Lack of power/fuel starvation...

[eventems]

Evening all.

My first post on here although I have been around for a while, gleaning valuable information from the forum! My mechanic and I are having issues trying to identify a problem and having tried all the obvious things, we've hit a bit of a brick wall and I'm hoping someone may be able to help.

I have a 1995 N Maverick 2.7 TD running on diesel, not veg oil or anything else. Earlier last year it started to develop several symptoms that were rectified simply by removing the mini fuel filter. Since then its ran perfectly and had no other issues.

Approximately a fortnight ago this current issue started to appear. In 3rd, 4th and 5th gear at just under 3000rpm with the engine under load (going up a hill or accelerating etc), all of sudden the acceleration would stop as if hitting a wall, the engine would start to chug and just not produce any more power. If I lower the revs the juddering will stop but essentially it makes it difficult to accelerate normally and then maintain a speed near 60-70 mph at the most. There is no smoke coming out of the exhaust when this happens either, with no noticeable drop in oil level.

On one occasion while travelling at 40mph in 4th, I dropped the clutch and pressed the accelerator to the floor - the engine revved initially to 5000rpm before then fluctuating between 3000 and 5000 back and forth on its own accord.

So far we have changed the air, fuel and oil filters as well as drained and replaced the oil which has had no effect on the above. Tonight we removed the EGR valve which appeared to be functioning correctly (when applying suction to the inlet on the top, the valve inside would rise and then fall easily) and blanked it off to see if that would make a difference. No joy.

I am now unsure what to check next. Any help, guidance or pointers would be greatly appreciated!!

Many thanks,
Sean.

 

[makeitfit]

Corroded fuel line I reckon, so sucking in air . Common place to go is over the rear wheel drivers side as the fuel lines go over the axle between chassis and floor . :thumb2

 

[eventems]

Morning.

Thanks for that suggestion. I'll check the fuel lines this evening and see what condition they're in. Could it be possible that they are corroded enough to suck air in but not for fuel to be lost as I've not noticed any fuel leaks?

Also, we were considering using an air line to blow the fuel lines from the filter back to the tank just to see if there's any possible blockage or build up of "rubbish". Any potential issues with doing this? Also is there any hidden fuel filter in the tank itself?

Any further suggestions accepted!

Cheers,
Sean.

 

[Banshee]

Replace one of the pipes with clear tubing and if that is your fault you should be able to see bubbles in the lines

 

[eventems]

Replace one of the pipes with clear tubing and if that is your fault you should be able to see bubbles in the lines

I'll give that a go but I'll have to run the tubing out of the bonnet so its visible when driving as the problem doesn't occur when the vehicle is stationary and revved, only when its under load. I don't think my mechanic would want to sit in the engine bay as I'm doing 60mph ;-)

Cheers,
Sean.

 

[davenclaire]

try cleaning the maf sensor to bit of switch cleaner from maplins does a proper good job

 

[clivvy]

TD's dont have a MAF. I would also check the fuel filter primer while doing the fuel line, and ensure the fuel filter is good quality, and sealed correctly.

 

[eventems]

Yes there's no MAF on this model so not much we can do about that!

The fuel filter that went on was, I believe, a Boshi filter out of a kit from Milner. I think the one that came off was also a Boshi so we'd be unlucky if it was a dodgy filter initially causing the problem and then replacing it with a new dodgy filter that continued to exhibit the same issue.

Cheers, all help appreciated!

Sean.

 

[makeitfit]

Worth checking the seal of the filter to the housing

 

[eventems]

Unfortunately I'm not going to get a chance to do anymore investigations over the weekend so will have to wait until Monday.

Rather than try the clear pipe and look for air, we've decided just to get some rubber fuel pipe and replace it under the body anyway.

I know its 8mm diameter from tank to front and 6mm return, but does anyone know the rough lengths for each? Haven't got access to the vehicle and am off to buy the hose in the morning.

Cheers for all your help guys.

Sean.

 

[barrylock]

Replaced mine the other day its a short wheel base and its about 4 meters

 

[zippy656]

Not sure if any one has said but


8mm from tank

6mm return

 

[eventems]

Evening all.

Due to the weather and a couple of other factors, it was only until earlier this evening that we managed to get a chance to investigate this problem a bit further.

Starting at the rear, we accessed and removed the fuel sender unit. In the little round "tub" at the bottom of the intake pipe we found a 2" square piece of dish cloth which was interesting... It was partially stuck inside the pipe so that was removed. On examination of the fuel tank interior, all was clean with nothing sat in the bottom of the tank or floating around.

Then we examined the fuel lines under the chassis. Well, the main feed line was made up of five seperate sections of rubber hose, jointed together using 4" lengths of the original fuel pipe. It was evident there had been leakage along several sections of the pipe. All were removed and replaced, including the return which seemed to be in slightly better condition.

One thing we did notice when we moved to the engine bay, was that the primer above the fuel filter was firmly in the down position with the engine running and only released itself and rose with the engine off. Is this normal or faulty? I would have thought if the primer was being sucked down, then this could be affecting fuel flow. Maybe wrong...

Any who, after priming the filter for about 10 minutes and expelling all air, the engine was fired up and after a couple of seconds of spluttering, it roared into life. A quick test drive down the road and up a hill seemed to indicate none of the previous symptoms and all appears normal.

Once again, thanks for everyone's help and advice. Just got to sit back now, enjoy the ride and wait for something else to go wrong!!

Cheers,
Sean.

 

[clivvy]

sounds like you have solved it!!

the primer should be "up", but hard to press down.:thumbs

 

[eventems]

The fuel filter primer has been replaced with one from another vehicle and all seems well.

Just got another little ongoing problem to sort now... some kind of small animal deciding to chew bits of foam and black "stuff" from behind dash and leaving it in little piles on the carpet in the passenger footwell for me to find in the morning...

Joy :-/

 

[stinka]

Bin the carpet, carpets are gay

 

[danielj]

The fuel filter primer has been replaced with one from another vehicle and all seems well.

Just got another little ongoing problem to sort now... some kind of small animal deciding to chew bits of foam and black "stuff" from behind dash and leaving it in little piles on the carpet in the passenger footwell for me to find in the morning...

Joy :-/

Be careful it's not rats. Had some get in to the truck somehow in the severe cold some time ago. I would suggest a mouse/or rat trap with a bit of ham, chocolate spread, peanut butter left in the passenger footwell overnight. If you catch something keep putting the trap out for a few nights after as where there is one there is usually more.

 

[eventems]

Be careful it's not rats. Had some get in to the truck somehow in the severe cold some time ago. I would suggest a mouse/or rat trap with a bit of ham, chocolate spread, peanut butter left in the passenger footwell overnight. If you catch something keep putting the trap out for a few nights after as where there is one there is usually more.

Yes I was thinking along these lines actually. As far as I'm aware in the 6'ish years I've lived here, we've not had a problem with rats as no-one has seen any. We do get the odd tiny mouse running around however so I think it's probably one of those.

I've sprinkled a fine coating of flour over the carpet and top of the dash near the windscreen as this is where I've been finding tiny bits of black rubber/material. I'll have a look in the morning and see if there are any tiny footprints anywhere...

 

[cncfabs]

The fuel filter primer has been replaced with one from another vehicle and all seems well.

Just got another little ongoing problem to sort now... some kind of small animal deciding to chew bits of foam and black "stuff" from behind dash and leaving it in little piles on the carpet in the passenger footwell for me to find in the morning...

Joy :-/

That'll be mice:lol

 

[danielj]

Does sound like mice. Best of luck with removing the problem.