1996 7.3 PSD 190,000 miles. Recent oil change and fuel filter.

Hard starting when cold so I changed the GP relay. Starts great. Problem now it smokes white smoke like a crop duster when it starts. Also has a rough idle and doesn’t run real crisp. Acts like it’s running on 7.75 cyl.
History
Running on 7 cyl after testing the GPR. Shop ran a test found #1 injector bad.

They replaced the injector. Ouch! $650.00!! Plus the $70.00 to tell them what it needed.

Got it back and it still had a rough idle but it was running on all cyl.but not crisp.

I changed out the GP relay, and the CPS with one from international per the forum that night.

Towed a 12,000 pound fifth wheel in the mountains for a week thinking it would clear up. Same rough idle, white smoke when I start it up and not running crisp.
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Shop says bring it back and they will run a test. Also said they have never had a bad new injector. That statement alone alarmed me.
Questions
Could it be the CPS I installed?

Never had any white smoke before I had the new injector installed, CPS and GPR.

All were installed on the same day. I installed the CPS and GPR.

Could it be the mechanic screwed up the new injector or push rods? He had a real hard time starting the truck due to a lock up caused by oil draining into the cyl. when he pulled the old injector. Had another mechanic under the truck turning the fly wheel with a breaker bar to try and free up the engine.
White smoke is fuel. Right? It goes away after it warms up unless I open it up then a little white smoke.
Suggestions?

Thanks,
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Justin

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White smoke is fuel. If it goes away after warm up then you probably have a couple of glow plugs that are not working and need to be replaced, or some of your UVC (Under Vaslve Cover) wiring could be bad and not allowing power to the GPs. Bad UVC wiring could also cause a problem with the injectors not firing properly.
If the mechanic hydrolocked the engine on an injector replacement, 1. I would be very suspect of his knowledge/abilities (he should have known to purge the cylinder of oil/fuel before installing the new injector) 2. If he tryed to crank the engine with it hydrolocked he could very well have bent the push rods. 3. Most shops do not charge the $70 for the dianostic if they do the repair. Just my .02 cents.

 

Thanks for yourreply. I agree with you about the mechanic. I sttodthere and watch him as he tried to turn it over. Scary! He did say he could not get to the drain plug on the head.
Having power to the GP"S by replacing the GPR would explain the white smoke. Without power to the GP they were not working. Now that they are working some could be bad causing the whote smoke. With a bad GPR I did not have the white smoke.
Should I take it back to the shop for the rough idle?

Thanks,
Justin

 

Hey Justin , good luck with that motorcycle mechanic you have LOL. Just kidding , I'm going through exactly the same scenario. I just bought the truck with a bad miss, but it did'nt smoke. So I brought it to 2 shops and they knew less than I did? So I took the valve covers off and 4 bent pushrods, 2 broken lifter retainers, I had to remove the head to get to the lifter retainers! I'f you bent a pushrod ,DON'T RUN THE ENGINE! the cam lobe coming up and the lifter coming down with no pressure to keep it against the lobe and it's going to shoot out like Barry Bonds hit that -itch! and then you're going to end up having to pull the head like I did!. Anyway my truck is running but not crisp like you said and smoking like a "James Bond gadget"! I was advised by members here that I replace the o-rings on all the injectors. Everyone says injector o-rings are often the culprit of a miss as well as smoke.

If it was'nt for this website/ good people, I would sell both my diesels and buy a Daewoo ! Stationwagon ,............. Woody ,..........

 

Thanks Woody! Enjoyed your humor. Sounds like you are having your share of diesel problems. Mine is in the shop. Called yesterday around lunch was told
" He has three of his best men on it right now!" He is going to run a free scan and cly. test. Should know something in the next month.

I really think my cold start smoking is caused by bad glow plugs discovered after I installed a working GP relay. Rough idle is a mystery unless I caused it by installing a new CPS from international.
I agree with you about this web site. I would trade my diesel for a three legged mule were it not for this site. Awsome help! They don't talk down to you. A question is never considered stupid and you will never get a smart *** put down reply.

Justin

 

That shops not to sharp.

White smoke wont start after fixing the gp relay, need to make sure it is wired up correctly and you are getting voltage to the gp's.

CPS should not cause smoke issues.

Now the injector they replaced, it is possible that they bent the rod or broke teh piston rings on that cylinder. I would check compression on that cylinder and make sure its up to par. Cold start smoke, slightly rough idle and possibly smoke that comes back when idling adds up to reduced compression on one cylinder.

 

Thanks for the reply. When the outside temp is above 70 the truck has very little or no white smoke. That was why I thought it could be a bad glow plug or two which showed up after getting fire to the GP's with the new GPR. Before the GP's were dead in the water. Just my very "Novice" opinion.

Could the rough idle and not running crisp be caused my "Me" installing a new CPS after reading about it on the forum? I bought one from International as recommended in the forum. (Part # 1807339C92) I installed it when I got it home from the shop after having the new injector installed so I have no before and after comparison. Truck was running rough. Took it to the shop they said #1 injector was bad. Had it installed still a little rough idle and not crisp. Towed the "Cottage" to the mountains ( 1,000 round trip ) and then took it to the shop.
I hope you are wrong about the bent rod or low compression on one CYL.. But your theory is sound.
I plan on pulling a 13,000 pound fifth wheel from Charleston, SC to Nevada City, Ca. leaving Dec. 5. Let's see......if the truck is broke, that means I can't drag that "Cottage" on wheels across the country to spend a few weeks with the in-laws.

Thanks again,
Justin

 

I doubt the cps could cause your problem, change it back and see if yu feel it might be.

Need to run cylinder contribution test again and see what it points to, if it says #1 again do a compression check on #1.

 

Up date....... Back to the shop for the rough idle and no power. They said it was the ITS (intake temp sensor). Installed a new one today. Still no power. Now the shop is saying the problem is the turbo not working. Possibly a waste gate not closing to create back pressure. Funny thing no waste gate on a 96 7.3 according to this forum. Turbo does not leak oil or make noises.
How can I test the turbo?
I also have a noise at idle coming from the bell housing. Had it checked at the transmission shop was told it was not the torque converter. Mechanic pulled the dust cover found no play in the crank but said the noise is really loud. Wants to pull the transmission back to find the noise. Noise goes away off idle. I have had this noise since I bought the truck last year. Just got back from pulling a fifth wheel 1,000 miles in the mountains. Noise did not change. Sounds like the flywheel hitting metal. Ant ideas?

Thanks,
Justin

 

Could be a cracked flexplate.....I would run far away from that shop and find a good mechainic.

If the turbo spins free it should be fine.

 

Is it worth pulling the tranny to fix the flex plate or just put up with the noise? I think any noise that loud would cause something to come apart after 18 months of driving.Thanks for your speedy reply!

 

DO ya have a manual or auto tranny, Your talking about a torque converter one time the a dust cover(which is only on a 5spd) another time??
If its a 5spd its the Dual mass flywheel coming apart and need to be fixed. Swap it out with a single mass flywheel and clutch.

 

Sorry for not making myself clear, it's an automatic. The dust cover could also be called an inspection plate on an automatic. If it has been making this noise on for 18 months, since I bought the truck and who knows how long before that with out getting louder or coming apart, is it worth it to spend $500 to $600 pulling the transmission? So, when do I stop dumping money into a 1996 PSD with 190,000? In the last 2 months it has cost me close to $2,000 and no kisses! LOL



Thanks,
Justin

 

Sounds ike a noisy converter to me, see it often. Could be a broken flexplate but I wouldnt think if it was it would last that long.

The back pressure valve could be stuck shut but that guy is an idiot if he says its stuck open, best thing to do with those is gut them out so there is no flapper.


Main thing is get your truck away from the idiots that are working on it, they obviously dont know what they are doing.

 

What color was the CPS you put in? By the number you give it should be blue.