POOAF Code on 2023 Ecodiesel New Turbo on the Way,

[jywolfe]

Last year about this time I wrote about my two Ecodiesels, one is a Wrangler and the other is a Gladiator. Both are pretty much identical in their modifications with Mopar 2" lift, track bars, geo brackets Mopar 17"x 8" beadlock capable wheels and Toyo Open Country 34" tires. The Gladiator rides much better than the Wrangler, but the Wrangler's engine has always been sportier with significantly better fuel economy. Both run fuel from the same stations and are on the same maintenance schedule with fuel and oil filters, brake fluid, tire rotations, etc.

The Wrangler has regen'd 14 times over 14,100 miles and the Gladiator has regen'd 31 times in 18,214 miles. In a previous post I indicated the Wrangler had better acceleration, pep and the fuel mileage had averaged approximately 4 MPG better on the Wrangler over the past year. The Wrangler is about 300 pounds lighter based on the GVWR sticker, from my recollection.

Over the past year, the Gladiator has been sluggish, had poor fuel economy compared to my Wrangler and regens have become more frequent in the past 6 months under nearly identical driving conditions. I was seriously considering trading the Gladiator and finding something else for a mid-size truck. As it turned out, I got very busy at work and I used my primary commuter for transportation and the Gladiator stayed parked for weeks at a time.

The morning I got my first POOAF code on the Gladiator, the truck had been sitting exactly 13 days. I recall the engine being extremely smooth and quiet while I was leaving my home and secondary roads to travel to the interstate. When new, the Gladiator would go up the Saluda grade which is approximately a 3 miles stretch that goes from approximately 1200 ft ASL to 2200 ft ASL in 8th gear without a hitch and with torque to spare. Mid-summer 2024 it began to downshift to 7th gear on the same stretch. Because of the inconsistency with traffic patterns, I didn't give a lot of credence to my observations and figured it was just my driving habbits, traffic, or fuel.

The temperature was mid-70s, I was travelling around 72 MPH and my oil had just gotten up to temp as the grade is a short distance from home. When it happened, the Gladiator downshifted to 7th gear, threw the code and then would not accelerate. I was in steady traffic, but was able to manuever to the side of the road, turn the engine off and let it sit for a minute before I restarted. On restart the CEL was still on, but the other flashing lights had cleared.

I drove the vehicle on an off for another two months. The second occasion for the POOAF code happened after the vehicle had been driven all week, temps in the mid 60s and going up the exact same grade, in almost the identical location. Approximately 70 MPH, 45 to 60 seconds into the grade it downshifted to 7th gear, the dash lit up and it went into limp mode with no acceleration. I again pulled over, turned it off and on restart it drove normally.

I finally made it to the dealer and dropped it off on Saturday. This afternoon I got a call that the turbo needed to be replaced and that it had been approved under warranty. 10 days for the part and another week for the repair.

If anyone who's experienced this repair from a dealership has any advice, I'm glad to have it. I'd also be curious if anyone who's experienced this issue noticed a drop in fuel economy, exceesive regens or a noticable change in driving characteristics prior to this issue occuring.

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[Vtur]

I think the cab has to come off for turbo replacement. That's what i have seen.

 

[biodiesel]

The morning I got my first POOAF code on the Gladiator

I don't know how many EcoDiesels are impacted, but we've seen this issue on a handful of Gen 3 engines. The turbo itself is fine. The issue is the actuator. For some reason, some actuators are defective. Owners/operators typically experience this issue within the first 50,000 miles, or when they tow heavy for the first time.

You're the very first person with a 2023 I've heard of. I really thought this was an isolated issue with mostly 2021 and 2022 models.

The actuator isn't sold separately, so that's why the entire turbo gets replaced.

 

[fourfa]

Any indication that the replacements are better? My 2022 has hit this 5 times (P00AF, P206D, many caution&warning lights), always in elevated outside air temp, climbing at elevation, not towing but loaded pretty heavy with camper and contents.

Derate is extremely frustrating but it has always cleared after stopping and cooling off.

 

[rharr]

I don't know how many EcoDiesels are impacted, but we've seen this issue on a handful of Gen 3 engines. The turbo itself is fine. The issue is the actuator. For some reason, some actuators are defective. Owners/operators typically experience this issue within the first 50,000 miles, or when they tow heavy for the first time.

You're the very first person with a 2023 I've heard of. I really thought this was an isolated issue with mostly 2021 and 2022 models.

The actuator isn't sold separately, so that's why the entire turbo gets replaced.

you can get a rebuilt actuator.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/255880052043

@DC3 has already done a deep dive into this.
https://www.jeepgladiatorforum.com/forum/threads/p00af-the-journey.83419/post-1491097

 

[Vtur]

Have a read below on how the actuator/electronic wastegate functions. Inculding symptoms and troubleshooting.

https://www.hella.com/techworld/us/...essure-control-turbocharger-actuator-testing/

 

[biodiesel]

you can get a rebuilt actuator.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/255880052043

@DC3 has already done a deep dive into this.
https://www.jeepgladiatorforum.com/forum/threads/p00af-the-journey.83419/post-1491097

That's correct. My response was in regard to Mopar covering the turbo under warranty. Mopar doesn't sell the actuator by itself which is why they replace the entire turbo under warranty.

 

[DC3]

Last year about this time I wrote about my two Ecodiesels, one is a Wrangler and the other is a Gladiator. Both are pretty much identical in their modifications with Mopar 2" lift, track bars, geo brackets Mopar 17"x 8" beadlock capable wheels and Toyo Open Country 34" tires. The Gladiator rides much better than the Wrangler, but the Wrangler's engine has always been sportier with significantly better fuel economy. Both run fuel from the same stations and are on the same maintenance schedule with fuel and oil filters, brake fluid, tire rotations, etc.

The Wrangler has regen'd 14 times over 14,100 miles and the Gladiator has regen'd 31 times in 18,214 miles. In a previous post I indicated the Wrangler had better acceleration, pep and the fuel mileage had averaged approximately 4 MPG better on the Wrangler over the past year. The Wrangler is about 300 pounds lighter based on the GVWR sticker, from my recollection.

Over the past year, the Gladiator has been sluggish, had poor fuel economy compared to my Wrangler and regens have become more frequent in the past 6 months under nearly identical driving conditions. I was seriously considering trading the Gladiator and finding something else for a mid-size truck. As it turned out, I got very busy at work and I used my primary commuter for transportation and the Gladiator stayed parked for weeks at a time.

The morning I got my first POOAF code on the Gladiator, the truck had been sitting exactly 13 days. I recall the engine being extremely smooth and quiet while I was leaving my home and secondary roads to travel to the interstate. When new, the Gladiator would go up the Saluda grade which is approximately a 3 miles stretch that goes from approximately 1200 ft ASL to 2200 ft ASL in 8th gear without a hitch and with torque to spare. Mid-summer 2024 it began to downshift to 7th gear on the same stretch. Because of the inconsistency with traffic patterns, I didn't give a lot of credence to my observations and figured it was just my driving habbits, traffic, or fuel.

The temperature was mid-70s, I was travelling around 72 MPH and my oil had just gotten up to temp as the grade is a short distance from home. When it happened, the Gladiator downshifted to 7th gear, threw the code and then would not accelerate. I was in steady traffic, but was able to manuever to the side of the road, turn the engine off and let it sit for a minute before I restarted. On restart the CEL was still on, but the other flashing lights had cleared.

I drove the vehicle on an off for another two months. The second occasion for the POOAF code happened after the vehicle had been driven all week, temps in the mid 60s and going up the exact same grade, in almost the identical location. Approximately 70 MPH, 45 to 60 seconds into the grade it downshifted to 7th gear, the dash lit up and it went into limp mode with no acceleration. I again pulled over, turned it off and on restart it drove normally.

I finally made it to the dealer and dropped it off on Saturday. This afternoon I got a call that the turbo needed to be replaced and that it had been approved under warranty. 10 days for the part and another week for the repair.

If anyone who's experienced this repair from a dealership has any advice, I'm glad to have it. I'd also be curious if anyone who's experienced this issue noticed a drop in fuel economy, exceesive regens or a noticable change in driving characteristics prior to this issue occuring.

It will be interesting to see how your turbo acts after the replacement.

My turbo finally failed catastrophically. I could never get a dealer to dig in and diagnose the issue prior to the failure. I took the Jeep to a new dealer and they are replacing under warranty, I should have the Gladiator back in a week. They are also replacing the engine under warranty due to low compression which was tested from symptoms of coolant loss and erratic overheating.

I'll report on my findings after breaking in the new engine.

Prior to my failure, I noticed a significant increase in P00AF code occurrence.

Photos of the failed turbo below from my borescope. I know the photos suck.

 

[jywolfe]

Did you experience loss of power, fuel economy or sluggish engine leading up to the failure? How many cylinders had low compression? What year and how many miles on your vehicle.

Thanks for the feedback and pictures. I saw a post yesterday on the JL Wrangler forum and saw another 2023 Ecodiesel that had the POOAF issue and replaced turbo.

 

[jywolfe]

Update: After waiting on the turbo for 3 weeks, the dealership sent the work order today and it looks like they didn’t replace the turbo. Very non-specific language but indicating they found a cracked intake pipe and replaced. Drove 100 miles and code did not re-occur. I’ve followed up with an email and requested a call with service manager tomorrow.

They were very certain after initial diagnosis on 6OCT that it was the turbo and so the part was ordered and it didn’t come in until last Thursday. If you all have any experience or guidance on whether or not a cracked intake pipe could cause the POOAF code I would appreciate the feedback.

 

[DC3]

Update: After waiting on the turbo for 3 weeks, the dealership sent the work order today and it looks like they didn’t replace the turbo. Very non-specific language but indicating they found a cracked intake pipe and replaced. Drove 100 miles and code did not re-occur. I’ve followed up with an email and requested a call with service manager tomorrow.

They were very certain after initial diagnosis on 6OCT that it was the turbo and so the part was ordered and it didn’t come in until last Thursday. If you all have any experience or guidance on whether or not a cracked intake pipe could cause the POOAF code I would appreciate the feedback. I attached a snippet from the work order either

The POOAF code occurs when the requested and actual actuator position is different for something like 10 - 30 seconds.

I would think a leaking intake pipe might cause a low boost code.

Attached is the diagnostic guide for the POOAF. I would definitely challenge the service manager. Good luck!

 

[jywolfe]

That is very helpful. Thank you.

 

[jywolfe]

Things continue to trend in the wrong direction. Picked up the Gladiator today and the dealer did not perform any of the steps in the post by DC3 above. In addition the truck looked like it had gone through the gauntlet. The tech evidently used the front bumper as his work platform and not only is it embedded in shop floor grease and grime, but there are actually waves in the bumper from bearing the techs weight. To add insult to injury he used the right fender as a shelf. I can only speculate he used it to hold his tools and parts he removed. The scratches go to the white primer. When he unhooked the battery the felt casing was undone and he forgot to put it back together. Lastly, it looks like a herd of wildebeest got in and out of the driver door. If that wasn’t enough, they did enough test driving to leave me with 10 miles of range. I’m not upset about the whole thing, I’m just real disappointed with the dealer. Not a world ending event but it sure is frustrating. By the way, I got worse fuel mileage on my downhill trip home than my two year average. The cracked pipe they replaced sure helped.

 

[DC3]

Things continue to trend in the wrong direction. Picked up the Gladiator today and the dealer did not perform any of the steps in the post by DC3 above. In addition the truck looked like it had gone through the gauntlet. The tech evidently used the front bumper as his work platform and not only is it embedded in shop floor grease and grime, but there are actually waves in the bumper from bearing the techs weight. To add insult to injury he used the right fender as a shelf. I can only speculate he used it to hold his tools and parts he removed. The scratches go to the white primer. When he unhooked the battery the felt casing was undone and he forgot to put it back together. Lastly, it looks like a herd of wildebeest got in and out of the driver door. If that wasn’t enough, they did enough test driving to leave me with 10 miles of range. I’m not upset about the whole thing, I’m just real disappointed with the dealer. Not a world ending event but it sure is frustrating. By the way, I got worse fuel mileage on my downhill trip home than my two year average. The cracked pipe they replaced sure helped.

That's a shame, I am sorry you had the shitty experience. On an average basis the Jeep dealers are among the worst I have experienced of any automotive brand. From capability to care to how they treat things/people, they are bottom of the barrel in my humble opinion.

Hopefully you can get some resolve for the damage they did and towards your turbo repair. At least the cracked pipe repair made a difference.

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