NEED HELP! 7.3L Diesel wont start!

[dachshund]

You are going to take the line off the suction side of the pump between the pump and the tank so there will be no pressure to worry about. 3/8" hose will work fine to put on the pump one you get the quick connect off.

If it works sucking out of a container it means the pump is GOOD and is sucking air somewhere between the pump and fuel pickup in the tank.

This is a 3/8" or 5/16" hose where the factory connector was that you will be taking off:

 

[dirttysouth]

I meant good...don't know what i was thinking..lol. If it does get fuel from the jug, what do I need to check on the tank?

 

[dachshund]

On a side note, you mentioned that the sending unit was just replaced in Sept. Makes me wonder if a connection was damaged or not put together all the way and came loose. But don't worry about this just yet as you have to drop the tank to check this stuff out.

Did the previous owner tell you why the sending unit was replaced? By the way the sending unit and mixing chamber and fuel pickup is all one unit so it had to have been all replaced.

 

[dachshund]

I meant good...don't know what i was thinking..lol. If it does get fuel from the jug, what do I need to check on the tank?

Make sure it runs fine first on the jug method.

You'll need to check for any leaks in the fuel line and check the connections for possible leaks then pull the sending unit and check for leaks there too. BUT the problem is that all this stuff is on the suction side so as you can see is really hard to pinpoint.

If you get to the point of doing a "Hutch Mod" and don't want to spring for the Racor pre pump filter setup, I've got a much cheaper setup I put on mine and works perfectly and everything can be purchased at NAPA. Just let me know and I will get all the part numbers around and take some pics for you.

 

[dirttysouth]

The previous owner had a similiar problem I am having(wouldn't start) and he had the injectors, ICP, and some other stuff replaced trying to fix it and he said it ended up being the sending unit stopped up...I found receipts from the company he ordered the injectors from and the shop that did all the labor on the truck and they were dated late September of this year, so I assume that is when the sending unit was replaced

 

[dachshund]

Well that sure is interesting and wonder what stopped up meant, but we need to isolate the pump first to see if it will run that way. Oh by the way if your pump has this type of fitting I don't thing you need the special tool. Mine had the metal fuel injection style. Must be a van thing eh? I think the clip just pulls out if I remember.

 

[NevrKnow]

Make sure it runs fine first on the jug method.

You'll need to check for any leaks in the fuel line and check the connections for possible leaks then pull the sending unit and check for leaks there too. BUT the problem is that all this stuff is on the suction side so as you can see is really hard to pinpoint.

If you get to the point of doing a "Hutch Mod" and don't want to spring for the Racor pre pump filter setup, I've got a much cheaper setup I put on mine and works perfectly and everything can be purchased at NAPA. Just let me know and I will get all the part numbers around and take some pics for you.

Your parts list alone is valuable. You already know what works. When you get time? Maybe?

 

[dachshund]

Sure will when I get some time. I actually got the idea from some other place on the web. I'll dig it up along with what I specifically used. Pretty busy right now but I'll post back.

 

[dirttysouth]

Got it going finally....It was the fuel pump...it was buzzin and sounded strong, but it wasn't pumpin

 

[dachshund]

Great news. Funny, the pump is not a common problem on our trucks. I have over 1\2 million miles on my original pump.