Idaho Springs
West of Golden, the list of shops set up for hard Powerstroke, Duramax and Cummins problems gets short in a hurry. Up the canyon, when a truck needs more than fluids and filters, it comes down the mountain to our bays.
Load and altitude are what wear a diesel up here: cooling, boost and the emissions parts the corridor works hardest.
Thirteen work bays and current OEM factory scan tools for Ford, GM and Ram trucks.
Two roads to the shop, and when to take neither
Which road down makes sense depends on what the truck is doing.
I-70 east over Floyd Hill
The faster road, with shoulders and exits. Eastbound you climb Floyd Hill first, where heat or boost trouble shows up. Take the climb in a lower gear, then let the exhaust brake and gearing hold the truck on the descent toward Golden.
- The better pick for boost or drivability complaints, with shoulders and exits if you need to stop
- Watch coolant and transmission temperature on the climb
US-6 down Clear Creek Canyon
Take I-70 east to Exit 244, then US-6 follows Clear Creek down the canyon into Golden with no Floyd Hill climb, easier on a cooling system that only struggles under load. The tradeoff: a narrow road, tight curves, tunnels and almost nowhere to pull over.
- Mostly downhill, gentler on a weak cooling system
- Not the road for a truck that might quit
- Brakes and exhaust brake work the whole way down
When the truck should not make the trip
Some trucks should come down on a tow truck, because a mountain grade can turn a repairable problem into a much bigger one. With any of these signs, call first and we will tell you plainly whether to drive it.
- Temperature gauge pinned or steam from under the hood
- Oil pressure warning or a new engine knock
- Fuel pressure codes with stalling or no restart
What the I-70 corridor does to a diesel
| Corridor condition | What shows up on the truck | What we check first |
|---|---|---|
| Altitude above 7,000 feet | Less pull, slow spool, a whistle or a boost code on the climb. | Boost leaks, intercooler boots, VGT vanes and turbo shaft play. See diesel turbo repair. |
| Long loaded grades | Gauge creeping up halfway through the climb, coolant smell. | Fan clutch, radiator flow, water pump and a cooling system pressure test. See truck overheating repair. |
| Heat cycles from climbing and coasting | Coolant loss with no puddle, white smoke, EGR codes. | EGR cooler and valve testing. See EGR cooler replacement. |
| Highway runs mixed with short trips in town | DPF full messages, regens that keep restarting, soot. | The source of the soot (injectors, sensors, EGR flow) before any cleaning. See DPF repair. |
| Winter traction and cold mornings | A 4x4 that will not engage, grinding hubs, slow cranking below freezing. | Transfer case, hubs and shift motor, plus glow plugs (Ford, GM) or the grid heater (Cummins). See 4x4 and transfer case repair. |
Ease off, get to the shoulder or the next exit and let it idle. If the needle keeps rising at idle, shut it off and call us before going any farther.
A phone call from up the canyon saves a wasted trip
Tell us these before you leave and we can say whether to drive it down, and which road to take.
- Which road you plan to take down and whether you are towing
- What the gauges did and where on the road it started
- Any codes, messages or limp mode on the dash
- What has already been replaced
The three diesels we see coming down the hill
Powerstroke
The HEUI 7.3 and 6.0, where engine oil pressure drives the injectors, then the common-rail 6.4 and 6.7. Climbs find the 6.0 and 6.4 cooler and EGR weak spots; the 6.7's Bosch CP4.2 pump hates bad fuel.
Ford Powerstroke repair
Duramax
LB7 through L5P, most with an Allison behind them. Towing at altitude brings turbo and transmission heat complaints; the 2011 to 2016 LML carries the CP4.2 pump.
Chevy and GMC Duramax repair
Cummins
12-valve, 24-valve and 6.7, all with an intake grid heater for cold starts. The 6.7 adds a DPF and EGR system that wants steady highway miles.
Ram Cummins repairEmissions faults get fixed at the cause.
Choices on the table, not one quote to take or leave
Leave it with us
Most diagnosis and repair work is drop-off. Jobs with a set labor time can go on the calendar.
One to three days to find it
Expect findings in roughly 24 to 72 hours, longer when the bays are full.
The whole truck, not one part
We chase the problem you described, then go over the rest of the truck for whatever mountain miles are wearing out.
You pick the plan
Urgent items, items that can ride a while, and jobs worth pairing to save labor. The wrench turns once you say go.
"MEL is a Great communicator. They squeezed me in line as we were traveling through to Utah. They analyzed the situation & gave me two choices ! Wow! They gave ME the choice ! They acted on the quickest answer from me & they had me rolling before closing ! FYI: Nothing is cheap in diesel repairs ! Very happy to get rolling & still be rolling ! TY TY THANK YOU !"Kenbob, Google review
Tell us what your truck is doing before you drive in from Idaho Springs
Send the year, the engine and what you are seeing, and we'll get back to you as quickly as we can.
- Year, make and engine
- What it is doing, and when it started
- Any codes or recent repairs
Rather talk it through? Call (303) 808-1563
What Idaho Springs owners ask before heading down
It depends on the symptom. A check engine light with normal temperature and power can usually make the trip at an easy pace. Losing coolant, overheating, knocking or limp mode means no mountain grade. A two-minute call before you leave is cheaper than finding out halfway down Floyd Hill.
At this elevation the turbo has to compress thinner air to make the same boost, so it runs closer to its limit. A small boost leak, sticking VGT or tired turbo can hide on the flats and show up above 7,000 feet. We pressure-test the intake side and check the turbo before recommending parts.
About 17.7 miles straight-line from the center of Idaho Springs to our shop at 16051 W 4th Ave in Golden. By road it is farther, east on I-70 over Floyd Hill or down US-6 through Clear Creek Canyon.
Short trips build soot, and steady highway driving is when the filter burns it off. When a truck comes in on a DPF warning, we find what is making the extra soot first, then clean or replace the filter only if it needs it. We do not do delete work.
Coming down from Idaho Springs? Call before you start the grade.
Tell us what the truck is doing and which road you plan to take, or use Request Service to send the details. Or drop us a line right here from the website and we'll get back to you as quickly as we can.