1938 D2 5J813 Only Hitting on 3 Cylinders --

[Muchbroker]

Guys, I got my D2 started this weekend and it ran really good except that it was only hitting on 3 cylinders most of the time. It would run pretty smooth but just didnt have full power. It also had whitish/gray smoke out the exhaust except when it would finaly hit on all four cylinders, then the smoke would clear right up and the engine would even speed up a bit.

I took this picture of the fuel injector lines thinking the P.O. must have tried to straighten out the curls on it trying to fix something.
Fuel Injector Lines.jpg

The dozer has excellent fuel pressure and almost pins the needle at an idle.

I am wondering how I would check to see what cylinder is mis-firing and what some possible fixes might be.

Thank you all again for the help and ideas you have provided.

muchbroker
Casper WY

[Mike Meyer]

I noticed that photo of the straightened injector line the other day and thought it weird, my first thought was ditch it and get a good one, because the length of the pipe influences the injector timing, and you have a variation off original spec already, but looking at my D2 5J Parts Number Book that #4 line isn't looped in circles like #1,2 and 3, it just has a "V" bend in it, so your length should still be OK. As the motor is running loosen off the lock nut on each injector one at a time, where the fuel line attaches to the injector, just undo it a turn or two, you should see diesel start leaking past the nut and that cylinder quit working till you tighten the nut up again, the 3 cylinders that are working OK will make a different engine sound immediately they loose fuel.

You might just have air in one line, or a dirty injector tip, try loosening off the fuel lines first, be careful of high pressure diesel if you start removing the injectors, you can get it into your skin pretty easy. There's lots of experts on here smarter than me.
Good luck
Mike

[7upuller]

Hey Much,

Pull the side cover off the injector pump, make sure all four pumps are working and moving up and down correctly. They stick on occasion from lack of use. They free up pretty easy with some loose juice and a little assistance. If they are working, make sure you bleed each bleeder behind the injector pump.-glen

[ol Grump]

I looked at that pic and I'm not so sure that line didn't get shortened sometime during it's life. I remember reading a post some time ago back about the length and bore of fuel lines making a difference in how an engine ran. If I remember the story correctly, the problem was that someone had swapped out one line. .and while it looked correct it had a slightly different inside diameter than the rest of 'em.

All good advice about bleeding the system. .if the miss is tracked to #4, I'd check the spray pattern on the injector first. .and it that looked good I'd try to find an original line. By all means, keep hands and fingers clear of the spray pattern. .the high pressure WILL inject fuel into or cut the heck out of anything soft like flesh!!

[Dan Pratt]

It looks like the injector line may have been put on backwards. Mine is original,but it has the curvy part near the pump, then straighter toward the injector.
Dan

[shovel man]

I'd go with the other thread, check to see that the fuel pump plungers are moving up and down fully, that bent fuel pipe is it
restricted due to the bend at the nut? remove the injector is there water seeping into the pre cup?

and could you post some more pic's of the electric starter set up on the starting engine especialy from the dash side
as I would like to fit one on my 5J D2.

shovel man.

[zootownjeepguy]

I would first check the Injector Pump Plungers (easy to do, just remove the cover plate) as mentioned before. You could also have a Valve sticking. Probably wouldn't be a bad idea to remove the valve cover and check for sticky valves. Give each valve stem a few drops of oil while you're at it too.

[Muchbroker]

I'll meet back up with my dozer this weekend and cant wait to try all of your ideas. I truly appreciate everyone's expertise and great support.

I'm a little nervous to remove the fuel block cover just because I had heard horror stories about how sensative a diesel fuel block can be. I'll do it but will go into it slow.

I may know where a "parts" dozer is and will see about buying the #4 fuel line if available. Otherwise I will bleed it and possibly swap ends with it.

I'll take some more pictures of the 12 Vdc electric start, their isnt anything to see on the dash, you just use a set of jumper cables and hook negative to the dozer frame and then touch the positive to a terminal pad on the starter motor.
I know you can mount a battery but everyone I have seen eventually ends up corroding away the fender under the battery mount.

I will definitely report back with my outcome.

Thanks again--

Muchbroker
Casper WY

[Mike Meyer]

Stick at it, and it will hopefully just be something simple, take some spare gasket paper and a 9/16" hole punch with you when you next visit the tractor in case you need to make another gasket for the injector pump cover, those injector pump units don't mix well with dirt and water! If you haven't already, I'd remove the rocker cover and just check all your valves are working correctly, you might have a stuck valve, instead of injector problems?
regards
Mike

[zootownjeepguy]

Have no fear! If you remove the cover plate from the side of your injector pump housing you won't disturb the fuel system. You'll see the lifters and plungers for each pump and the rack. Make sure the plungers are free. If one of them is sticky it can keep the rack from moving and you could loose your throttle control, and the ability to shut down the engine.

Your symptoms sound more to me like a valve that's not quite seating all the way, because a stuck plunger usually keeps the rack from moving. I would check both to be sure though. If you use penetrating oil (loose juice) be sure to follow with oil. Penetrating oil evaporates quickly and is not the best lubricant.