Early '99 F250 SD motorwise all stock except for Diablo Deltasport 4 bank chip. Been having a problem starting lately when truck is cold. When you turn the key on, the the top small relay under the radio would click, then when you turn the key, it would chatter, engine would turn over, no start. If you'd let the key go back to the run position, and then fire it again, it would usually start. Last Saturday it got real cold, and it started and ran for about 10 seconds, then quit. I tried to start it, and it would not start. I tried for 30 minutes to get 'er goin, but to no avail. It would start, and would run when i held the starter on, but as soon as I let off, it would quit. It was flooded and blowing raw aerated fuel out of the tailpipe. I ripped the dash apart and switched the relays, nothing. I ran the batteries dead trying to get it started. My buddy came up and gave me a jump, on the 17th try it seemed like, it fired right up, when all the tries before had done the same as described above. Every night after that it's been ok, relay clicks and won't start somtimes, but ever since then have been able to get it going. I read a post about this that said it was the batteries, the relays, the starter, the starter solenoid, the alternator or... what a load of bs! I had the batteries tested, both good. Alternator, good. Starter and solenoid, good. SO... I think it's the glow plug relay, and or glow plug/s. Anybody have any GOOD advice on this, not just shots in the dark? Thanks!

 

Welcome to Ford Truck Enthusiasts superhonky. We're glad you've chosen the best source for Fords. Please take a moment to read our forum guidelines.

Have you tried plugging the truck in for a couple of hours before you try to start it? Pre-heating it should ease the strain on whatever component is failing. Might help to identify the problem too.

 

Superhonky,
First welcome to fte. I'm sure there will be no shortage of answers to this question. Second, I love your name. I used to work with a guy that was the self proclaimed superhonky. As far as the no start. I would start with the glow plugs, and or the relay. If memory serves me correctly, the man you want an answer from is believer45. He emailed me a whole writeup on how to test everything from the relay to each individual plug. So hopefully he will catch this post and hook you up. He saved me alot of time and effort. I'll keep track of this post, if for some reason he doesn't catch it I will email the write up to you. Don't get discouraged. Until you get the problem fixed, I would recomend you plug the truck in a few hours before you need to leave. Thats what I do when it acutally get cold here in TX. My glow plugs haven't worked since I got my truck, but it's usually so warm here, I don't need them. Anyway, I hope this helps, and if not, more help is on the way.

RubberDuck

 

Thanks for the help guys. I already feel like this is going to help!

 

Hmmm, I doubt the glow plugs, or the lack thereof, are the cause here. If the glow plugs were bad, the engine wouldn't even fire. Once the engine is running, it's pretty much self heating and as long as fuel is supplied it won't stall. Something else is wrong here.
I would begin by removing the Deltasport chip, disconnecting the batteries for a few minutes to reset the ECU back to defaults. Reconnect the batteries after a good half hour and retry the engine start.
Another thought: What about badly aerated engine oil or a low HPOP level?

 

I gotta agree with you here Kwik. I'd pull the chip and if the problem continues, look into HPOP and injection problems.

Max

 

Hi guys... just thought I'd update the fix on this problem. Found out I had 4 (yes FOUR) bad glow plugs... and the no start problem, relay clicking crap happened to be a bad ground cable on the right hand battery. The jacket was split and it was corroded for about 5". This was causing (sometimes) a lack of voltage to the fuel pump and the combination of the bad glow plugs/cable would cause the hard/no start. So 8 glow plugs later and a battery cable from Ford... and we're good as new! Thanks for the help.

 

Good deal. Thanks for the update.