Hello guys, newbie here and I have NO clue about fixing cars/trucks so I came here because of what appears to be a wealth of knowledge and your willingness to help others in a bind.

I have a 2003 Excursion 7.3 that has a history of acting like it's running out of fuel (sputtering, knocking, loss of power) and then shutting down completely. Normally it will re start after repeated attempts, will run rough for a bit and then all is well again. I've always attributed this to water in the fuel???

Well Friday the wife took my daughter to school and the same thing appeared to happen. It shut down in the middle of the road but she was able to coast it into a parking lot. Got it restarted but then it shut down right in the middle of the road again as she was trying to make it to a gas station. Cops sat with her for 90 min waiting for a tow truck! All this time I'm trying to help her locate the fuel bowl drain lever, which as the tow truck pulled up she was able to and drained the fuel (so there was some in the bowl, how much I don't know). Anyway got her to run through turning the key on and off trying to get the bowl full again and still nothing.

Had it towed home and have been looking and trying everything I can find on here but to date nothing has worked. Found this https://docs.google.com/file/d/0Byb4...1qRU1VVGc/edit somewhere and all indications pointed to the CPS because I get no tach reading when cranking. I replaced it with the gray CPS and there is no change. I've hit the pump reset switch on the passenger kick panel, I've checked the HPOP level, I've added two quarts of oil to bring it to full. I drained and rinsed the fuel bowl, drained again and refilled bowl manually. Still nothing. Oh, and NO white smoke or anything comes from the exhaust when cranking.

When it first came home it would occasionally spit and cough like it wanted to start but now it just cranks but acts like it's getting no fuel at all. It had a "little" full in the bowl when she got home but was not full. The tank was very low so I thought maybe it had run out of fuel so I dump 5 gals in her and filled the bowl because it didn't appear to be doing it on it's own. Yesterday I confirmed, it is not pumping fuel to the bowl. When turning the key and waiting for glow plug light to go out (yes that comes on) I can hear something running on the passenger side under the hood and then about half way through the delay I can hear an brief "rrrrr" sound right next to the driver side battery.

Any help for you guys in the know would be GREATLY appreciated! We are pretty much broke for another month or two and can not afford to tow it to the stealership and to make matters worst, we are supposed to drive my 15 yr old daughter to fastpitch softball showcase in SC THIS weekend.

 

And before you ask, no I don't have the tools to run any codes on her.....

I did notice while doing all this I apparently have a leak at the waterpump/thermostat?

 

one quick check. unplug the ICP sensor and try to start it. The ICP is in the drivers side head right next to the fuel bowl.

 

Has the hutch mod been done? There are screens in the tank that can get plugged up with gunk, It's a common problem on these trucks. do a search for hutch mod on this forum and there will be a bunch of threads explaining how to do it.

You can also disconnect the fuel line at the pump and blow air back into the tank till you hear the air bubbling to clear the screens then see if it will start. Just remember it is a temporary fix.

Also You might want to not let the tank get below 1/4 tank, they can suck air if the hutch mod hasn't been done.

 

And welcome to FTE.

 

Thanks but no difference, still not pumping fuel either.

 

No hutch mod, will look into it. Thanks and Thanks!

 

Have you charged the batteries yet? After a few no start attempts the batteries will be too low for the injectors to fire. You will then have two issues. The truck will crank and sound like it should start, if voltage is lower than 10.5 while cranking your injectors will not fire! Make sure the batteries are charged.

 

Is this line where I try to blow it out?

 

If you aren't getting fuel to the bowl, I'd say either your fuel pump is shot or the pickup in the tank is plugged. Or both.

That brief "rrrrr" sound is probably your anti-lock brake system. That's normal.

 

Thanks, it was dead when they brought it home but have had it hooked up to a charger ever since and she's fully charged.

 

Sounds like the pump is running, this is the pump, right?

 

Nice picture there, cjgray1974.

Great document find, CatchersDad97... that's now part of my library - even though it was originally structured for the OBS 7.3L. I might look that over and possibly augment it later.

The fuel pump is under the driver's butt - on the frame rail. The noise under the hood on the passenger side is the vacuum pump.

Keeping simple:
You need air, fuel, and compression (the heat leg of the fire triangle). I rarely see air or compression creating a start issue, but it never hurts to inspect the air filter. This leaves fuel.


Fuel in a HEUI system is a little picky, but not bad.

• The PCM needs solid power (at least 10.5 volts while cranking).
• You can drain the fuel bowl and watch it refill with the key on (not cranking).
• You need oil pressure (Injector Control Pressure), which pulling the connector to the ICP should have helped - but you may have air in there after pouring two quarts.
• You need a CPS signal to let the PCM know the engine is cranking and which cylinder is ready to fire. A small warble shows up on the tach while cranking (assuming the battery is cranking fast enough for the tach to register).
• You can ohm the 42-pin connector over the driver-side Valve Cover to make sure all your injectors have conductivity.

Click that last link in my signature for more assistance. Not having a scan tool is a game of Pin the Tail on the 8000-pound Donkey.

 

And this is the ICP? That's what I unplugged.

 

Ha, shows you what an idiot I am!

So this is the fuel pump? Should I be able to hear that when key is on?



Will "try" and check the rest but you're already getting over my head with some of the stuff, why can't it ever just be a blown fuse with me? That I can handle!

Should I disconnect the line to the tank side of the pump and try blowing out from there before doing anything else? Oh, and as mentioned, she's got plenty of cranking power!