Originally Posted by tjc transport

dieselRX/wellmans are a crap shoot.

Originally Posted by David85

Looks like I'm headed for a rebuild. The intake valve in the #1 cylinder made a cute little circle on the Piston. I'm not sure what caused this, but I have a feeling I am going to find out, somehow I don't think it was the GPs. The #1 cylinder also had the lowest compression, at only 400-410 psi when tested, with all others at 450-500.

So far two of the glow plug tips seem to have been "passed" with the #7 glow plug making some gouges on top of the #7 piston. Two glow plugs, #3 and #5 were already burned out (though not distorted), and were removed without incident.

I have not pulled the passenger head yet, will keep you posted............


PS, STAY AWAY FROM WELLMAN GLOW PLUGS!!!!!!!!

Originally Posted by tjc transport

i would junk a truck if i could not get MOTORCRAFT/BERU glow plugs to put in it.

Originally Posted by Dave Sponaugle

I will never use anything but Motorcraft/Beru glow plugs in mine.

Originally Posted by David85

I had wellman 080s (single coil), and they are designed to heat up in 5-10 seconds which is much faster than berus.

After I lost one glow plug from the 10 second glow time that the OEM controller is set up for, I added a a manual switch and replaced the dead GP with a spare BERU plug I had lying around. I simply got used to the 5 second start routine, however the manual switch caused confusion when some one else tried to start the truck.

What happend was probably 30 seconds of glow time, and this was the result:

So yes, I did rebuild the engine mainly because of a set of wellman glow plugs.

All the wellmans were completly destroyed. That single beru glow plug in the engine at the did not only did it NOT fail and swell up, but it still works and I still have it in my tool chest if I ever need a spare. I tested a WAP088 glow plug before I was about to put a set of those in, and it swelled up within 23 seconds with no sign og self regulation, it finally shut down when I heard a "pssst" and the tip ruptured. According to Marianna, its possible that this coulr have been from moisture in the glow plug.

Berus also come in a sealed plastic packet, while wellmans come in paper boxes and are more likely to draw in moisture like Marianna describes. I meant to pick up a couple of the AC12Gs for me to test, but I never got around to it so I can't say for my part if they are true dual coil glow plugs.

I have so subjected the following glow plugs to failure situations so far:

Bosch, WAP 088, WAP 080, and BERU.

Bosch plugs failed because the old controller was gratually giving longer and longer glow times (still less than 20 seconds though), so they failed over the course of several days, and NOT all in one glow like the WAPs. All the Bosch plugs came out without problems, I even got a refund for them.

Both types of WAPs scare the hell out of me because of how they failed.

Before I figured out my GP controller was at falt, I installed a set of BERU glow plugs, and fired it up. The glow time there was over 30 seconds, and only shut down when every last one was fried. BUT they all came out in one solid piece.

If the glow plugs perform as per factory speck, thats one thing, but what do they look like when they fail? Thats the real question because I ran those 080s for several months without incident, but when they did fail, well you know the rest. If you are going to try a different brand of glow plugs, than I would strongly advise test one yourself before installing them in your engine.

Originally Posted by tjc transport

i speak from experience on different glow plug brands.
when doing maintainance on a fleet of 250 ambulances, and having to pull the heads on over 150 of them due to off brand glow plugs, i will let a ford/international diesel sit before i put anything but the MOTORCRAFT/ BERU plugs in one.

Originally Posted by Dave Sponaugle

If something works, no problems in over 400 thousand miles, why change and go with an unknown?

Originally Posted by FORDF250HDXLT

caution!!!
it is strongly advised by the masses to replace glow plugs with motorcraft (they are made by BERU in Germany) only.

motorcraft glow plugs (GP's) can be purchased online much more affordable than at your local ford stealership.
do not be tempted by other store/house brands.not only do they not last,many of them swell up becoming stuck in the engine head.often requiring head removal to remove them! there have also been reports of them swelling up,braking off,and cleaning out the top of pistons which leads to full engine reman or replacement.
do as you wish but,you have been warmed!

need to save up for a set of beru's and thinking of buying a cheap set to get you by for now?
reconsider.try doing one these temporary starting aids instead;
use your block heater,or even just a blow dryer shot down the intake for 2 minutes will help start the engine right up if you can't wait for the block heater or it's not working either.
if your not by an e-outlet,then consider unplugging the gp harness and carry a gallon of gas with a rag.dampen the rag not enough to drip and hold it over the intake,the fumes are said to help start a diesel engine this way.
or last but not least,just disconnect the gp harness and use starting fluid (preferably while cranking the engine as you spray very short burst to help it fire) until you can afford to buy a set of beru gp's online.
i would do any of the above before i even thought about screwing an off brand gp in my engine fwiw.
do as you wish but,you have been warmed and informed of alternative temporary starting assist aids!

Originally Posted by Xenthrax

Further down the comment line /u/FORDF250HDXLT posted with: "caution!!!
it is strongly advised by the masses to replace glow plugs with motorcraft (they are made by BERU in Germany) only.

I trust his opinion