Hello guys new here hoping for some advise. My brother in law has an 85 for f250 with a 6.9 that is just sitting in the pasture for 10 yrs. My father is a mechanic but says it would take to much to get it running(hes burn out and think he doesnt want to work on it). I have taken the take because I cant see a ford rot. It was bought now by my in laws dad and he put about 50,000 on it and it has set since his death. I am familiar with gas but diesel is a whole different world to me. I have done a few checks to it and found that i get fuel out of my filter when turned over but the fuel is green i have read that algae grows in the fuel is that what happened. I also checked my supply lines to the injectors but theres nothing coming out there. I know I need to get the old fuel out any tricks? And do you think it would take alot of $$$ to run.

Thanks guys,
Jesse

 

Algae cannot grow in diesel fuel systems because there is no light. Algea requires sunlight to grow. However, some microbes can survive in the darkness and feed off the diesel fuel. If it has been sitting for 10 years, all is not lost.

DO NOT TRY TO START THE ENGINE. You need to remove all the fuel and clean the fuel system. Drop the fuel tank(s) after draining the diesel and stick about 1 or 2 gallons of gasoline in there. Gasoline is good solvent and won't hurt the diesel engine if it exists in very small amounts. "Swish" the gasoline around and let the gas sit for a day in the tank. This should get most of the junk / microbial slime out of the tank. Drain the gasoline and reinstall the tank(s). I would suggest replacing the fuel lines because it chances are they are either plugged, rotten or brittle. Replace them. Flush the filter head out with solvent or gasoline. Fill a new fuel filter full of ATF (automatic transmission fluid) It's a terriffic cleaner for diesel fuel systems and won't harm your 6.9.

If I were you, I'd crack the injector lines open. Crank the engine and see if you can bleed the old fuel out of the pump and lines so there is no chance of any crap getting into your injectors. If the fuel looks clean, you might as well sinch the fuel lines up again and see if you can get it to start. This is assuming you have replaced all vital fluids and filters.

It will require a bit of work, but it should be worth it. It should only take you a few days and perhaps a few hundred dollars to get it back up to par. The only thing I would be worried about is gaskets and seals. The valve stem seals could have become dry or brittle causing the engine to burn a lot of oil. Other gaskets such as valve cover, oil pan, water pump, timing chaing cover, main seals, etc... could all have dried out. Some of the old fiber/cork gaskets require the lubrication the heat and oil to prevent from drying out... You may have some nasty leaking troubles.

Assuming there is no mechanical trouble it would be worth it to get it running again. You might have to source a new injector pump. (Ford probably produced hundreds of thousands if not millions of these trucks, so you could probably find several in a junkyard to get parts from. A good running diesel truck is worth a few stacks, I think.

 

thanks for the advise