94 f250 could not start

[ISPKI]

Hello folks! I just purchased a 1994 f250 with a 7.3IDI N/A in it. Truck has ~156k miles on it. My buddy and I took it to a car show this past weekend and we could not get it to start after the show. I almost drained the batteries trying to get it going but it sounded like it was not getting enough fuel/any fuel and we ended up leaving it for a few hours. When we came back later that day, we charged the batteries back up off his truck, checked fuses, cleaned some contacts on the IP pump (the electrical contacts were caked) and it fired up immediately and purred like a kitten. I was left scratching my head as to why it wouldnt start. Something I noticed was that the "wait to start" light would not come on at all. I checked the wiring for the GP controller/relay and they were clean and solid. The GPs are brand new motorcraft plugs as well. The only other issue I noticed was that one of the rear injectors has a small leak while it is running.

 

[C_Luft]

I suspect the injection pump is on its way out. I have the same problem, after driving the truck has been warmed up and then you turn it off and let it sit for more than 30min to an hour the injection pump will get heat soaked and it will not start until the engine is completely cooled down or you put a wet rag on the injection pump. You may need to pour some more water on the rag while it's on the injection pump to get the truck to fire up. It's a temporary fix until you can order a reman injection pump from Mel at Conestoga diesel injection.

 

[Spun4Fun]

Possible Air leak causing it to lose it's Prime ..? Could be a GP relay if the WTS never light's up . Next time that happen crack open the fuel filter and see if it's full to the brim , If it lost it's prime the filter will be almost empty

 

[ISPKI]

Thanks for the responses. We checked the fuel filter and it was full, even held the valve for a second to make sure there was fuel flow. The truck had been sitting in 90 degree direct sun for about an hour and a half.

C_Luft, as I am new to the diesel scene, who are these fine gentlemen at Conestoga? It looks like I would have to ship my pump to them to perform the rebuild?

 

[79jasper]

Heat soak, sounds like.
Www.conestogadiesel.com

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G890A using Tapatalk

 

[Spun4Fun]

Thanks for the responses. We checked the fuel filter and it was full, even held the valve for a second to make sure there was fuel flow. The truck had been sitting in 90 degree direct sun for about an hour and a half.

C_Luft, as I am new to the diesel scene, who are these fine gentlemen at Conestoga? It looks like I would have to ship my pump to them to perform the rebuild?

You can send it to Conestoga Diesel or to Costal Diesel in NewBern NC as they are Stanadyne Dealer ( they re build them in house ) or look up on Stanadyne for dealer locator
http://www.stanadyne.com/

 

[Clb]

Electrical connections ?!
How manny hrs of heat soak before the first failure to fire?

 

[riotwarrior]

IP head is warm clearances to big wont build preassure to start.

New IP....

In mean time pour cool water on ip where injection lines come out....takes a bit to cool it down...should start up easy

 

[OLDBULL8]

Could be a GP relay if the WTS never light's up .

There is no relay that initiates the glow plug cycle on an IDI. The controller module turns on the WTS light when it's cycling. The GP controller will not cycle when the ambient temperature (90*F as you indicated) is that hot, the WTS may blink for a second tho.

The only other issue I noticed was that one of the rear injectors has a small leak while it is running

There is only ~ 1 PSI or less in the return lines when the truck is running, 0 PSI when shut off, a small leak will alow air to enter the system, "called air intrusion", and possibly drain the fuel back to tank.

My buddy and I took it to a car show this past weekend and we could not get it to start after the show.

When we came back later that day, we charged the batteries back up off his truck, checked fuses, cleaned some contacts on the IP pump (the electrical contacts were caked) and it fired up immediately and purred like a kitten.

The engine should have cooled off by then, referring to the IP "heat soak" issue.
The only way to see if the IP in fact does have "heat soak" would be to try and restart after the engine is real hot and left to set for 10 minutes or so, no start, then try the cool water trick, if that works, then it's new IP time.

 

[Clb]

Good man

 

[ISPKI]

Thanks for all the info guys. Oldbull, your comment is interesting to me, as the truck will restart just fine so long as the engine is still piping hot. I have stopped at parts stores, groceries, picking up lunch, etc, and the truck has always restarted easily. Even after this happened, I drove it back to my Buddy's shop a few miles down the road, turned it off for ~25mins, and turned it back on to leave and it started up easily. However, the WTS light came on each time, although only for a few seconds depending on how long it sat. I am going to look into having the pump rebuilt since it is probably the original and has 156K on it.

My co worker who is a long time diesel and IDI owner recommended C L Diesel Repair in Ludlow, MA. Can anyone vouch for them? They are close enough to me that I could drop the pump off myself.

 

[C_Luft]

I would only recommend Conestoga diesel injection, you pay for what you get for. Mel is a really stand up guy, never met him or bought any products from him but he would be my first choice to get a quality rebuild.

 

[icanfixall]

Most injection pump rebuild shops do not require your pump. they usually have rebuilt pumps waiting for you. Now as for Mel @ Conestoga Diesel he "can" rebuild yours or take yours after you get one from him. I'm betting you have 2 issues. One is a failing pump and the other is a bad circut for ther glow plugs. Many times the engine main wire harness plug gets corrosion in it and fails. I smoked mine one morning start up. I saw lots of smoke leaving the hood to fender gap.. Shut engine down and looked under hood for burned starter. Nope. then saw the melted plug. Sadly the electrical plug is too small for the glow plug load. It actually has 2 wires trying to feed power to the plug controller. Those are the yellow wires. Just cut away the yellow wires and run one heavy 6 gauge speaker wire from the fender solenoid directly to the plug controller. Make sure you buy some 6 gauge heavy wire lugs for the new wire too. Both crimp and solder the lugs to the wire. Now from your own words. The injection pump is crudded up so you removed the wires and cleaned the ends. Sounds like the engine is very dirty. If so you need to clean it. When working on these engines keeping it clean will save you much trouble. Any dirt that gets into the fuel system past the filter ruins injection pumps and injectors fast.