No engine Shutdown

[Jammar9082]

I could not shut down the engine yesterday on my 1996 2500 with 33000 miles. After a 20 minute drive I turned the key off and the engine would not stop. I switched the key off and on about six times and it did stop. At the next stop I turned the key off and on and the engine did not stop. When I got home the key was turned off and on about five times and the engine shut down.



I did a search this morning and found lots of info on no start and hard stating where the Fuel Shut Down Solenoid and/or Relay was not operating properly. These type of situations do not fit my problem of stopping the engine.



I have checked the Fuel Shut Down Solenoid and it is in the stopped position. I can lift the plunger up and it will drop back down to the closed position and the spring has plenty of tension. The engine starts normally.



I have checked the Fuel Shut Down Relay and it will close and open properly and the contacts to the Fuel Shut Down Solenoid have continuity which correlates with the normal starting of the engine.



I have had no starter problems or run-aways and the power feeds off of the battery look good.



It seems that the key switch is the next place to consider. Are there other ideas and hints from the membership? Thanks.

 

[pwknapp]

Mine would'nt stop running a while back and it was the fuel solenoid. Just would not cycle off when I turned the key off.

 

[Jammar9082]

pwknapp: What did you do to correct the situation? Or, did it go away on it's own?



I will put the relay back in tomorrow and try it and if it doesn't shut down I will look at the fuel solenoid and see if it is still in the up position. I'll also disconnect the relay and see if that stops it. If it does then I think the solenoid is OK.

 

[pwknapp]

I ended up having to replace the fuel solenoid. Bought it from a Cummins shop about 220 less than the stealer. Truck would run and when I turned the key off I would just have to pop the hood and pull it down. I swear I won't buy a third one and will just install a cable instead.

 

[Jammar9082]

pwk: Your experience correlates with what I found today. After looking at everything again and verifying the relay was ok and connectors were ok I found that the intermittent failure to stop the engine was the Fuel Shutdown Solenoid. It was sticking in the on or up position. I did the same thing that you did and pulled the solenoid plunger down and the engine stopped. I hope this is the true problem and the key switch is OK even though the switch feels mushy or warn. (at 33000 miles?. I wonder how many switches have been replaced at that mileage?)

I may install the mechanical fix with a choke type of stiff wire in a case like my tractor uses for its shutdown. That should be a "KISS" foolproof fix!



Thanks for you info.

 

[illflem]

If it's truely the solenoid acting up you should be able to unplug the electrical connector and the engine will continue running. If that's the case removing the solenoid and giving it a through cleaning will probably clear your problem right up. It's probably binding on gunk and rust. Hate to see folks needlessly replace solenoids, they rarely fail and should last the life of the engine.

 

[Jim Fulmer]

Piers has a fuel Solenoid repair kit for $278. 00!

 

[Jammar9082]

Problem Solved!!!!!

The solenoid plunger attach point to the Shutdown Lever(bell crank) was rusted tight. There was enough flex in the solenoid plunger shaft to permit shutdown sometimes. This is the lever shaft that requires a clip pin to secure the solenoid plunger to the Shutdown Lever. Moral to the story... ..... lube the pivot points to keep them free.



I took the solenoid boot off to check for corrosion and everything was still clean however the boot is deterioating.



Thanks to all for your comments.

 

[pwknapp]

Someone on here a couple months ago had some boots in an inexpensive kit. That's if the old memory isn't playing tricks.