Ok, so I've got a couple of questions, I guess the first being, for those of you who removed your entire EGR system, how long did it take you to do it? I'm debating between removing the whole thing, or just pulling the intake horn off, and plugging it-whether that means I weld the tube coming in, or see if I can weld a plug directly into the intake horn itself, and bolt the tube back on. I'm not really sure which would be faster, seeing as how either way, I've got to take at least half of it off...

The reason I'm thinking about doing this is because I'm really wondering if the EGR is stuck partially open. I've had the ORM done on it since I bought it, and I also have the EHM done...I know there's not nearly as much oil in my CAC hoses as there used to be, but for whatever reason, there's still some...Only thing I can guess is that its coming directly out of the turbo into the CAC hoses. (I've got the SAMCO hoses also, upgraded those the last time I had to go digging in the engine bay)

She's running ok, and nothing really majorly wrong with it, but I have been leaving a small cloud of black smoke on takeoff, and the mileage is roughly 20-22 mpgs, mostly highway. Both my wife and I drive it fairly conservatively, and we both keep it in the sweet spot, at 60-65 max, where the speed limit allows. I know there's a good chance the rockers are starting to wear out, as I'm over 100k now, (TB was done right at 100) but I figured I'd try and do a few other things to see if I can help it out.

I pulled the MAP sensor off yesterday, and cleaned it out. It wasn't horrible, but there definitely was some soot. The good thing I noticed was that the soot on the sensor appeared to be a dry soot, not that oily mess that was on it the first time I pulled it-so the EHM is making a difference. The other thing I did today was disconnect the plug to the FCV. I checked it, and it's full open, so for times sake, I just unplugged it. Now I don't know with the MAF unplugged, telling the EGR to not work, if that in turn would disable the FCV, but I figured it couldn't hurt, and since I've already got the CEL for the EGR, what's another code for the FCV?

I'm debating either deleting all of the EGR, or just blocking off the intake port-not sure which is really going to be faster, and not entirely sure if I can just get a way with JUST blocking off the intake port, or if I have to block off both? I know, I know, a GDE tune would be best, but somehow, I've misplaced my moneytree, and haven't found a suitable replacement for it...with either deleting the EGR or welding plates into it, I can do that on my own, in the garage, with some scrap steel floating around. The other thing I was thinking of, was if I ONLY had to plug the EGR to Intake line, I could pull the entire line off, cut it somewhere on the line, weld a plug, weld the line back together, and then reinstall the line...was thinking that might be the easiest way to go, as long as I don't have to do the same on the exhaust manifold line. Will that work?


EDIT:
One last unrelated question...anyone have any ideas on how to clean out the intake manifold without having to pull it off the vehicle? When I pulled my intake horn off the last time, it was caked in sootmud...I cleaned the horn out, but couldn't really do much with the intake manifold...

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96 Dodge Ram 3500, 4x4 5 spd manual 12v Cummins, compound turbos, maxspool cam, ATS manifold, DDP injectors, Mahle pistons, ARP headstuds, DD3600, 5kgsk, and some more stuff.
06 Jeep Liberty CRD, EHM, GDE FTEco Tune.

So I am just relaying what I have heard, but I am sure GDE will come in here and tell you this as well. The EGR has 2 operations on a stock truck. #1 being to recirculated exhaust to improve emissions, #2 being to act as a exhaust pressure dump to prevent the turbo from being damaged. In the GDE tune, #1 is removed to prevent the soot from being pulled through the intake all of the time, #2 is left in place as they want to retain this safety feature. If you block off the the EGR completely, you will lose this feature regardless of tune. I cannot speak to how crucial this feature is and will leave that to the more experienced members here.

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2006 CRD - GTB2056 turbo by Dieselguy86, Eco Trans Tune, Lift Pump, Week's, HDS Tstat, Racor Filter, ARP's, OME 790's+Top Plate, JBA 2.5", JBA UCA, Moab's+265/75R16, ARB Bull Bar, 4.10's, TrueTracs

We were talking about a block plate with a blow off valve for the turbo pressure dump in this thread viewtopic.php?f=5&t=76576&p=805260#p805260

Its a rough idea. Obviously you want to be sure your blow off valve doesn't release under normal operating pressures. Not sure how to calibrate that.

With regards to your MPGs; how's your engine temp? And what tires are you using?

I have read through plenty of the threads, and I understand that GDE has its own concerns on the turbo and the egr. That being said, I understand the designed function of an EGR, however I also know the side affects of the EGR, and I intend to eliminate the side effects. As far as the pressure dump, I'm honestly not convinced yet on that...I'd need to do more reading and more research, but I can't fathom how that function would work, considering the 6.0's have a VGT turbo, the Cummins 6.7's also have VGT turbos, and yet you can block off the EGR's on them without any issues. I've never been able to "bark" the turbo on my Liberty- for that matter, I wasn't able to bark the turbo on any of my Cummins, until I started adding fuel and timing to the vehicles, be it mechanical or electronic. I honestly feel that it would be worth the risk on a stock Liberty, to completely disable the EGR and prevent more soot from plugging up my intake...

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96 Dodge Ram 3500, 4x4 5 spd manual 12v Cummins, compound turbos, maxspool cam, ATS manifold, DDP injectors, Mahle pistons, ARP headstuds, DD3600, 5kgsk, and some more stuff.
06 Jeep Liberty CRD, EHM, GDE FTEco Tune.

I certainly understand, and it looks like you have way more experience with this than me, so I will just watch and learn.

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2006 CRD - GTB2056 turbo by Dieselguy86, Eco Trans Tune, Lift Pump, Week's, HDS Tstat, Racor Filter, ARP's, OME 790's+Top Plate, JBA 2.5", JBA UCA, Moab's+265/75R16, ARB Bull Bar, 4.10's, TrueTracs

You can very simply block of the EGR with a plate made from the bottom of a beer can. Remove the tube that brings the egr up to the intake elbow, cut plate to fit in the trumpet shaped end of the tube, seal with a little rtv and the band clamp will squeeze it securely in there. Will set a CEL without a Gde tune.

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05CRD: GDE Hot ECU & TCM tunes, Provent, Cat filter, Facet lift pump, TransGo kit, Florida TC, Samcos, stainless brake lines, HDS thermostat, Renegade light bar,
Bilstein adjustables, Al's Gen 4.5 Arms, 235/85-16 Duratracs, DTT rear, Elocker front, EVIC+TPMS, Turbo timer, McNally pillar gauges, Weeks Stage II kit.