Sitting for more than a decade -- won't start.

[Mark Krieger]

I need a quick opinion from anyone who has good information...

I spotted an old 1982 Winnebago RV on Craig's List here with a 6.2l diesel on a P-30 chassis. The owner says it isn't running right now and the price is half reasonable. I'm tempted to buy it. Only 38,000 original miles on this thing!

We were suprised to find that the owner lived across the street from my wife when she was a kid and she was friends with his daughter. I think he's giving me the straight story when he says that the truck has sat for years. It might have been some time in the 1990's since it was last run!

Needless to say, it won't start. He's replaced the fuel filter and drained the fuel tank of the old fuel. It's got a new set of batteries too. A couple of "mechanics" have looked at it and tried a few tricks to get it to run like cracking the injector lines while cranking the engine.

He claims that he gets fuel pumping out of the fuel pump but very little fuel weeps from the injector lines when they're loose.

Now they're telling him the old fuel is gumming up the Injector Pump and it needs to be removed and re-built. I know the only thing worse than a gummed up IP is some hack mechanic tearing it all apart and failing to put it back together and get it adjusted correctly.

I know that fuel tank is miles away from the engine because the RV is almost 30 feet long. There's got to be tons of air in those lines!

Does diesel clog up the IP after sitting for countless years? I'm sure that there's air in every part of every line in the fuel system by now.

What's your vote? Injector Pump gummed up or air in the lines?

It's not my money I'm wasting, but I do want to try and steer this guy in the right direction. I don't want to buy it if a discount-rate mechanic boogers up the Injector Pump because the price will also go up to cover the repairs. I'm tempted to try and get this thing purged of air myself so I can buy it from him for a good price when I get it running.

Hurry! The "mechanic" is making a house call on Friday to tear off the Injector Pump so he can spend the next two months rebuilding it.

[ccatlett1984]

easy way to see if there is gummed up stuff in the IP is to pull the top cover off of it and look inside. I wouldnt think that it would be gummed up to the point that it wouldnt flow fuel.

before trying the above, get a air tank with regulator and pressurize the fuel tank with 2-3psi (DONT OVER PRESSURIZE!!) then crack the bleeder on the filter base and any air up to that will get purged.

[DmaxMaverick]

I agree. Diesel shouldn't be gummed up like gas does. I've started tractors with 30 year old fuel in them, no problem. If it ran before, it should run again. I'd be more concerned with water in the system than anything. As long as they didn't try to start it before changing the fuel and filter, it should be fine. Check for glow plug operation, too. If they don't get juice or are bad, all you'll do is kill all the mosquitos in the neighborhood. (guess that ain't really a bad thing, but no running engine)

Bleed it completely. The air in the tank trick works well. Get juice to the glow plugs and crank away. Don't burn up the starter, though. Crank 30 seconds and let it cool for a few minutes at a time. Keep the batteries well charged. Low batteries will kill the starter quick, and you still don't get started.

[Mark Krieger]

... As long as they didn't try to start it before changing the fuel and filter, it should be fine. ...

I'll bet they did try to start it before they drained the tank and changed the filter. It's not clear if they found any crud in the fuel when they drained it.

It sounds like I'll need to lay my hands on a filler cap and stuff in a schrader valve if I can.