First tank of ULSD and the truck seems louder

[Bernie]

Got my first tank today. About a hour after getting it I thought the engine seemed a little louder. I dismissed it as my paranoia surrounding the new fuel.



I pulled in to my fire station about an hour later and another firefighter mentioned that the truck seemed louder.



Is there any connection between the new fuel and a percieved louder motor or is this a strange coincidence?

 

[Jasco]

Could be lack of lubrication. Did include and additive?

 

[Bernie]

No additive. From what I have read (here and other places) they are not needed for ULSD.

 

[n7gxz]

If you have a source for bio-diesel put in about 5 to 10 gallons and it will quite down. It has to do with lubrication as mentioned. My second gen is noticably quiter running on bio then #2.



Kevin

 

[CUMMINZ]

Louder engine

Man don't you know what ULDS stands for? :-{}



Ultra Loud super diesel

 

[MFalkinham]

No additive. From what I have read (here and other places) they are not needed for ULSD.

Technically additives SHOULDN'T be needed for ULSD, IF the refiners actually do what they are supposed to do. When they remove the excess sulfur, a side effect of the process also removes the good lubricating properties of the fuel. They are supposed to put additives back in to correct this, but that requires time and money, so I certainly wouldn't trust them to do it.

Like the other guys have said, always use good additives or mix in some bio-diesel, which inherently has very good lubrication.

Also, ULSD acts as a detergent on fuel tanks and lines at the stations, and dislodges lots of bad crud into the fuel. Always carry a spare fuel filter, and be prepared to change it should you notice a decrease in mileage & performance (and fuel pressure, if you have a gauge). Over time the delivery chain will be purged and this won't be as big of a problem.

 

[Nate]

Most of the fuel pumps by now should be ULSD or close to it by now. From what I understand, they have been pumping ULSD for a while, just it's been mixing in the tanks which had LSD, so your getting a ULSD/LSD mix.



I put my filled my first tankfull of pump labeled ULSD last week, I haven't noticied any difference.



IMO I think all the worry about ULSD isn't needed. At work, we run 4 1990 Cummins trucks, old school, non-intercooled 6BTs. We have been filling with ULSD since early this summer. We had 1 truck go down because of a bad pump, though I'm not sure if that was really because of the fuel, or just wear. This trucks have around 10,000-15,000 hrs on them, and are run HARD!

 

[MFalkinham]

IMO I think all the worry about ULSD isn't needed. At work, we run 4 1990 Cummins trucks, old school, non-intercooled 6BTs. We have been filling with ULSD since early this summer. We had 1 truck go down because of a bad pump, though I'm not sure if that was really because of the fuel, or just wear. This trucks have around 10,000-15,000 hrs on them, and are run HARD!

Unfortunately, the common-rail 3rd gen trucks are much more sensitive to fuel quality problems than the older trucks were. The CR injector bores are smaller, so even 3 - 5 micron debris can cause wear problems. Water in the fuel has been known to cause problems as well. Proper fuel system filtration and lubrication is now vital to avoiding expensive repairs, as some dealers have been known to refuse warranty coverage on trucks diagnosed with having "bad fuel".

 

[Bernie]

Thne fuel I got wasat a backwoods station. They had just switched over to ULSD the day before according to the clerk.



The truck did seem down on power today. I am going to change the fuel filter and see if that helps.

 

[sag2]

I have been getting ULSD (at least that is what the pump says) for at least a month now. Have not noticed any difference at all. But all three of my 3rd gen trucks were quieter sometimes and noisier sometimes. My perception is the harder I run them, the better they run and quieter they are.

 

[gitchesum]

I mentioned this in an earlier thread.



October 15th is the final cutoff date for all retail stations to be transitioned to ULSD. They have, however, been recieving ULSD since July 1st at the latest. That was the date all refiners were required to stop shipping LSD. They were required to stop producing LSD by June first with a month to ship out any remaining LSD.



To sum it up, the guy at the station is clueless as to when ULSD began arriving at his station, and unless his fuel supplier maintains his own loading rack, chances are he is as well.





Only the refinery and fuel loading rack the pipeline delivers to would have known when ULSD started flowing as they usually receive a Tank Certificate of Analysis when the product is shipped.



The only exception to the rule is a very few manufacturers that were granted a variance to allow them to continue producing LSD for a longer period time. THe station that still offer LSD after October 15th will be required to display a label stating that the fuel is 500ppm or less and not to be used in 2007 or newer vehicles. The stations that are ULSD will remove the decal that most of us are seeing now.

 

[Bernie]

I Take It All Back: Bad Fuel!!!

-It wasn't the ULSD, it just was bad diesel. I started to suspect that about 1/2 throug the tank when the truck seemed down on power.



-Once I got through that tank, the next tank of ULSD came from a major brand station that is busy, not a backwoods station.



-The power that seemed lost is back and the truck is ... Quieter. Less rattle from ULSD.



-I'm starting to think it isn't as evil as I first thought. Now that I've read a little more about it I'm not worried.



-However, I also plan on adding Stanadyne from now on. Call it hedging my bets.

 

[FPettijohn]

Gitchesum

Is this the reason I have lost 2 injectors in my 4. 5 600? 1 at 35000 and 1 at 40000.

 

[Paladin1911]

Glad it's not just me noticing the louder rattle. Thought maybe it was just in my head... Even with my PS/MMO blend, I'm hearing it. At times my truck sounds more like a 2nd Gen 24v.

 

[gitchesum]

Gitchesum

Is this the reason I have lost 2 injectors in my 4. 5 600? 1 at 35000 and 1 at 40000.

Can't see that being a reason. I know a few guys were having injector problems before the fuel came out.