my 7.3 doesnt start????

[6.5dragracer]

i have a 91 1 ton f-350 crew cab i just bought it i had to pull it to my house.
dont really know that much about these motors so a little help would be much apreciated.
the guy that owned the truck before me started replacing a bunch of stuff and he still has got nowhere.i have checked a few things for what i know but not sure what it is doing wrong.
what can i do to see if it is getting fuel to the pump and how can i check the glow plugs to see if they r working and stuff like that?

thanks:mad2:

 

[randomid25]

Alot of the same tricks that work on 6.2 trucks will work on idi 7.3s. Put a clear plastic line on the return line and you should be able to see if fuel is flowing through the pump. If you see air coming out of the return, you have a leak in the fuel line and it is drawing air into the IP. You should pull the glow plugs out and inspect them also. They are on the intake side of the head so it should be fairly straightforward. Make sure they are all uniform in size (not swelled up) and you can test them with a spare battery, a vise and a set of alligator clip leads. Make sure that the glow plug circuit is cycling (the wait to start or glow plug light comes on when cold). If it doesn't, it might have a bad glow plug controller. Mine wouldn't start on a 60 degree day when it was cold and no glow plugs. I have a manual glow switch now and the truck has started on the first crank all the way down to 5 degrees farenheit. Do NOT use ether on these engines. Whenever I buy a truck with unknown history, i change out the fuel filters as well. If the truck has been sitting for a long period, it may have algae growing in the fuel tank and that will gunk up a fuel filter pretty fast.

 

[Clark20ry]

There is a trick with the 7.3's Check you engine oil level? I know it sounds crazy but the injection pump works with the engine oil. If you low on oil it will not produce enough fuel pressure to run. I know this because is happened to my neighbor on his 7.3 check that first its the easiest...

 

[randomid25]

Clark, I believe you're talking about a 7.3 Powerstroke, not the IDI motors.

 

[Golddigger]

I would make sure you are getting fuel. it is common for those injector pumps to go bad. Just crack open a line on either the pump or injector.

 

[tinypeckerwood]

The glow plug controllers are pretty common on those engines. I would check for fuel then check the glow plug system. Those non turbo 7.3's go forever, if you can start them. I had a fleet of the IDI's, most were well beyond 500,000 miles.

 

[Clark20ry]

Clark, I believe you're talking about a 7.3 Powerstroke, not the IDI motors.

You are correct I jumped the gun...

 

[THECACKLER]

Ohm out the glow plugs. Disconnect the connectors one by one and check the glow plug. They should be less than one ohm resistance to ground. If you drove it to where it is now it will run with the pump that's on it. The next thing to check is for air in the fuel system. Very typical problem, especially with the ULSD. Somehow it whacks the return cap o-rings.