Bonegardener

I've got a 2001 3/4 ton. When i startup my cold engine it starts a little rough and then dies after 3-5 seconds, then I have to crank it over for as long as 10 seconds before it fires up again. This is a new problem, but the truck doesn't seem to give me trouble if it is already warmed up.

I looked at the injectors and the pump, it's not leaking externally.

Also, potentially related I just noticed that I'm burning up a lot of oil lately. I have no idea what is causing that, outside of engine looks clean, coolant looks fine. Haven't noticed and smoke coming out of my pipe.

Any help would be gratefully appreciated!

jrs_dodge_diesel

Those are two unrelated problems, but we'll see if we can figure it out.

For the 1st one, it seems you may have a leak in your fuel lines or filter, likely introducing air into the system. Have you changed your fuel filter recently? Startup like that cold, but not warmed up suggests the air leak, since the cold engine likely sat overnight and enough time passed to allow enough air in to cause trouble. Any check engine lights lit?

No blue smoke out the tailpipe? How much oil are you losing and how long does it take to lose it?

BarryG

As JR mentioned a fuel leak and probably two separate issues. It doesn't have to be dripping fuel just enough of a leak to allow air in. A hot engine and fuel when cooling creates a vacuum and can pull the air in. Check all the fittings for proper tightness. At least that is what mine was when it happened to me. Had one or two fittings that just weren't quite tight enough.

Bonegardener

Thanks guys, I'll check my filter housing. Air leak makes a lot of sense. When I was inspecting before I couldn't see any leaks on the outside so it would have to be just a vacuum leak. I'll take a more thorough look again though. I changed my fuel filter last year, maybe I need a new one (only a couple bucks so why not)?

As for the oil, there is no smoke, except for some white smoke on cold mornings which is normal. Up until this last oil change I never had to add a drop of oil between oil changes, but so far in the last 3000 km I've added at least 3 liters. It's totally baffling me, cause It's gotta be going somewhere, but like I said my engine is clean, and my coolant is pure.

cougar

A fuel return line leak can be difficult to diagnose or even find. The common location for this leak is at the back of the engine where it is hard to see. You won't find a wet spot as it is not under pressure. What it will do is allow all your fuel to drain back into the tank. One way to check this is to park facing down hill, the steeper the better. That raises the tank making siphoning more difficult. If that seems to help, then that is where your problem most likely is. Where is your lift pump located? In the tank or up next to the filter? If it is in the tank, the line to the injection pump is pressurized full length and a fuel leak should be noticeable. If the pump is at the engine, the line between the pump and tank is under vacuum and no fuel leak (unless sever) will be noticed. My solution was to up a check valve at the outlet of the tank. That way no fuel could drain back into it.

SIXSLUG

Oil usage is bothersome. Post up your sig so we know what you are running, eh?

Go to user cp, upper left and then edit signature on the lower middle left and fill er up.

KATOOM

How long has it been doing this? Only recently or been over a year?

How cold is it outside when this happens? White smoke is not normal.

And how much oil is the engine using?

Bonegardener

Well, I found out what was causing my oil leak. Oil is slowly draining from my oil drain nut. Either I need a new copper washer, or I maybe tightened it up a little too much and ****** my threads.

As for the vacuum leak, It seems to have stopped on its own, which is super annoying to me. Now it's just a waiting game.

The white smoke I was getting was just on cold mornings where it dropped below freezing, and only for 30-60 sec. It's warmed up since then and it's not smoking at all now.