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1996 F250 Crank no start

2K views 18 replies 5 participants last post by  Ozhold 
#1 ·
I purchased a 1996 Powerstroke XLT 4x4 extended cab for $1900.00 from a guy who was trying to get it running for his son and failed. He put a bunch of new parts in it, but to no avail. It has new ICP, IPR, CPS, batteries and lift pump. Fuel is going to fuel bowl, but not getting to injectors. I ran the ForScan tool on it. It has no codes, passed the buzz test on the injectors, and ICP is showing 11700 kPa on cranking. This makes me believe the HPOP is at least putting out enough to get it started. I did the unplug the ICP trick to see if it would start, but no joy there either. I also tried to run injector pulse width test on both banks during cranking, but got a flat line. I know CPS is good because the tach moves during cranking. I assume IDM is good since I passed the buzz test, and PCM must be good because I can communicate with it using ForScan. I gave it a short shot of ether (I know, I know!) and it immediately fired, but then died as still getting no fuel.

The truck has around 270k miles on it, so I know it will need some loving, but I first want to get it started and hear it run and drive it to identify exactly what it needs. I have never had a Powerstroke before since my daily is a 1993 IDI. I freely admit I don't know a lot, nor do I really know how to interpret ForScan very well. I would greatly appreciate any direction or advice anyone can offer.
 
#2 ·
Have you checked the fuel pressure on the schrader valve on the drivers side of the filter housing?

You can use a pencil type air pressure gauge to do it. Just wrap a rag around it so you don't take a diesel bath. It should be 20psi+ while cranking the engine over.
 
#4 ·
Tonight I did a little more trouble shooting. I checked oil level and it is good, maybe a little overfull, but not bad. I can't get the hex bolt out of the HPOP reservoir, as the previous owner stripped the hex, so I will have to figure out a way to get that out and replace it and check oil reservoir level. I checked the pins on the IDM and I am getting consistent 6.8 ohms on every injector. The service bulletin I followed said should be nominal resistance of 2.9 ohms, so I am not sure if that is a problem. I also checked left and right bank power to ground circuit and power to injector ground shield and both were open, so no short there.

I tried to check the GPR, but it is hot as blazes here so WTS light goes off before I can get out of the cab to put my leads on the GPR. I don't hear a "click" at all though. I bypassed the GPR by jumpering across the lugs to cycle my glow plugs though to see if that would help, but no joy there.

I am getting no smoke at all while cranking, as far as I can tell from the passenger side mirror anyway. After cranking I do notice a slight diesel exhaust smell, but not as prominent as on my IDI to be sure.

Any other ideas on things I can trouble shoot? I appreciate your help!
 
#5 ·
For the HPOP plug go down to your local Harbor Freight and pick up a left twist drill bit set. Then get your reversible drill and chuck up a large bit and once that bit bites into the soft plug it should back that plug right out.

As for the glow plug relay it will or should stay on for up to 2 minutes after you turn the key on. The WTS light is just a idiot light that has nothing to do with the glow plugs or relay. It is just there to make you wait a bit before starting to give the plugs time to warm up.

Back to the HPOP you can crack one of the plugs on the head that plug the high pressure oil galleries and see if any oil seeps out of it when you are cranking.

The resistance on the injector coils is a little high but it shouldn't keep them from firing and you said that you did the buzz test so they should be alright.

By the way, on those left hand twist drill bits. I have found them quite handy in removing all kinds of stuck screws, bolts, and plugs in the years that I have had them.
 
#6 ·
Thanks for the tips! After work I will stop in and get the reverse bits. I ordered a new HPOP plug also, and while I am waiting for that to arrive, I will check the GPR and the pins on the VC plug. I will keep you posted on my progress. Thanks again!
 
#7 ·
On using the drill bits, start with one just larger than the hole. It will grab the metal easier than a small one will.
 
#10 ·
Sorry I haven't replied for a while. I have been busy with work and haven't had much of a chance to work on it. I did check the voltage on my GPR and it is good. It doesn't make an audible click like the GPR on my IDI, but the voltmeter shows it is getting power, and I can see my dash gauge voltmeter drop for a minute or two every time I turn the key to the on position. I also checked resistance on my glow plugs through the pins in the VC connector and they are all within spec (according to the instructions bugman posted on another thread). I finally got the HPOP reservoir plug out and checked the oil level and it is up to the bottom of the hole.
I haven't yet had time to crack the oil plugs on the head yet, but that is next on my list of things to check.

rayroof10, thanks for the advice! The lift pump and IPR are brand new. I think the HPOP is original, but I want to double check whether it is actually failing before I just throw money at the problem by replacing parts. The truck needs some other things done too, so I want to make sure I stay in my budget and not throw down $700-$800 unnecessarily.
 
#13 ·
Which scanner are you using. 3300 sounds very healthy for cranking, i wonder if it is correct.
I am using FORScan Lite and while cranking it only shows 150, but I am guessing that can’t be right, because other times the truck starts in less than two seconds. I think if it were that bad, the truck would never start.
What app are you using with your scanner.
 
#15 ·
Make sure the batteries have a full charge and even try jumping with another truck. I have had a bad starter drawing too much current and the injectors would not fire. This tends to be a 99 and up 7.3 problem but you may also have it.
DENNY
 
#16 ·
Thanks Denny! The truck has brand new batteries, and I put a charger on them every time I try to crank the engine, so I think they are good. I am going to take your advice and hook my other truck up and try it this evening though and let you know the results. I have two new batteries in my other truck too, so that should do the trick if there is too much current draw. Thanks again for the input!
 
#17 ·
What has happened since your last post?
From other post in this forum, I do think that 3300 psi while cranking is definitely too high. I don’t think the HPOP does that even at full power. Is it possible that you are reading kpa, which converting would be about 478 psi, which is more feasible.
I would surely appreciate an update if you got it running as I have a very similar problem.
Thanks.
 
#18 ·
Hi Dallas,

I haven't gotten her running. I have been running out of time to mess with her as I was working on my old IDI in my limited spare time to get her all maintained since I need her for hunting in less than a month.

As far as the conversion between pascals and psi, I am not sure if that is the case or not. It was reading it from my torque pro app, and it said psi. This leads me to think it was indeed psi, but who knows? I may go and fiddle with it this weekend, but I have about 4 cars that are demanding my attention right now and it isn't a priority in my fleet of projects. I intend to tear into it with a vengeance this fall and definitely get her blowing smoke. I will keep everyone posted, to be sure.
 
#19 ·
So an update on my truck issues...I ran ForScan again while trying to start the truck and it finally started popping codes. It popped P0606, which is ECM/PCM is bad. I pulled the PCM out, which is actually pretty easy. You do have to drop the inner liner on the driver's fender, but then it is just two nuts holding the PCM in. I sent it off on Friday to get repaired and this morning I got a message saying it has already been repaired.

This is the message I received:
your computer is now fully functional.
the IPR/ICP circuit was way out of spec, which would keep engine engine from starting.
also the power supply had distortion so we replaced it and also changed the capacitors and voltage regulators while we were in there.


Hopefully it gets back to me by the weekend and I can install it and start blowing some smoke!
 
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