Hi fellows it looks like I'm in the same boat too 30 degrees and 5 tries she blows smoke but no fire . I plugged her in for 30 min. and it lit up as usual. Its a 96 250 with 166000 miles I'm the third owner and have no idea if the glow plugs or relay have ever been changed. Any opinions on brand of glw plugs or rel
ays . This is my first ps are the glow plugs hard to change ?

dave jr

 

Your g/p's are next to your injectors, under the valve covers. Everything is pretty accessable but must be real careful in that area. Lot of high voltage. If you don't feel confident doing the job, I'd have somebody reliable with the P/S do the job. Delphi or Áutolite are ok, and I'm sure there are others out there. If I were twenty years younger I'd want to do it myself just to learn about the motor.

 

Fm Stepman
Appreciated the detail -- always learning....

 

I have a similar a problem with my 96 P/S.

In my case, I have the cold start problems at anything below about 50 degrees. There have been a few occasions when the temp. has been in the 60's & I have had the same problems. Anything below 50 though, guarantees that it will not start. I was told that my batteries may be the problem so I replaced them & this morning I have the same problem. The temp outside is in the mid 50's & it will not start.

This is my first P/S & any help you guys could give would be appreciated!

Thanks.......

 

Thanks horsecop I guess its time to find a book and get busy Ihave been bending wrenches most of my life just like to have as much info as I can before i start something new I will let you know how I make out.

dave jr.

 

Tx..I would look at the glowplugs on that one. Maybe bad relay. See my earlier post.

 

I will do that stepman easiest repair first right. I have had this truck for almost a year other than the cruise going out this is my only problem so I don't mind having at it . I plan on keeping this truck a long time so i want her in top shape thanks for the input.

dave jr.

 

Dave Jr. you'll like that year truck. It's pretty reliable. Only two recalls. Airbox, and that's gone, and tire pressures. I'd say that's pretty reliable. Three major areas that seems to give people the most problems are the CPS, g/p's, g/p relay, and the automatic transmission. Most things can be fixed by folks like us and the most reliable info can be found on this site.

 

When I tried starting my truck today it did not register any RPM's on the tach. I've already replaced the glow plug relay and fuel filter. How hard and expensive is it to replace the CPS (I'm assuming this is the Cam Position Sensor). Thanks for your help. I've been working on this truck for three days now and I'm supposed to be going out of town with it today. Next step is to take it to the shop and I really can't afford that.

 

Hey Woody!

Sorry about the delay getting to this post, haven't been logged on for a while. Saw that you needed to go out of town yesterday, hope you got it handled!

If not, the CPS is the Cam Position Sensor and it is right by the crankshaft balancer/front pulley, at the ten o'clock position. It has a electrical connector and is held in by a metal bracket that looks a lot like a timing pointer on a gasser. The bolt is a 10mm and IH must install them to about a million ft/lbs so use a good quality, six-point socket. On my '97 I can use a 3/8" drive rachet and a short extension and remove the bolt without removing the serpentine belt or anything else, perhaps turning the fan a little to get room. You may need to pry a little, to pull it straight out from the front of the engine (once the bolt is out, the only thing holding it in is the o-ring against the bore that it is in).
Installation is a straight up... push in the new one and tighten the bolt (not to a million ft/lbs, just needs to be tight, don't recall the spec but it can't be much more than 20 ft/lbs), and plug the connector back in.

Retail at Ford is way high...about $180. Best price will likely be at an International dealer. I paid about $120, others report getting them for closer to $90...

Good luck and let me know how it works out!

God Bless,

TC

 

I charged the batteries up good and it started. I think the glow plugs are the problem though, so I'll probably have to replace them some time. Thanks a lot for all your help.