After sitting overnight it takes about three tries before the engine will run. It fires up in about 2 secs of cranking and will run for 2 secs and will then stall. The grid heater is working well and there is no smoke after start up. Grid heater draws about 200 amps when it is on. No codes. I did some searches on this site and the only two possibilities I came up with were the overflow valve for the vp44 and air in the lines, the air possibily as a result of a defective overflow valve. I am going to power up the lp for about 5 minutes before I next start it to see if it makes any difference. I have good fuel pressure, 15 psi, if I bump the starter and when the engine is running. Fuel filter only has about a thousand miles on it. Engine runs normally after it is started up, there is no loss of power. I am also going to install a clear vinyl hose from filter to lp to see if there are any air bubbles. Engine is a 99 24v. LP is a 4601hp located next to the tank. Any suggestions?

 

What are the temperatures when this happens? Are you using any additives? The fuel could be gelling in the injector lines.

 

The temperatures are around 20F. I am not using any additives. I will try some Racor Conditioner Plus additive and see if it makes a difference. Other diesel trucks at work, filled up at the same service station and with no additives added, are not having any problems. Also I have not had this problem in the past six years.
I just checked the label on the Racor bottle and it seems to be more of a lubricant and mentions nothing about cold temperatures. I will try some Howes Diesel Treat and see if it makes any difference.

 

Are you using the block heater? What is your normal idle speed?

 

No electrical outlet at the yard where the truck is parked, so I cannot use the block heater even though there is one on the truck. My idle speed is always 700rpm, the transmission is a manual.

 

I couldn't make it to work today because my truck wouldn't stay running this morning. This has happened a couple of days now. I could just floor it, but
I don't want to kill my engine. A cold start with winterized biodiesel and it starts right up but gets rough and dies in 1-2 min. Down to 20's at night, but I was told that I don't need to plug it in till later in the winter. I'm going to try to raise the idle to 850-900 rpm. Is that good for a 95 5speed w/out a/c?

 

Try plugging it in. Also, if you can, heat your lift pump up with a propane torch.

 

In my case the hard starts were caused by a defective Engine Position Sensor (Crank sensor/Engine Speed Sensor). Replaced it and the engine runs well now.