nascar mark

I just read your last post. Skimmed through the others....Your problem is described as running good until up to operating temp. Seeing as you have replaced most of your fuel system & have fuel, most likely that’s not it and it will not be a sticking inj(s), as that would only cause a fuel knock. Run from that mechanic. lol

Being that your truck is a 95....lots of the 160hp & 175hp injection pumps had problems with sticking plunger(s) & barrel(s) once up to operating temp & hot.
This causes the engine to stop or run very rough.

Hate to say it but it is most likely inj pump rebuild time. Contact Seth Farrell at Farrell Diesel Services 816-205-0757 and tell him Mark Wilson (dieseltuff) believes you have sticking P&L’s. Let him know what your engine is doing and he can give 2nd opinion. Good luck.

dslpower

Try taking the cap off or loose on the fuel tank. May be sucking a vacuum, there is a rubber valve in them to let air in but not let vapors out.

Required_Field

I do hope it's not the IP - $$$! I'll get in touch with Seth.
Anyway, as expected, it started up normally this morning. I didn't have time to road test it again, but it idled for awhile and I was able to move it around in the driveway. I did not prime it before starting, or do anything else unusual. If it does it again, I'll check the fuel cap, may as well do all the easy things.

Required_Field

Problem present again on a road test yesterday. Removal of fuel cap did not help. I have been reading about the injection pump problem and it sounds likely. I will get a fuel pressure gauge to help rule out supply-side problems, and may as well get a new overflow valve as well. Questions:

1. Some folks say you can test for the IP problem by pouring cold water on it to cool down the pump. Can this damage the pump? Years ago when I got my first diesel, I "learned" that you should never wash a hot diesel engine because the abrupt temp change could damage the IP. Perhaps this is obsolete guidance.

2. Let's say it is the IP, a not-uncommon problem on the 94 & 95 models. Is there a way to rebuild it with upgraded parts or something, so this will not recur? What did they do in 96 to avoid the problem?

Thanks

nascar mark

Nothing wrong with checking fuel pressure but that or changing out your overflow valve won’t fix your stalling when hot issue. If you need a lift pump and/or overflow valve, so be it. Yes, you can pour water on inj pump...you won’t hurt anything. A rebuild will fix the plunger/barrel problem. As mentioned, call Seth when your ready to bite the bullet, as it will not magically cure itself.

dslpower

Before you tear it apart, check that the shut-off solenoid is holding the lever fully open when at op temp. Or wire it open and see if it still has problems.

Required_Field

I appreciate the help, guys. And I hear ya, Mark, I really suspect your diagnosis is gonna be right. I think it will tend to confirm if I can see on a gauge that I have adequate and unwavering fuel pressure when this occurs. I also thought maybe the OFV is also getting hot and could be flakey, and in 22 years and 190K miles, it has probably never been replaced, so it's due. The other elements of the fuel system I did earlier needed replacement in their own right, from the rusted lines to the leaking lift pump.
So, with the vague notion that overhauling the IP is an opportunity, I've been reading about mods. I know anything is possible on these trucks, but my main reasons to have a diesel rather than a gasser are reliability / longevity and fuel economy. I don't tow often, but occasionally need to pull a U-Haul or car dolly. So at the moment, I'm thinking that it might be enough to have a stock rebuild of the IP, and add the TST 230hp plate kit, which they say doesn't require any upgrades, and generally doesn't change fuel economy.
Meanwhile, I am wondering how long the turbo and auto trans are going to last, and what I have to do to keep mechanical and/or financial disaster at bay ...

#1diesel4me

Congrats on your new project!!!! I am also in the same boat with you!!! I have been dealing with the same issues as you.... I have a 95 I bought from a used car dealer that ran fine for a month, then it just shut down, fired right back up. That became more often and worse conditions to the point of not being able to move it. I, replaced the following:. Lift pump ( 2 times. now ) fuel filter, pre heater screen and O-rings, heater to pump elbow ( wow $30 ) fuel supply line ( tank to pre heater line ), dropped tank and cleaned the non dirty tank, disassemble the module and cleaned, put a new sending unit on, and now I still can't get her to fire. I just found out tonight that I'm loosing prime. I removed the bolt to the injection pump and primed till it was OK, then walked away for several minutes then primed again and had good flow for a dozen or so pump's then alot of air till it got primed again. I have a 5gallon can with new fuel line next to the truck to eliminate the tank. If I crank for a good while she tries to fire but can't. I put a bag over the lift pump line before the filter and someone crank the engine for 30sec. Only 2ounces. Thats why the second lift pump was installed.. Going to put a electric pump on tomorrow feed directly to the injection pump....

#1diesel4me

Oh the lift pump line is available at local dealer for $80

Required_Field

Yep, it's not just a Dodge, it's an Adventure. Or even, possibly, an AdventurER, but one pun at a time.
The problem you are having sounds more like an air leak. My truck will start and run fine till it warms up to operating temp, more or less. Yours won't start. If you are sure you have eliminated air from the fuel supply and you have decent pressure at the IP, then I suppose you could have a similar problem to what we suspect is wrong in my IP, but be sure of those things first. Sounds like you're following some good guidance, but just in case you have not seen it, the best general troubleshooting article I've seen is Joe G's fuel system writeup - Dodge Cummins Diesel Forum, although I disagree with the camp that thinks the fuel preheater is useless. Based on that and the things you've replaced, apart from rechecking all your connections and bleeding the system, I wonder if the joint where the hardline goes into the fuel heater is the culprit. I might expect to see some seepage there when shut off, but when pumping, it's under suction rather than pressure.
I'm hoping to have time and parts this weekend to hook up a fuel pressure gauge. I expect to see that I'm having the problem even though fuel pressure is fine -- though it will be a bit tricky to tell even then, because as the engine stumbles and dies, of course the mechanical lift pump will also stumble and cease. But if pressure is good and consistent up till the stumble, there'll be no reason to suspect the lift pump. If pressure is somewhat erratic before the problem occurs, I may have a bad overflow valve. And as per advice here, I'll hold the FSS open to rule it out. The IP is diagnosed bad only after assuring that everything else is good. And/or by putting fresh cold diesel in the tank or cooling down the IP with water and seeing if those stop the problem temporarily. (When my problem first occurred last fall, it happened just after I put fresh fuel into the tank, so that's a point against it being the IP, unless maybe the station heats its fuel ...) I'll only pour water on the IP after I rule out everything else, just because I am leery of causing abrupt temperature changes in precision machinery ...

#1diesel4me

Hello, R.F. Hope your accomplishment was successful this weekend. Please update me. My weekend was somewhat successful and disappointing. Installed the lift pump and still no Start!! Went over all connections again and what do ya know..... Loose fitting.... Tighten up and she fired off. Idled fine then fuel started pouring out at the fuel tank. ( The test line was still in the can ) reconnected the line and all was good. I thought..... Idled for about 2hours then went to move her. She shut down. Installed a guage and the needle had rapid fluctuations between 20 and 25. Sometimes she was OK, and other times she shut down. Banged my head a few times....... Cleaned all connections. Check the guage against my 95, 1500. All good and no drop in pressure when off. After she was cold again, Put guage on diesel, fired off and drove her. No better then 20lbs of pressure and no fluctuations in the needle. But ran OK. Cold. Shut her down and the pressure dropped off immediately to 5lbs. Seem some fuel leaking around the banjo bolts. Going to get new gaskets for everything and try again on Tuesday. Fingers crossed.... Thks for chatting. John

#1diesel4me

Thank you very much.... All help is greatly appreciated and I will make the call.

woodchuck2

I think mine is good for now.I filled the fuel filter with ad2000 and 2 stroke mix oil. Then cracked the ofv and hand pumped it in.let it sit for an hour and fired up.Ran good for now,I,m going to run some atf in my fuel,see how it works out

Required_Field

Between one thing and another, I have not had time to work on it over the past couple weeks. Glad to see woodchuck2 and #1diesel4me are making some progress on theirs.

I hooked up a gauge tonight, but it doesn't work -- a cheap electrical gauge. I then hooked up a mechanical gauge, and, if it is to be believed, I have rather low pressure. Around 10-12psi at idle, rising to about 20 and then dropping off. So, I may get another gauge, or test this one, or something. If I can believe the gauge, I'll move on to the overflow valve.

My gauge setup is a Tork-tek snubber at the IP, feeding to a "street tee". One output side of the tee has a valve I'm using to bleed the system. The other goes to a 30-in length of 1/8 gauge hose, that goes to the mechanical gauge, or to the sending unit of the electrical gauge. The electrical gauge always registers zero, and there was fuel in the line up to the sending unit. Tork-tek says to not bleed that line, so I didn't. It makes me wonder if the sending unit has a pressure leak. I guess I should test these gauges with compressed air somehow.

It's unclear to me why low fuel pressure would cause the stalling problem only when the engine warms up, so, this may simply be a separate problem.