I'm with you Chris. A fuel pressure reading would be a great diagnostic. It would sure help to point toward or away from a fueling problem. Especially throughout a range of accelerator positions and different loads. Slow acceleration and smashing the peddle and different speeds.

 

350,
Can you email me a phone # stewartsrus@bbtel.com
If not, I understand. I just have a question or 2 before taking to shop for fuel pressure tests.

Thanks,

Ken

 

Ken,

I couldn't find the picture I was remembering of the clogged filters in the mixing chamber on the fuel pick up in the tank. Here's the link we discussed Welcome to guzzle's In-tank Hutch Mod Web Page take a look at the pictures in there. After looking at the manual it appears the van has a different fuel system set up. You may have another filter to look at on the frame rail, not to mention the possibility of a clogged screen inside the fuel pump. The "non-serviceable fuel recirculation/filter unit" is what I was referring to earlier. I'll keep looking for the pictures of the plugged filter in the mixing chamber.

Here's what I found in the manual for a 2000 van.

SECTION 310-01A: Fuel Tank and Lines—Gasoline and Diesel 2000 Econoline Workshop Manual
DESCRIPTION AND OPERATION
________________________________________
Fuel Tank and Lines — Diesel Engine
The fuel system consists of:
the fuel tank (9002).
The midship fuel tank is between the frame side rails on the left hand side.
The aft of axle fuel tank is mounted between the side rails.
a fuel tank filler pipe (9034) without a restrictor plate.
a threaded fuel tank filler cap (9030).
a fuel filter (9155) and water separator to protect the fuel injectors.
fuel lines.
an internal check valve with a built in orifice that will bleed off system pressure approximately 10 minutes after the engine is shut off.
a frame mounted in-line fuel pump and isolator assembly (9C407) which provides pressurized fuel to the engine and contains:
an integral non-serviceable coarse inlet filter.
a pressure relief valve for overpressure protection in the event of restricted flow.


The diesel engine fuel system also incorporates:
a non-serviceable fuel recirculation/filter unit (located inside the fuel tank on the fuel sender assembly).
a frame rail mounted auxiliary fuel filter (located on the driver side frame rail between the fuel tank and the fuel pump).

These items assist in preventing the fuel from gelling in the fuel lines during cold weather operations.
The fuel pump is controlled by the fuel pump powertrain control module relay. Electrical power to the fuel pump is provided through the inertia fuel shutoff (IFS) switch (9341).

 

Thanks for the info Chris. Do you have any on line manuals to recommend or do you just use Chiltons or Haynes or something like that?

Thanks,

Ken

 

The Ford workshop manuals are the best ones. You can usually find them on ebay pretty cheap, but keep in mind lots of them are what's called "expired". The only way to make them work is to set the date on your computer back to the date when they weren't expired.

Here's a link to the 2000 manual for the super dutys. It won't cover the differences in the van, but should get you pretty good info on most of the stuff. If you get the service dvd the van will be covered the same way.

2000 Workshop Manual

2000 PC/ED Manual

 

I took the truck in to have the fuel pressure checked and codes pulled. The mechanic said that the fuel pressure held a pretty steady rate even when it was acting up of 28 psi. He said that the only code stored was for exhaust backpressure which he said that they all seem to have that code stored. The tech said that he believed it may be a dead cylinder or injector(s) sticking open dumping too much fuel. He also said that he thought it could be sucking air between the tank and pump so he got a fuel jug and pulled the line at the intake of the pump and ran directly from the jug and the truck still acted up.

I am wondering how much effort was put into getting good readings through all throttle ranges since he could just tell me that it was always around 28.

Anyone with ideas with the fuel pressure readings?

Thanks,

Ken

 

28 psi is way too low. Here's what the book says

Measure pressure with a full load on the engine. If pressure measures below specification 310-552 kPa (45-80 psi), check fuel regulator valve for debris. If OK, replace the electric fuel pump. After replacing fuel pump, re-check fuel pressure to verify that there is not a restriction downstream of the pump causing high fuel pressure, which will cause the pump to fail again.

A stuck-open regulator valve will cause low fuel pressure.

A stuck-closed regulator valve (possibly caused by debris) will cause high fuel pressure for a short time until the pump fails.

As we had discussed before. Make sure there's not a restriction in the mixing chamber or anywhere else. You could always test the fuel pump pressure by disconnecting the fuel line off the back of the pump and putting a small line there down into a jug of diesel.

The spec calls for 45 psi min. Glad you're making progress on this.

 

Hi. I have posted my fix for this very problem in the powerstroke forum - title is " UVC Problem - maybe not" (Ithink!!). In any event, I had much the same issue - turned out to be a partly working (or not!) fuel pump caused by a faulty fuel pump relay. BTW: thanks Ford, for hiding this little gem in the center of the dash assembly (at least on my 2000 F350)!!!

 

350 and everyone else that has helped on this topic... IT IS FIXED!!!

I want to thank all of you so much for your input, I think I tried everything that was posted.

Now for the what everyone (especially me!) has been waiting for... the two screens in the fuel pickup mixing chamber (in the fuel tank) were so clogged up that light wouldn't shine through. I didn't have time to gather the supplies needed for the Hutch mod so I just cleaned them off with an air gun and re-installed them. The truck is running like it should now.

One of the reasons that I love forums like this one is because of the great feedback you can get from people that have been there and done that. I wanted to make sure and post the results so someone else having this type of problem wouldn't have to be there and do that as much as I did on this project. This is my opportunity to help someone because I have BEEN THERE AND DONE THAT!

Thanks All,

Ken

 

thats great Ken, thanks for letting us know what was wrong!

 

Glad to hear you got it fixed!

 

I just wanted to add something that I have noticed since the fix... the fuel pump sounds much smoother now than it did. Before the fuel pump would sound like it was surging or cavitating not a smooth steady humming sound. Hope this helps someone else when diagnosing a problem.

Ken

 

sweet!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

What's up guys?

I just ran into this thread after dilligent searching. I have an 01 7.3 with problems that sound very close to the same. However, I do have a fuel pressure gauge on my truck so I know that fuel pressure is the problem when the truck starts losing power. I was thinking of replacing the fuel pump but I figured I would scout around on here first to make sure it was the fuel pump that was going out.

History:

We have 3 Diesel trucks; 1 F250 truck, 1-Excursion (with the 7.3), and 1- Duramax. We bought 3 FASS systems for the trucks because we are running some alternative fuel that isn't quite the same consistency as normal Diesel fuel so we figured the FASS would be the extra boost the system needs to run the fuel. All went well and fine on the F250 until about 6,000 miles then the truck started acting up so I replaced the FASS filters and the normal fuel filter and the truck did OK but it still wasn't running as good as it should be. About 1,000 miles down the road the truck is so gutless it won't even drive out of 1st gear.

So, I got a fuel pressure gauge and sure enough it was only pulling 3PSI. Then I got a FASS dealer on the phone and they had me do some testing and we confirmed that the pump was burned up.

I totally bypassed the fass system and plumbed the fuel system how it originally was. The stock fuel pump now jumps all over the place. It is at 3PSI then it will jump up to 80 PSI then down to 25 etc. Is there any way my problem could be the Fuel Pump Regulator valve or even the fuel pump relay?

 

The FPR is a possibility, but I would think that is unlikely. How quick does the stock pump jump around? I'd stick a volt meter on the factory pump and make sure you're not getting voltage spikes from a loose wire causing the problem.

You could also check the fuel pressure at the pump outlet (eliminating the regulator from the test). If the pump is making a constant humming sound while the pump is running, then I'd check the FPR. When you changed the factory filter, was there a bunch of junk in the bowl? You're other possibility is a restriction on the supply side (in the tank)