Trying to clear things up

[McGIDI]

Ok guys on my 85 6.9 I have had it for a while and it's had the same symptoms ever since I have owned it. Previous owner said it had a new injection pump but I find it hard to believe. I am having excessive white smoke smelling like fuel on start up. it starts up fine except when it's cold it's stubborn... but cold starts and idling it's smoking white. Now when it's driving down the road it clears up and there is no smoke except black if I get into (which my son loves)... another problem is when I go to drive about the middle of every gear the truck surges to life but this is at half throttle. Full throttle shifts I don't have the surge problem only when driving normal conditions. Could this be a pump or timing... not alot of time to research here in Afghanistan but come home soon...please help!!

 

[Dsl_Dog_Treat]

The white smoke and fuel smell on startup is a classic retarded timing symptom. The surging between shifts could be an air intrusion into the fuel system. Check for leaks in the fuel lines from the tank all the way up to the lift pump. It sounds like she's sucking air somewhere.

 

[McGIDI]

Ok so a simple bump in timing should do the trick then... and when I get home I'll check for leaks.

 

[icanfixall]

First of all thanks for serving our country.. Timing could be the isse or a bad pump or bad injecters too. Usually white smoke means we have a new Pope... But in our case it could mean lots of unburned fuel in the exhaust... If you smell fuel at the cold starts out the tail pipe then its fuel making the white smoke. How many miles are on the injecters. If a glow plug is burned out on a cold start that cylinder will not fire and cause whit smoke too so you may have some bad plugs causing the white smoke.

 

[McGIDI]

the truck itself has 190,000 miles on it and the guy said it has a new pump and thats it... so injectors may be original haha not good if they are... and the glowplugs dont work they guy set up a switch for it... but it idles white smoke.... i was going to do a pump and injectors but im not to good at timing and stuff like that.... I really want this truck to run great and it makes me so happy the way it runs now. But as far as i know when i get home im gonna bump the timing a little and see what happens. I have to reallyl break down and start putting wires together to see if i can trace out why the glow plug relay keeps blowing. Also no problem i love serving man specially for people like you!!!