I need Expert Help..

[Lil' Dog]

I have a potentially serious problem (I think).



This morning at work I shut the key off on my rig and the truck keeps running at about 250 Rpm. Key back on and it runs great, but turn the key off and it keeps running at 250. From what I remember this means a new pump... . Tell me the truth guys, I need to know...



I remember reading some posts a while ago about my condition, I am going to search to see what has been said in the past.



PW, Piers, et al I need your expert opinions.



Thanks



J-eh

 

[JHansen]

That's poor....

I feel your pain man . Hopefully for your sake it's something simple. I don't know much at all about those early VE pumps so I can't offer you anything but positive thoughts.....



Lemme know if I can do anything for you-there's a wrecker out near Trochu that's starting to get hard into the Cummins stuff.



J

 

[Cummins Cowboy]

mine was doing something similar to that off and on. When i would cut the key it would drop to about 500rpms and then it would shut down about 4-5 seconds later. At the time i had only been driving the truck to and from work about 15 mins each way and the truck never had time to really get warmed up. Since i went on a long drive about a month ago and i haven't had any probs since. Some had said here my pump was about to go, But it is still going so far. although i have noticed about a 1. 5 mpg drop in fuel used(maybe it is because of the climitized fuel) and it smokes quite a bit more when cold maybe my KSB selonoid is bad who knows.

 

[hdm48]

The first thing I would do is pull the shut off solinoid and make sure there is no metal particals hloding it part way open. If there is no metal then check the rubber plunger for nicks that would allow some fuel to get buy. I have never had this happen to me but it just sounds like a fuel stop problem.



good luck --dave--

 

[4020Deere]

I had the same thing happen to my old truck. I think it might have been a piece of dirt or something in the shutoff solenoid. It happened shortly after I bought the truck, and the fuel filter hadn;t been changed in awhile. I put a new fuel filter on it, and the problem disappeared a few days later, and never returned for the remaining 2 years I had the truck. I seriously doubt it's the pump going bad.

 

[Lil' Dog]

Thanks for the help but......

Now this is getting weird...



Ok went to leave work and fired it up... Let it run for about 2 minutes to warm a little and shut it down, no run on... it just shut off normally



Ok, maybe like you guys say, dirt in the plunger. . Well I get home and let it cool down, not long as it's -15°F, and turn off the key. Same darn thing, it drops to very low RPM and keeps kickin. . Then I rattle the key switch and it shuts down... . HUH??? I re-started and shut down and it ran on, rattled the keys and it shut down..... WTF??



Can the ignition switch be at fault here???? Seems like a long shot but maybe I need the electrical GURU (Etobicoke) again for this one. I am going to put a meter on the power lead to the pump tomorrow after I get to work and see what I get. .



Man I hate this kind of thing... I don't want to be left out in the cold, literally.



J-eh

 

[JHansen]

When it comes to 1st gen. electrical anything is a possibility . I've never had a 1st gen diesel... . but lots of gassers between me and Dad ranging from a '72 to an '86. From the way you're describing it sure sounds like the ignition switch is taking a dump to me. The newer trucks are still a Saginaw-style steering column with the switch mounted on top of the column aren't they? Assuming you have tilt.....



Now here's another thought-my '86 gasser wouldn't start with the wheel tilted all the way up. Assumed the starter had bailed-never thinking about the wheel position. Put one on... . worked OK until one day it wouldn't start again. Got mad-twisted hard on the key-voila! Rod was binding in the column and not travelling all the way unless you really torqued on it. Maybe something like that happening to you?



Trying to hit you with as many random thoughts as I can in the event that one of them happens to be the answer!



J

 

[AMikonis]

I've been battling this off and on since I bought my D250 this summer. I replaced the solenoid the day I bought it and it kept on doing it. The electrical angle is easy to check: put a test lite to the solenoid and turn the key off/on, you'll see if the power to it is going off and on. Also, you can pull the blue wire off the solenoid while it's running or running on and see if it shuts down. If it's shutting down after a few seconds, it's probably not the ign switch. Mine would stay running for a long time, I could pop the hood, put the lite on the solenoid, and see there was no power to it.



I've been getting metal flakes in my solenoid. Truck runs great, good cold starts, great mpg. Been reading a lot of posts on pumps. The consensus seems to be that some smaller parts and springs can go out in the pump to cause the debris, and suggest this is a warning sign. BTW, local Cummins shop diagnosed this as a bad solenoid and kept giving me new ones.



Since the solenoid is an electromagnet, it attracts all the debris right to the plunger. I cleaned the hole out really well with a magnet and then pumped some fuel through with the lift pump last time I had the solenoid out and it didn't run on for a few months... a temporary fix for the immediate problem (?)

 

[Lil' Dog]

Well it seems that the electrical thing is a wild goose chase. No problems with some wayward power source etc.



But I went to move my rig into the shop this afternoon for a look see and it shut down normally. I think the plunger must be hanging up and just needs to be cleaned out.



Now I removed some of the throttle linkage, but how in the heck do you get a wrench on that thing???? The injector lines are in the way for a good reef and there is some bracket there with allen head cap screws, for what I don't know. The fuel load screw is in the way for any box end over it. This is going to take some time to get at... I hope I can do it myself.



J-eh

 

[AMikonis]

I, and some of the others, had luck customizing a cheap 15/16" wrench. Heat it and bend it at the end, then grind the "inside" jaw down. That'll let you fight around that bracket. Somehow, I was able to get it out the first time, but then couldn't get it back in until I made the tool...