Hard Starting

[osus86diesel]

Here goes. Since my engine swap I have not been able to figure out a hard starting issue with the 7.3. The glow plug controller is non-existent and has been replaced with a push button.

The video (more of a sound clip) is of the truck attempting to start at about 20 degrees and it's been plugged in for 4.5 hours after I drove to work.

It takes giving it a shot of ether to get it started, and I am not too keen on that idea.

The first clip is without ether cycling the GPS for about 10 seconds, twice. Then a **** poor attempt at starting.

The second clip is after giving it a shot of ether then it fires.

The o-rings on the injectors are good, except one (ran out of time switching the new ones, had to get back to school...) Could this be causing enough air to leak into the system and causing the hard start? Or are there other places I need to double check?


Thanks guys for the help!

Not starting

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f-H28sLp2bU&feature=channel_page

Starting w/ ether

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a3542K4EoXg&feature=channel_page

 

[LCAM-01XA]

Jess, in the first video it sounds like it ain't even trying to catch, just cranks. Second vid is the same in the beginning, then your ether fired off and kept her alive till the IP takes over. As a comparison, here's my truck during a dead-cold start on just glowplugs:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wyWFbwaAjvo

You can hear the starter slowing down as the thing tries to get the combustion going, and this is exactly how my buddy's 1986 F250 sounds too when he cranks it with no glowplugs - you don't have that sound in your video, I don't think your truck is even trying to start in the first vid, just cranks and cranks. You mentioned it's been on the heater for few hours, so initial heat is not an issue, even if your glowplugs weren't working the heater would have been plenty enough. At this point I'm starting to think it's an air intrusion that made its way up to the fuel filter somewhat drained it, cranking enough wasn't enough to purge that air out but when the ether revved up the engine that was enough to get the fuel flow going good and get rid of the air. You mentioned you still have one injector that needs replacing the o-rings, well it could very well be that, but it could also be your main return line from the engine to the tank selector valve - I had that one develop an air leak on me, drove me crazy till I find it.

 

[CDX825]

Sounds like air in the fuel lines to me as well. I would try replacing the o ring on that one injector first then see if it starts any better.

 

[zpd307]

anything below 0, my truck sounds like jess'. i have been able to start it by jockeying my two fuel filters around. i keep a used one inside to stay warm. with a warm filter, it will catch and run. i have badly leaking return lines and fuel heater o-ring, so mine takes a few cranks to fire, but it will start sputtering after a few cranks and then fire. i had to take my kids to daycare this morning, because the wife overslept for school. without being plugged in, 15+, the truck sputtered right away and it took a few cranks to get the fuel pushed up from the tank. i think my fuel heater isnt working so it acts like a mini gell session at anything under 0. but jess had his in a garage with temps well above that. but it does sound like it is not getting fuel.

 

[Agnem]

Do you get any smoke out of the tailpipe when cranking? If not, your not getting fuel.

 

[zpd307]

another thought, how old is the fuel filter. replace that for a piece of mind. as i said before, i have a very bad return line leak, almost every injector leaks fuel when it is running, and mine will catch faster than yours.

 

[osus86diesel]

The fuel filter is new. Just put on the first of January, but the engine had been sitting for a while before I did the swap.

The truck puffs white smoke out the tail pipe while cranking, then when it fires finally a good puff of black smoke, I assume that is the ether?

 

[SHIP4BRAINS]

Sounds similar to mine recently too. Last summer I replaced the return lines and o rings and caps on the injectors and all was well for a long time until this past few weeks. I glow plug for 8 seconds and crank....cycling the plugs....and crank...and crank. I find standing on the throttle will cause it to fire, but not continue to run. No smoke that I can see during cranking until it does start to fire.

I'm curious of the crazy cold weather we have had caused something to shrink and become unsealed?



Gotta be air in the system again

 

[Agnem]

The fuel filter is new. Just put on the first of January, but the engine had been sitting for a while before I did the swap.

The truck puffs white smoke out the tail pipe while cranking, then when it fires finally a good puff of black smoke, I assume that is the ether?

We won't be able to figure this out if you keep using either. I'm talking about tailpipe status under normal conditions.

 

[LCAM-01XA]

The fuel filter is new. Just put on the first of January, but the engine had been sitting for a while before I did the swap.

The truck puffs white smoke out the tail pipe while cranking, then when it fires finally a good puff of black smoke, I assume that is the ether?

Black smoke is usually diesel fuel, I'd think this is when the IP finally starts pushing fuel in the injectors. Fix that one injector return cap, and hopefully that's all it needs. In my case the air was climbing up to the filter, there's a check-ball in there that for whatever reason didn't seal right so I ended up with half-drained filter overnight - replaced the main return line (the source of the air intrusion), then pulled the air purge line from the filter head and t-eed it into the IP return line, no more issues, even with a leaky heater o-ring.

 

[82F100SWB]

That spins over without doing anything just like the 7.3 that we ended up putting in my buddy's 86, it needed ether to start even in the middle of the summer with good glows, and when it was cold out it needed to be manually held at high idle for a good 5 minutes or so, or it would stall, we were able to get it to start a bit better and stay running by re-setting the timing, but, it also had no torque whatsoever off the bottom. We ended up putting a new IP on it, and that cured all of it's problems.

 

[osus86diesel]

We won't be able to figure this out if you keep using either. I'm talking about tailpipe status under normal conditions.

The white smoke happens with no ether. But it takes cranking for a while for it to start puffing.


I am in process of changing the number 1 injector o ring tonight after work. i will let y'all know how it goes

 

[osus86diesel]

I finally got the o-rings changed last night. I plugged it in last night, but i think it may/ should be unecessary to do so considering its 40 degrees out here.

I hit the glow plugs once and cranked for about 4-5 seconds and it fired up. We will see how it does after sitting at the farm all day.

Thanks for the help guys!

 

[LCAM-01XA]

Cool, hopefully it's all fixed up now

 

[CDX825]

Any update?