Truck died and I need to go duck huntin' HELP

[bashman]

So I am supposed to be going out in the middle of nowhere tomorrow morning at the butt crack of dawn to enjoy the first day of duck season here in KY before meeting the family for Thanksgiving. And of course I get in the truck this afternoon to load some things up and she starts just like normal, I back up 20 feet and put it in drive and she dies. I try to restart and no luck. I wait several minutes and try again....no luck. So just because I didn't know what else to do I primed the fuel by following the steps in the owners manual and after a slightly extended crank she starts up.

What in the world happened? She's got 3/4 tank of fuel, I just drove it on Sunday and there were no problems.

I am guessing I shouldn't drive it to go hunting tomorrow because I just don't know what happened, but I REALLY WANT TO.

I need any advice so I can convince myself to either go or not.

Thanks in advance. (I know this is really short notice)

Jarrod

[MEP]

Jarrod.

How far have you driven since you last filled up with fuel?

When was the last time you changed the fuel filter?

Did you disturb anything under the hood around the fuel filter that would allow air into the system?

Once it starts, how does it idle? How does it accelerate?

Check for fuel leaks around the filter and fuel injection pump area.

[bashman]

I've burned a 1/4 tank of fuel since last fill up. It seems to have been running fine sine then.

I've only put 6k miles on the truck so far so I haven't changed the fuel filter.

I haven't been under the hood for any reason any time recently.

And I haven't driven it since I had the problem earlier today, except for up to the barn and it did fine.

I'll check for leaks as soon as I can.

Thanks a lot for the help. I'll change out the fuel filter as soon as I can get my hands on one.

[DmaxMaverick]

Welcome to the Forums!

Don't sweat it. You have an air leak somewhere, but priming will fix it no matter where you are. The leak is most likely at the fuel filter, but could be somewhere else. Enjoy your hunting trip and the holiday weekend and let the dealer mess with it when you have time. This time of year (as well as 6 months ago/from now) is the worst for this issue. Warm daytime and cold nighttime temps cause maximum expansion/contraction of fuel and air. The problem will be at its worst with lower tank levels, being more air to expand/contract, causing more vacuum as it cools. For the time being, you can check the filter for tightness, and ensure the bleeder screw at the top of the housing, and the drain valve at the bottom of the filter are tight. You can also loosen the fuel cap when you park it overnight to prevent or minimize the vacuum, but not if you are having heavy rain and parking outdoors.

Enjoy your weekend, and have a happy Thanksgiving!

[MEP]

If you change that filter yourself and have never done it before, sometimes the seal in the center of the filter stays in the filter housing. You have to CAREFULLY remove it by hand (with the aid of a small screwdriver). Compare the new filter to the old and look for this seal.

Also, in order to remove the water sensor from the old filter, you need a big boxwrench. You can use pliers but it's plastic and will buger it up. I suggest buying the speciiality wrench offered from kennedydiesel.com

[bashman]

Thanks for the help guys.

I went hunting, but had my brother drive his truck instead, to be on the safe side.

I'm taking the truck to the dealer on monday to have them scan the truck to see if it is an injector problem, if it checks out fine, I'll get the new filter in. I'll probably do the filter anyway.

Thanks again.

[Kennedy]

What year is this truck? This will help a lot in helping diagnose the issue.

[bashman]

The truck is on '01. LS ext. cab 4x4 with alison tranny. 63K miles.

I did take it to the dealer and they scanned it for possible codes and it came up clean. I bought a new fuel filter, but haven't put it in yet.

I've driven the truck about 200 miles since this happened and haven't had any problems yet, some cold weather is supposed to moving in soon and the temps will be changing more from morning to night, maybe it will happen again so I can get some more clues.

Jarrod

[DmaxMaverick]

My guess is you will only see the problem after the truck sits in the cold after shut down hot. The fuel system is very good at digesting air, as long as it is running at the time. The problem happens when it gets a big gulp of air while it sits, and has a huge bubble hitting the pump (loses prime) trying to start. That's why it will start normally, then die. If/when this happens, pumping up the primer then an extended cranking cycle will get it going with no issues until the next time it happens. If you don't have the time to address it, you can minimize the conditions by loosening the fuel cap at shutdown, to prevent vacuum buildup in the system as the fuel/air in the tank cools. The issue can also be exaggerated with lower tank levels. A simple (but more costly) solution is to add a lift pump, which will keep the HP pump primed, regardless of air condition. If the conditions persists, even after not finding any air leaks, you may have a defective fuel cap, not venting vacuum. The fuel cap is relatively cheap, so it may just be better to replace it right off.