Time to install your FP gauge. You are just spinning your wheels without knowing for sure what your FP is.

 

Thanks! I'll install my FP gauge after I find out if I need to replace my VP. There's plenty of flow and pressure from my lift pump. I covered my entire engine compartment with diesel yesterday from leaving the brass plug loose while running the lift pump.

 

Update: Tried a new filter. No go. The only way to start this truck is a baby shot of ether. Then it ran great. Killed it, no joy. Going to the mechanic tomorrow. I'm done.

 

Did you get diesel spraying everywere under the hood when you were bleeding out the system?? The reason I ask is because one time I did while putting on my vulcan kit I made a god awful mess in the engine compartment. Well anyway I sprayed it down with water and degraser to get the diesel off. I let it sit over night and started it up the next day and drove to work. Well, when I got off work my truck just cranked and cranked, didnt cough or anything. I thought what the hell????? So I pulled codes and I got the same EXACT codes that you got. Basically this means, well, you know what it means, your truck doesent even know that it has an injection pump its not communicating with it electrcally. Apparently I got some diesel /water in the conection. cleaned it out and it was good to go. Just disconnected the batts. when I got home to turn off the CEL and erase the codes. Hope this helps!!

 

Well, what do you know? The IP died! ($1900) My LP showed 15 lbs of pressure, btw. I'm ordering a FP gauge tonight

 

Well at least you found the problem and now you can sleep comfortably at night, just don't think about the bill... Anyone know why a bad IP would run fine like that after a shot of ether?

 

Robert, at Texas Injection Service, told this: the IP was too weak to pop off the injectors at starter-crank speed. Once the ether got it moving, there was enough to pressure to keep it running.

 

This sounds like my 03 last year, no start when cold, small shot of liquid fire, then it would run all day. It would start if the engine was warm. When it was cold it would not start at all. I towed 14,000 lbs 600 miles with good fuel conditioner added for 2 tanks of fuel. The next morning went out to start it a thought I would not use liquid fire and wow it started on it's own. It's been good all this past winter and last summer. Now it's doing it all over again, hard starting, small shot of liquid fire, runs fine.

I was told many things were wrong with my truck:

injectors ($3500.00)
LP (was replaced before the starting problem ($1200.00)
IP (not replaced yet ($???)

I used fuel conditioner 14.95
I think the fuel we have here in Calgary, Alberta is not the best and my injectors get bunged up. My 92 has never had an issue yet (touch wood) 465,000 kms on it.
bglz42 I feel your frustration.
Thats my 2 cents worth.

 

You probably know this, but, ether makes compression or compounds the compression. Diesel does not burn in the cylinder, its a very small explosion under the high compression pressure of the diesel engine. When its cold and things are a little looser or contracted from the cold, compression is a little weak or on the low side. Thats why we have a glow system to heat up the combustion pocket. Too much ether and you could pop a head gasket or worse.

 

No glow plugs in the Cummins. A Grid heater is used to heat the incoming air.

 

Strange how a perfectly running truck turns up a dead VP after a fuel filter change. Is this related to VP running "dry" for a few seconds while bleeding?
-P

 

That's what I was thinking. You wouldn't think the IP would be built that finicky. Maybe it was already on it's last leg. Wish I knew how the internals worked.

 

Makes me wonder if the old VP was losing prime for whatever reason (bad injector seal after they were cracked for bleeding) and required re-bleeding every time, and once the dealer looked at it and threw on a new VP, they replaced the seals or re-torqued them and got the high pressure lines to seal properly, and it started holding the prime and working. This would mean the old VP was not really bad, just lost prime quickly. This is the only thing that makes sense to me. The "better cracking pressure at high RPM but not at crank speed" sounds highly strange to me (it used to start "at cranking speed" just fine 30 min before the fuel filter change!), but what do I know.
-P

 

The pump was dying, ( I changed the fuel filter because of a hard start), I pushed it over the edge by cranking on itn to get the air out.

 

Ouch!!!! After takeoff and install, that ones gonna leave a mark. Glad to hear you Cummins will be back up soon.