Diesel engine question.

[JeffinNZ]

Right, problem solved. There is a series of vacuum tubes that lead from the inlet manifold to somewhere else.... Now I can't pretend to know the exact role of said vacuum tubes BUT what I do know is they weren't doing much vacuuming as the tube terminations were perished. I trimmed back the ones I could and replaced those I couldn't and BINGO, warm starting instantaneous.

[Mal Paso]

Right, problem solved. There is a series of vacuum tubes that lead from the inlet manifold to somewhere else.... Now I can't pretend to know the exact role of said vacuum tubes BUT what I do know is they weren't doing much vacuuming as the tube terminations were perished. I trimmed back the ones I could and replaced those I couldn't and BINGO, warm starting instantaneous.

Vacuum tubes on a Diesel? Sounds like a Communist Plot.

I had a 6.9 International (Ford). Injector Pumps don't last and I always carried a spare. $500 with exchange if I remember. Got so I could change one on the side of a freeway in 20 minutes. Replaced it with a Dodge / Cummins and the problems went away.

[chsparkman]

Another vote for checking the battery and connections. A diesel takes a lot of power to turn over. When the engine is warm, and the glow plugs do not turn on automatically, the engine has to crank with authority in order for the compression to generate enough heat for combustion.

On an old suburban I had this very problem. I even went as far as connecting a Ford starter solenoid to an interior switch so that I could manually turn on the glow plugs when they wouldn't turn on automatically. This fixed my warm starting problems but later on I replaced one of the batteries and never had the problem again.

[a.squibload]

Good you got it Jeff, but I woulda bet a pint it was Coreolis effect...

[buckwheatpaul]

Check your glow plugs....depending on age ... they burn out and this will cause starting problems....easy to change ...cant remember how to test....google it....

[SourMashII]

If similar to the Ford/IH IDI, they are ground based, ohm their resistance.

GLow Plug theory is simple, (haven't played with diesel since I sold my IDI two years ago, bear with me), Basically they are a dead short to ground, and the "heat" is caused by running + to the hard - of the plug, thereby causing them to warm.

+ howevermany on the leaks, on the last IDI, I ran all new line tank to engine, and plummed an electric boost pump.

God bless the Schraeder valve....if it sat for aany period of time, it would bleed off... turn the key, depress the Schraeder til I got a stream of fuel, and voila! she'd fire faster than most gassers.