so, i bought, and trailered home an early 99 f250 a couple days ago. it overheated pulling a medium load back in '16 and the guy parked it when it wouldnt start up again. 113 degrees, with easily 50% of the airflow cut off do to bugs flatening the fins on the cooler, thats not really concerning me, should bea coupke parts to fix. no evidence found of a cracked block. so i made a deal on it. ive been stalking the forums here, reading advice on no starts, so i have a decent idea of what i need to get into, but i have 2 questions at the moment. (1) does the early 99, i believe its an april 98 engine, have the same deadhead fuel line that a 99.5 has.... (2) what adapter do i need to get to run FORScan on this truck?

I have no interest in throwing parts and money blindly. I will be draining the fuel and changing fuel filter and changing the oil and filter, as i know i have to have clean fuel and clean oil to get the truck to fire at all.

 

Q 1 yes it does

Q 2 OBD2 , Wi-Fi for apple products, Bluetooth for android

 

ok. so on the fuel then, should i disconnect the fuel lines at each cylinder or will clean fuel from tank to filter cover me? the last diesel i owned qas an early 98 12v, and that system circulates, im very much in a learning curve ATM. as to the dongle, im plannimg to run it on a laptop. since FORScan says mobile versions are "lite" and i want all the info i can get, so id guess i need a usb connection?

 

I have both a USB and a Bluetooth version. I've had issues with the BT connecting to a tablet or phone that sometimes eats up valuable diagnostic time and are a pain to resolve. Eventually worked them out, but a solid wire eliminates that frustration. There are also WiFi versions, I have no experience with them but I don't hear lots of people complaining about not being able to connect. Don't cheap out on your adapter, a crappy one will just be frustrating and you'll end up buying a good one anyways. I believe Forscan has a recommended one on their forum.

 

The fuel lines don't connect to each cylinder, they connect to the front of the driver's side head and the rear of the passenger's side head with the latter being buried back by the turbo. You can check the fuel in the bowl for quality and if it looks OK I'd just use it, others might have differing thoughts on it. If you decide to flush fuel out you can open the bowl drain push it out through the drain tube that runs down the right front of the engine on the passenger's side. While diesel can go bad it doesn't happen too often and if it has that algae growing in it it should be easy to see, it's black.

 

ok then sounds encouraging, im hoping to get those filters changed today, and start checking boxes, trying to figure out why it wont fire

 

 

I have E99 F350 7.3 and did a scan with Forscan / laptop couple of days ago.

Looks like OBDLink SX USB adapter works fine with the 7.3 and you can find those easily on ama*on for $29.99
Just search "obdlink sx usb"

I had previously tried other adapters and had almost given up due to no connection, but luckily I just recently read about this adapter somewhere on this forum!

 

No, unless you perform that mod that adds one there. Remember, it's the line that runs down the passenger's head that wears through.

 

ok, been longer than i wanted, but i got into it a few minutes today. can tell ive got a lot to get through, but the fuel filter, very dark, the outside mesh almost black, the inside filter carmel colored, the fuel that drained out, is clear, however, just seems a little dark. the bowl has a sooty look on the sides... so.. at 250k... normal? or should i expect this to harkon to bigger problems, soon?

 

First, download FORScan to your laptotp and buy the $17 cable to connect to your OBDII. It's the cheapest and most comprehensive way to see data on your truck. Second, these sorts of problems are fairly normal depending on how the truck was treated previously. If I buy a truck with that mileage, I expect to change all fluids...ALL fluids (engine, trans, diff). Here is a list in my head of things I will do at a minimum.

1) Cooling system flush and overhaul w/ new water pump, 180* thermostat, and T-stat leak fix ring
2) Injector O-Rings are 50/50
3) All other o-rings on borrowed time, so replace before issues arise
4) reseal HPOP
5) reseal fuel bowl and new WIF lever
6) check and tighten all boot clamps
7) service front hub bearings
8) belt repalcement unless just replaced
9) H/H mod in fuel tank
10) Air filter service or upgrade

I am sure I missed something, but also, I am OCD and don't like to address these things on the side of the road. You are going to need to do O-Rings it sounds like, so plan on GPs as well while you are in there and check your UVCH for burnt pins and condition. The only bigger problems really at that point are whether or not you need injectors, but I doubt that at this point. Address the Orings and all other UVC things while in there and go from there. Take your time and do it right. You will want to check clearances on armatures while in there as well. Know proper torque procedure for your injectors. You will want to do a cold torque as well as a hot one. We will help once you get that far into it.

You will need this.

 

With it sitting that long and not knowing what was done previously the filter color could be nothing. Get it running and see what the new filter looks like. A black filter could indicate oil in the fuel from bad injector O-rings but at this point don't want to jump to conclusions.

 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B005ZWM0R4/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awdb_t1_0X0qCbWHHYD7Z

thanks for the info. i was about to get this one... so im guessing its overkill as the one you listed is half the price.
the trans was changed not very many miles before this trucm parked, that fluid looks new. i may have to replace the radiator, and i was already condsidering the fuel tank needing opened up... a couple of things you menrioned ima have to check the abbreviation list for... big thing, in the moment is getting it from turns over only, to actually firing off and running. its purpose is a feed truck/work truck, so i can work on it more, making it right as it were, down the way. right now im trying to prove viabilty, that i didnt waste the purchase price to my wife.... lol

 

I don't know about the 1/2 price one, but this is exactly the same as I got and it works!

 

First, to answer the no start questions. These trucks need good batteries, starter system and proper RPM before the computer will fire the injectors. Sitting for two years I doubt the batteries are any good and with that many miles the starter is probably bad too. You can charge them but that doesn't mean they are up to par. There should be no chug, chug, chug like a Gas engine would, but a constant high speed turnover.

The truck needs a few things for the computer to fire the injectors:

1. Proper RPM
2. Proper High Pressure Oil
3. Proper CPS (cam position sensor) detection

First, does the WTS (wait to start) light come on when key is first turned on? If not the report back as that is another issue we can resolve. When first cranking the computer looks for proper RPM & CPS signal so it knows where the cylinders are in rotation. Once detected the computer tells the IPR to ramp up HP oil to the heads. The ICP measures the actual HP oil and reports this back to the computer. The computer won't give a command to fire the injectors until ~500 PSI is achieved. All of this should occur within a few seconds. Of course you also need fuel pressure but the computer has no knowledge if it's good or bad.

If not done so start by having the batteries load tested. If one or both show bad replace both with at least 850 CCA. If slow cranking still starter is probably long over due for replacement and or cables, unless you know its been replaced recently.

A scanner is a great help viewing data such as actual RPM, IPR% and ICP parameters to aid in troubleshooting. Unfortunately it won't tell you what the problem actually is as it's just data. A basic understanding on how these items interface with each other is required. Don't get wide eyed when I say that, it's pretty simple once you get the concept.

Post away with any observations with or without the scanner. A video or just sound of the engine cranking would be helpful.

On Edit: A good start on these issues: https://oregonfuelinjection.com/serv...gnostics/#1994.