Engine/Transmission (1998.5 - 2002) Cranks longer before starting

[Mike Parker]

2000 2500. Was starting on first crank. , now cranks six to eight times before starting.

no codes showing, fuel pressure 15psi at VP44. Running FASS fuel pump. No apparent leaks in the fuel system, no smell of diesel under hood.

Any one have any idea why this is happening.

Thanks Mike

 

[Firewalker]

Have you common rail fuel pressure checked could be a week injection pump, bleading injector, bad FCA, bad common rail check valve, all of these items can leak down causing low cranking fuel pressure.

 

[Mike Parker]

Had the engine checked about 5 weeks ago as i had problems with bad diesel, got a clean bill of health at that time. problem has been on going for some time but only when the weather is hot and so was the engine.
Thanks for the tip I will get it checked again.
Mike

 

[Huff N Puff]

Check:

2000 2500. Was starting on first crank. , now cranks six to eight times before starting.

no codes showing, fuel pressure 15psi at VP44. Running FASS fuel pump. No apparent leaks in the fuel system, no smell of diesel under hood.

Any one have any idea why this is happening.

Thanks Mike

The Check valve in the return fuel line,if it leaks it could would take longer cause the injection pump looses its prime,might even be a failing injection pump.

 

[Missouri Mule]

Could be the starter getting weak this will cause hard starting.



As you probably know you don't have a common rail or FCA.

 

[burndog]

Swap the fuel injection relay with another one in the fuse box if this ONLY happens warm.

 

[MAleshire]

I agree with Missouri Mule. May be a weak starter, or and electrical charging problem. Have your charging system and batteries checked. This is something that you can usually get done free.



Skip

 

[Mike Parker]

Seems to have been the check valve in the return fuel line. Messed with the valve this morning and she starts up fine. Will get a new valve and replace tiis one.
Thanks Guys

 

[AlaskanCummins]

Hey guys,



I had replaced my VP44 and mine still had hard starts after she was warmed up. It would actully die when I'd shift into drive to take off. What I finally figured out was that it doesn't like ULSD fuel.



I've been running #1 (same as home heating oil) and NO problems at all. I even added Stanadyne to the ULSD and it didn't help. I think the sulphur in the #1 is keeping the VP44 lubed up enough.



I've driven it about 2000 miles with #1 and haven't seen any drop in fuel mileage (hand calc. 18-20mpg) or less performance.



Hope this helps.

 

[Kf6cmp]

Same hard starting.

I have a simular problem. Ive replaced my vp and lift pump with fass. Ran fine for six months and has run fine. I just went on a trip into Mexico and into the trip I started having a starting problem. When hot it cranks for quite a while before starting. When its left to cool completely down it starts up with a little cracking. When running it runs fine. The weather was very hot and humid. I was thinking it was the fuel but Ive never had a problem before running Mex. diesel. (pre-fass pump). Read the post and maybe check valve, could this cause this problem. coincidentally my fuel gauge also stopped working on the trip. What to do. Chris

 

[DFerverda]

My truck starts hard when running ULSD. If you add some biodiesel or clean engine oil, it starts right up, 1 crank...

 

[jwdeeming]

I'm no expert, but when I had this problem it was found to be a bad o-ring on one of my injectors. Check for tiny fuel leaks near your injector lines. If you have my kind of luck, it will be the cylinder in the back because it's hardest to work on...

 

[Kf6cmp]

I fixed my problome by doing a rewire that Fass recomends. The link was given to me by Diesel Dan. If you have a fass pump this solved my problome.

 

[Huff N Puff]

The hot soak restart problem,

I have a simular problem. Ive replaced my vp and lift pump with fass. Ran fine for six months and has run fine. I just went on a trip into Mexico and into the trip I started having a starting problem. When hot it cranks for quite a while before starting. When its left to cool completely down it starts up with a little cracking. When running it runs fine. The weather was very hot and humid. I was thinking it was the fuel but Ive never had a problem before running Mex. diesel. (pre-fass pump). Read the post and maybe check valve, could this cause this problem. coincidentally my fuel gauge also stopped working on the trip. What to do. Chris

Is usually the injection pump electronics starting to fail. Check for injection pump codes with a scan tool first, to confirm.

 

[mental floss]

Mine was the starter.

 

[Dfuruness]

I had the same problem. It was the starter contacts that needed replacing. It had all the symptoms of a fuel issue but turned out that the starter turned over and over and eventually no start.

 

[KevinSmith]

I'm no expert, but when I had this problem it was found to be a bad o-ring on one of my injectors. Check for tiny fuel leaks near your injector lines. If you have my kind of luck, it will be the cylinder in the back because it's hardest to work on...

What did the o-ring cost? I think Im going to have to replace mine.

 

[jdross440]

Hers is getting hard to start if I leave it with the nose parked up hill. Where is the check valve located and do I have to get it from the dealer/cummins?

 

[jdross440]

Now doesn't matter parked uphill or down. When it does start, it runs smoothly.

I pulled the check valve last night and no fuel ran out. Is is supposed to? Cleaned it and blew air through it before reinstalling. The truck cranked about 5 seconds before starting. It started promptly after that. Tried this morning and it started promptly. Will try again tonight. Talked to a local Bosch rebuilder this morning and he said he's only had to change 2 or 3 check valves a year so doubts it's a problem.

 

[jdross440]

Finally found the problem. Crankshaft position sensor would not give a signal during start attempt, therefore the ECM would not turn on the VP-44. With no signal during crank, no codes were set because the ECM didn't know the engine was turning. Had taken it to Cummins Mid-South and they didn't have a clue and lightened my pocket book by $225 for nothing. Therefore I looked at the wiring diagrams and description in the repair manual and went straight to the sensor. $35 later it starts great.