1990 7.3 hard start

[jhughes76]

Try this under a different heading and see if I get any bites, because I am totally confused about what is going on here. I have a somewhat weird issue. My 7.3 starts right up when its cold. It starts right up when its hot. But if it has been sitting between 1-2 hours and is just kind of warm, it gives me hell to fire off. What is going on here?

 

[jhughes76]

I guess this problem is just rare and random?

 

[MR.T]

No guarantees, but maybe more clues would help: Did this start all of a sudden, or has it been this way since you've had it? Any work done prior to the problem appearing? How long is the "wait to start" light on when it's hard to start? Does it seem to turn over slower when it's hard to start?

Also, best to fill in the profile with your truck info.

 

[jhughes76]

Its done it about three times since I bought the truck a couple of months ago. I've done pretty much so a complete maintenance job since getting it, but nothing I think should cause this. Not sure if it started after the maintenance since I started tuning it up the day I got it. The wait to start light is not coming on when this happens. It seems to happen when the engine is just warm enough to not need to cycle the glow plugs. I was starting to wonder if there was just something about the 1-2 hour period with our IDIs. The last time it did it, I had the hood up looking around and then tried to start it again, and the WTS light came on, and it fired right up. I was thinking maybe having the hood up allowed the glow plug controller to cool off enough to cycle the glow plugs. It doesn't seem to turn over slow when it does this. I have posted on several boards trying to find out what is going on, and I'm hearing starter and IP. Since I plan on taking this thing deep into the woods camping, I am inclined to replace both (neither have ever been replaced as far as I know, and the truck has 145K miles on it) just so I don't wind up stuck deep in the mountains paying a fortune to get towed out.

 

[jhughes76]

The place on the profile for truck info only lists year and make, so I created a signature with more info. Maybe the added info may help.

 

[fx4wannabe]

Well when its warm providing you have good compression it shouldn't even need the glow plugs to start. Mine will start cold in the summer without glow plugs. Have you tried changing the fuel filter? Sometimes that does wonders.

 

[jhughes76]

Yeah. Changed it about 700 miles ago.

 

[sootman73]

can you post a video of it starting cold and when it does this? I know it might take a while for it to do it again but carry a camera with you for a while until it does it again. we gotta be seeing how fast its turning over, if its even trying to hit on any cylinders, what smoke is coming out of the tailpipe, and what the GPC is doing during this.

 

[jhughes76]

I actually don't have a video camera