DHEC followed a diesel trail to my house......

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I did my normal fuel fillup Sunday afternoon. Raise the hood and drain about 1/4 cup from water filter then close valve, hood, etc. All was OK. Proceeded to pump tank slam full, check tires, etc. Got home and smelled diesel. Looked under truck and whole underside is coated and it is still dripping around engine. Raised hood and valve was shut all the way and nothing coming out of clear tube. Hmmm. I dismissed it as maybe I drained a little in a frame rail and it blew out on way home. Got in to go to work this AM and noticed I have lost about 1/8 of a tank! All of this in the 5 mile ride home from the station! Sure enough, walked to top of driveway and there is a black line all the way down my street. Followed it for a good mile before turning off to go to work. Stopped and checked, nothing leaking.
What in the world happened? How did my truck lose 4-5 gallons in 5 miles and purring like a kitten? With the valve closed. This, I suspect, is the only place it could have been coming from.

Any suggestions are welcomed. I am totally baffled and now I am paranoid about it happening again.
Boy, how I miss my 1990 Chevrolet V6 that Never saw any garage but mine in 220,000 miles. And it pulled my tractor and boat just fine!

Please offer suggestions as this is my first Dodge and my first diesel and thus far I am struggling to find good in either one.

Happy-Safe New Year!

David

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'00 2500QC 2WD 6sp. loaded with all but leather and cab lights.

 

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Mine leaked at the big nut on top of the tank where the fuel pickup/return etc. is mounted when it was new. Hope you develop a love affair with your Ram. bg

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White 99 3500, QC, 3:55, auto. most options except leather, Line-X bed liner, fiberglass running boards Rancho 9000s, bug shield and window vents, black vented 5th wheel tailgate, 100 gal. aux. fuel tank.

 

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I don't know if the 00s have a fuel return line or not. But that sounds similar to what happened to me with my 95. Start your engine and crawl under the front end(chock wheels and set brake first). Look for dripping diesel. On my 95 the fuel return line was cracked(age and flex. It took more to get to it than it did to change. It cost me a whole 1. 99 for a hunk of fuel line and about an hour to put it on.

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95 Dodge 2500 Luverne grill guard,headache rack,running boards and Amzoiled. Soon to be mildly bombed. 84 Dodge d-150, 318 Hooker headers,Edelbrok intake,mallory ignition,Carter Afb,Accel coil,and Custom dual exhaust. Boat,fifthwheel,motorcycles,and shop,job to support toys. Yuck...

 

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Do you drain water from your fuel filter at every fillup? If you do this is not normal! Your fuel supplier may be selling you dirty fuel. At over 100,000 miles I have never drained any water from my filter, except at filter change time.

 

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I haven't had your problem yet, but I can see how it might happen on my truck. Last time I drained my filter I flipped the lever down when I was done. But the shaft the lever rotates and lifts up on remained in the UP position so the valve was still open. I had to push down on the top of the shaft to get the valve to close. Maybe it is possible your valve finally closed by itself and now isn't leaking anymore.

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'01 2500 QC SB 4x4 ETH/DEE 3. 54LSD

 

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Hey guys,
Thanks for the responses. Let me clarify a few things:

I drain a very small amount each time I fill up. Maybe 1/8-1/4 cup. I have never seen my WIF light come on. May not even work. I am only trying to prevent seeing it.

I have to toggle lever several times to get flow. I did this and when I put it down it stopped. I then stood for a good 10 minutes and pumped fuel, checked tires, etc. with nothing flowing from under truck.

The last post sounds like the most logical theory, but for the record there was zero flow when I shut the hood.

I hope this never happens again. I also hope it never happens to any of you. Diesel is too expensive to waste and it also does nothing for the condition of my asphalt.

Thanks.

David

 

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Draining your filter at every fillup is a good practice especially if you live in a cold or humid climate or make a lot of short trips. No matter how clean your fuel is it will get water from condensation in it. The amount of condensation increases with the amount of air in the tank i. e. how empty the tank is. Heated fuel from the return line is the cause of the condensation,in a dry climate there will be less moisture in the air to condense. With heavy equipment it is common practice to fill up before shutting down for the night for this reason. One member here at least has lost an injection pump due to water turning to ice in the pump. David, keep up the good work.


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95' 25004X4,AT,Driftwood,Banks Stinger,Warn fender flairs and running boards(work truck)
95 3500,5 speed 3:54,Driftwood,Banks&Psycotty,34,000 GCVW apple and tractor hauler(works harder truck)

 

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Almost had the same thing happen to me. I drain a little off at each fill up. I noticed that after i raised the handle a couple of times, to get the flow going, the valve was slow to close. It drained much more than I liked. It stopped and I lifter up on the handle again and it felt as if the valve was still open (it had a lot of play in it). I wasnt sure it had sut fully, so I started the engine, to get the fuel pressure back up. The fuel started to gush from the drain off hose. I shut the engine down and jiggled the lever several times until it felt closed. It finally was closed, and didnt flow after started. I wasnt happy, and if I have a spare day, I might take it in to get it looked at by the dealership.

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Y2K, 2500, 4x2, QC, 3. 54 LSD, patriot blue. K&N, silencer ring put back in. 12800 miles as of 12-20-00. best milage:28. 5 mpg. transmission reflashed

 

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their primary purpose isn't for this problem, but the PrimeLoc, by using a different filter, might eliminate your drain-valve problem. the disposable filter that is utilized has its drain-hole in the bottom of the canister, and a re-useable spring&ball drainvalve. instead of turning, pressing, and guessing, it's simply pinch & drain, release and close... #ad
#ad
#ad
--- never had any leakage in the 14months that mine's been on, and filter changes are much easier (primary purpose of design)

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mildly BOMBed 98. 4 1B7KF23D4WJxxxxxx-- BD's #5 plate and 210HP injectors--BD Brake and the associated transmission bomb goodies (except for TC,currently), 4" open exhaust (short),Psychotty, camper shell, Warn front receiver, G159Unisteels on Rickson 19. 5's. . CD player is bone stock, so are the seats. PrimeLoc, also remote spin-on filter for the auto trans... Pyro,Boost and Trans temp from Isspro,
Westin nerf rails(black),
bent welding rod to hang celphone on dashboard...
240HP on Dynojet from 75-105mph drumspeed.

 

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I just wanted to pipe in and say I agree with illflem 100%. Draining the filter is important reguardless of the quality of fuel you use, for al the reasons listed above.



[This message has been edited by Cooker (edited 01-04-2001). ]

 

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Being the devil's advocate that I am. .
I've never drained fuel... When I change filters, I seldom see more than a few small water drops in the bottom.

I read everyone's post about it being a good idea. . but it seems a little overkill?

Has anyone had the WIF light turn on? If so, did anything happen till you drained the fuel?
Guess I never had a water problem in any of my Diesels (gen, tractor, truck) so maybe I'm being nieve. .

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98. 5' 24v 2500 Auto/3. 54 4x4 SB QC 285-75-16's on Alcoa's. Everything but leather. PIAA 1200's, AMSOIL dual filter relocation system, Smittybuilt Stainless Steel Nerfs, Rhino Liner(Junk), K&N air filter(For Sale)15 year AMSOIL dealer. Time permitting, Soon to include Ultra-lite Pyro,0-50lbs boost, Trans temp in the pillar. Rancho 9000's with in cab adjustment.