Hi, This is my first Diesel, so at best a novice. I bought a 1990 f-350 duelly from a city auction. I ended up putting a new injector pump on. It seemed to run pretty good. I was preparing it for a move we were getting ready for. I took it on a few long test runs a worked out a few minor kinks. Every thing seemed solid. While we were driving the truck back to Tulsa from KC, I started to loose power when I hit Joplin. I messed around with it a bit in Joplin, then tried to nurse it back to Tulsa. I didn't make it. Spend two days along side of the road trying to get it going. When I lost power, my wife who was following me said it started smoking blue. While I was working on it trying to start it, I change the fuel filter and caught a 1/2 pint of gas out of the old filter. THe fuel smelled like water with a touch of diesel. I then empty my back tank, which was not the tank I was running, it was just the easiest to get to. I put ten gallons of good diesel with an booster additive in to help. I pump quite a bit of gas through the filter till it was running good diesel. I changed the filter again to be safe. This seemed to help some, in that it start to hit but not start. At that point just a huge cloud of blue smoke would come out and it would not let me keep it going, just one big burst of blue smoke and that was it. Jump forward. I had access to a good injector pump, so I changed it out just to make sure, it didnt really help at all. I then check the Glow plugs and they seemed to questionable, so I changed them out. The glow plug relay got changed out also. The truck now hits after cranking a bit, and will even fake like it is going to run, Ii will let you hit the pedal maybe 5 times reving the engine up then it just dies. A couple of time it let me go about ten times. I Pulled a few of the new glow plugs out to see if they were heating up, and they still had some heat to them after I had tried to start it. I also had check the flow of diesel at the filter and at the back of the injector, they both seem ok. I bled the injector line a few times. Oh when it does try to start Im still getting blue smoke. Im at a loss. I wundering if I messed up my injectors with the water in the tank. any help or trouble shooting tip would be appreciated, thanks

 

I would think you are sucking air before the lift pump somewhere. Maybe a bad tank-to-tank valve, leaking fuel line, or maybe the lift pump itself.

 

When you bleed the lines at the injectors, is the fuel frothy. This is a sign of air in the fuel. Sometimes the fuel pickup tube inside the tank breaks off or has a hole in it and this can be compensated by keeping that tank full. I wouldnt crank on the starter too hard, they are sensitive to overheating. When you fill the filter on a change, you should use a container of the fuel, not the previous filter. Have your wife switch the tank to tank switch while you are underneath touching the switch, You should feel it switching. It is inside frame rail, under driver door - bunch of lines running to it. The lift pump is like pump on a gasser. Usually if its bad, it will be leaking fuel from the weep hole on the side of it. Hope this helps. Good luck.

 

thanks for all the info. It think it does looks frothy when I bled the line.does anyone know if an injector pump from a 6.9 will work on a 7.3? They mount the same, but I had seen one earlier post that said they are not the same. thanks

 

do you know quick test for the lift pump, and is there and secret to switching it out? thanks

 

Install an elec. pump just in front of tank switch. Remove mechanical pump and install cover plate when you have time.

Did you get to Tulsa?

 

I had to tow it, but we are here. I need to get this running so we can get back to KC. What kind of electric fuel pump should I get? Thanks for your help

 

Oh, is the cover plate a dealer item or can I get it at a normal parts store?

 

I used a pump for a 6.2L Chev. 'cause I had it. I can't tell you the pump volume required, but if you go to a local auto parts house get one for a V-8. If you're going to do it up first class first time many of the guys use a Holley Red pump. But O'reilly Auto has a pump for about $40 with a warranty. They also have the cover plate. You can use the one for a Chev. I think I had to cut off a piece of the plate 'cause it was a tad too large.

I connected the hot wire at the firewall drivers side at the fuel/water seperator. There's a connection there that is hot when the key is on only.

I'm located about 60 miles south of K.C. just off of 169 highway. Drop me an email and if you need some help getting home I'll give you my phone #.

 

thanks ditch witch. if all goes well we will be coming up 169 wednesday.

 

Tomorrow? You better get to the parts store!!

Remember to get you some fuel hose and clamps. You've got to get around the mech. pump.

I've got an '84 6.9 and I had replaced the IP, injectors, return lines, disconnected the water separator, eventually removed the steel lines going up and coming back down from the separator and replaced with hose. When I finally removed the mech. pump (and replaced the hose going from the steel line to the mech. pump) the problems stopped. I was running both mech. and elec. pumps for a week or so!

 

Hi Ditch Witch, Well good news. I decided just to put the lift pump now because of time and $. It worked!!!! I'm going for a nice test drive now. The only thing Im not for sure of is I switched the injector pump when trying to track the problem down. It is from a 6.9 diesel. One guy posted it should run ok but may loose some power. I don't to yank it off now because of time. If I can I will wait till I get up to KC then switch the injectors pump out at my leasure. I will probably do your idea about an electric fuel pump in a couple of weeks. Thanks for all your help. I will let you know how the test drive goes, but seems to be doing good.

 

Good News! Get some diesel additive for your fuel and avoid Joplin!!

 

Hi Ditch witch, Well we made it to KC up 169 yesterday!! The lift pump worked great. Two strange things though, the first was I had to buy diese at Garnett at the Conoco station. He was charging 2.14 per gallon. I didnt want to buy any but I was on fumes. I gave him thirty which should have given me less than 15 gallons. I watch it stop at the right amount 30.00. When I left the tank was full !!!! I kept checking to see if it was stuck but it was registering ok. 30.00 buck for 25 gallons of gas what a deal. When I hit Olathe, my lights flickered a little. I checked and sure enough my altertnator was going out. I didnt pull over just ran it all the way in on the batteries, and I think I just made it. The batteries wouldn't start the truck this morning. Oh well we made. Thanks for help again. Dieselnovice

 

That Conoco, is it the truck stop south of town at the junction? I was by there today! What was going on with the pump? They charge you with the wrong one?

There's a real good, honest rebuild shop for alt, starters in Olathe on Kansas Ave. south of the court house about 3 blocks. Here it is: Olathe Armature, 913-780-3344, 328 S. Kansas.

Good luck with it. You going back south soon?

If you were traveling in daylight with your lights off and do not have an electric fuel pump, you don't need your batteries. Just don't turn the engine off!!! These old diesels engines require no elec. once you got them fired up it's only the accessories that require the electrical system.