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tony6373 · 03-25-2014, 08:46 PM

Latest update. The new fuel filter / separator arrived late this afternoon. Big surprise... the port size is much different! 3/4" 16 tpi. Could not find a reducer bushing locally so put the new guts into the old body. Ran out of daylight again so will reinstall and test tomorrow. Ran the engine for a while this morning with the new feed pump. Started right up and idled well. Slight roughness (missing on one cylinder?) at about 1200 rpm. Otherwise very smooth. The primer pump works and feels much firmer then the old one.

I got about 12.5 to 13 mpg not towing and about and about 11.5 towing the smart car. Hope it will be a little better after fixing the fuel system problems. Acceleration is just barely adequate but once you get it up to speed it runs along fine. Long steep hills will lug it down. My manifold pressure gauge just barely wiggles. Don't know if it's a bad gauge or maybe the turbo is not working very well?

mayco · 03-26-2014, 09:31 AM

Tony, maybe its a matter of POV but my isuzu seems to have plenty of acceleration. Like i mentioned before though, on the long grades it seemed to bog down. I think smartstream has got the right attitude with this though, enjoy the ride. But, if you are having acceleration issues i would think something is still going on with your motor. Air, fuel, compression are the variables as i understand the diesel. Did you by chance open the bleeder screw located just to the front of the primer pump while you were pumping. It has a lock nut i believe and the screw through the middle. I did this after i changed the upper fuel filter and it sputtered a bit for the first pump or two then a steady stream of fuel. Just a thought, im absolutely a novice on these diesels but it obviously bled some air out.

wxbuoy · 03-26-2014, 11:46 AM

Tony

From my research it sounds like you still need to bleed one of your high pressure lines to the cylinders It will run rough on the cylinders that are getting fuel. But it is very common to have air in the line after a complete filter change Your manual should have the procedure to crack each fuel line at the cylinder to vent air that might be binding that cylinder. You MUST wear gloves and safety glasses since the fuel will be under high pressure and cut you if you have your skin in the way. A rag cuts down on the mess. I can send you the page from my manual that covers it if you like.

Dave

tony6373 · 03-26-2014, 05:02 PM

Thanks to all who have offered suggestions. I reinstalled the fuel separator this morning and the engine runs smooth at all speeds. Drove about 120 miles today towing the smart with no issues. The acceleration seems okay to me but the manifold pressure gauge hardly wiggles so I'm not sure if the turbo is working. Cursing down I-4 at 60 MPH on curse control speed varied +/- 2 MPH with the hills.

I do open the 10 mm bleed screw while priming. It is not normally necessary to bleed the high pressure side and can be dangerous.

Final analysis: I feel the filter in the top of the water separator was over due to be changed (Rush Truck Service was supposed to have changed it). Then the bowl on the bottom was cracked and leaking air into the fuel system. The primer pump on the feed pump was leaking fuel while pumping it and might have been leaking air also.

I'm so glad it is running better then it has at anytime since I bought it about a year ago.

mayco · 03-26-2014, 05:20 PM

Good work tony........happy trails!

wxbuoy · 03-26-2014, 05:37 PM

Good Job!

Smartstream · 03-26-2014, 06:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tony6373

Thanks to all who have offered suggestions. I reinstalled the fuel separator this morning and the engine runs smooth at all speeds. Drove about 120 miles today towing the smart with no issues. The acceleration seems okay to me but the manifold pressure gauge hardly wiggles so I'm not sure if the turbo is working. Cursing down I-4 at 60 MPH on curse control speed varied +/- 2 MPH with the hills.

I do open the 10 mm bleed screw while priming. It is not normally necessary to bleed the high pressure side and can be dangerous.

Final analysis: I feel the filter in the top of the water separator was over due to be changed (Rush Truck Service was supposed to have changed it). Then the bowl on the bottom was cracked and leaking air into the fuel system. The primer pump on the feed pump was leaking fuel while pumping it and might have been leaking air also.

I'm so glad it is running better then it has at anytime since I bought it about a year ago.

I would guess the turbo is working but the gauge is the problem. Mine has a habit of freezing up. Sometimes I have to drive 10 to 15 miles before the gauge will work. I'm sure sometime in the near future it will give up the ghost and I will have to find new one.

I'm glad to hear everything is working well. It's amazing how well these old oil burners will keep doing their thing as long as you treat them right.

wxbuoy · 05-06-2014, 07:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by moosetags

What you are describing is a classic symptom of fuel restriction, typically at the fuel filter. Since your fuel filter is new, possibly there is some kind of restriction in the fuel line.

Brian

Went with the other mechanic (my guy) to the truck center and picked up the moho today to take it a few miles back to his shop so he could trouble shoot it, replace the bushings in the engine mounts and check everything over. The truck shop killed the start batt and the combination switch in the glove box wasn't working... Got a jump cart and it started right up. Seemed to purr. Started the few miles drive to the other shop and had no issue coming up to 70 on the highway. Drove like it did before the issue. Must be a lot of crap in the tanks that clogged the new filters.

So the truck shop had it for 45 days, didn't manage to find any of the parts, just changed the filters and stopped there when the tech smelled what he called "bad fuel". I asked them why they didn't drain the tanks like I had asked several times and check the pressure from the lift pump to the high pressure pump. No answer.

Well, It is safe and sound at the other shop. This guy knows what needs to be done and and more importantly what the other shop was saying that doesn't need to be done. I am out of town the rest of the week, but hopefully can get down there to do some work on it this week-end and then hang around next week while they go through the systems with me.

On the bright side all I lost was time. Frustrating but they could have run the bill sky high and left me stranded. Instead they just charged me for the fuel filter change and kept it in the bay out of the elements until the realized it was beyond their ability... Which is sad since they call them selves a full service facility that can handle any issue.... Ironically the parts they couldn't find for 4 weeks I found in 15 minutes on line. I guess there are 2 kinds of shops: parts swappers and mechanics. I just happened to take it to a part swapper before I realized it and took it to a mechanic.

DaveFL · 05-07-2014, 07:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wxbuoy

Went with the other mechanic (my guy) to the truck center and picked up the moho today to take it a few miles back to his shop so he could trouble shoot it,
...
On the bright side all I lost was time.
...
I just happened to take it to a part swapper before I realized it and took it to a mechanic....

I just renewed my tow insurance, now I wonder if that was the right thing to do, from your problem and solution, Good Sam will deliver my MH to the nearest professional service provider. Hopefully not one like you found.

wxbuoy · 05-07-2014, 12:10 PM

Dave

They would have taken it elsewhere if I had a better garage. The real issue is I didn't know enough to ask the right question or stop the process after a week of no progress.

mayco · 05-07-2014, 12:27 PM

Wxbuoy, i think you hit the nail on the head there. I feel absolutely vulnerable to being ripped off if i dont know enough about the rig (or fill in the blank) to at least be able to ask the right questions. Its not about having all the answers, its about asking the right questions......for me anyway. I hate to say that people are out to make a quick buck on an uninformed customer, but people are out to make a quick buck off an uninformed customer! I know its not true ALL the time, and ive been lucky i guess here in my own town, but on the road, and not knowing anyone, and probably not going to cross paths again, makes for some risky business. Thats what ive grown to love about the forum here. Some things i will study in depth, some ill file away for future use. In the long run my hope is that when the inevitable breakdown happens, and its beyond my abilities to diagnose and repair, i will at least have the general knowledge to ask the right questions. This forum is truely a blessing. Thanks to all who ask, learn, and pass it on to the next folks. As far as the internal filing system is concerned.......im pretty good at filing things away in the ol noggin.......its the retrieval system that needs some serious help!!

wxbuoy · 05-07-2014, 01:32 PM

Mayco

Couldn't agree more! When I initially asked for help everyone gave me the possible causes from minor to large. As i said I only lost time because they never went beyond the initial trouble shooting. If they had I would have know, thanks to this forum, what the thought process should have been. I feel i would have easily stopped them from going beyond reasonableness with the power if knowledge you all provided.

I felt bad asking the initial plee for help but in the long run I never felt overwhelmed or Like I was being taken advantage if since I knew from others input here what the reality of what could be wrong was. A very comforting feeling. THANKS all!!