2004 F-350 Cranks partialy and leaks fuel

[snowmobile74]

Ford F-350 6.0L powerstroke, 222,000 miles (7000 on a rebuild reportedly)

Hey all I recently bought a vehicle on Ebay and I made a fatal mistake not having it inspected even though it was sold by a dealer. I'm currently in Afghanistan and searching for anything I can find that might be wrong.

Alright so I screwed up, the dealer had trouble getting it running but did get it going and got it on the truck (from texas to iowa) to be delivered. On the way it started leaking diesel fuel. It continued leaking when it was dropped off at a friends place that was going to look at it for us.

Anyway we had a mechanic friend take a look at it (who is not a diesel tech but very experienced otherwise). He could not find the source of the leak but said it was not the fuel line, (somewhere higher on the engine). And attempted to start the engine, this is where things get fishy. The engine cranks partially but stops at a certain point. He backed it off several times and attempted to start it, with the same result (I think) it stops in the same place every time. My dad also was trying to get some info from the VIN through the dealer and found it has reports of "problems" what he couldn't eek out of them.

My dad is going to hook fresh batteries up to it and the engine block heater to try and get it to at least run. Can anyone out there give any good suggestions?

PS: The claim is this vehicle was re-build about 7000 miles ago and has a fresh injector from what I hear.

[dannyboy950]

Now is it locking up before it makes a complete revoloution or does it make a few revoloutions and the lock up.
If it stops before a complete revoloution the odds are good you have an improperly installed rod bearing or cap that is jamming against the block when it comes up. This could also be a valve bent and unable to close, hitting the top of the piston when it reaches the top of it's stroke. That or a forgein object laying on top the piston.
There is also the possibility of a rust/damaged spot on a cylinder wall and a ring hanging on it.
The other case it is probably fluid lock. The cylinder filling with fuel/water or some such

[DieselDano]

I am going to disagree and say that I am going to bet, that if you say you are getting fuel coming from somewhere, possibly out from the exhaust manifolds? I would think that an injector was left loose, burned the copper combustion o-ring and burned the lower fuel o-ring off of the injector. Filling the cylinder with fuel. I would get a set of 8 injector o-rings from the dealer and pull all 8 out and look at them. My money is on a loose injector.

[m-chan68]

PM me the VIN.

[stanlh]

Hello, I am snowmobile 74's dad. I joined the forum to help provide some of the information needed. With good batteries in the engine the starter would crank the engine to a certain point the engine would lock up. The mechanic used a wrench to rotate the engine back then tried starting it again with the same result, the engine would lock up at the same point. He tried it four times. He is not a diesel tech, but is a smart mechanic, his guess is that it could be hydraulicaly locked.
He could not find the diesel leak, but said it is coming from high up on the engine.
I checked the VIN number with a ford dealer who said there was a record in May of this year for a warranty repair of a fuel injector pump on this truck. There was more in the record, but said he could not tell me what was in it for confidentiality reasons. Does anyone know how to get that information?

[snowmobile74]

Originally Posted by DieselDano

I am going to disagree and say that I am going to bet, that if you say you are getting fuel coming from somewhere, possibly out from the exhaust manifolds? I would think that an injector was left loose, burned the copper combustion o-ring and burned the lower fuel o-ring off of the injector. Filling the cylinder with fuel. I would get a set of 8 injector o-rings from the dealer and pull all 8 out and look at them. My money is on a loose injector.

I'm starting to agree with this diagnosis, with the leaking diesel and it seizing. But still able to start at the previous location. I'm just wondering two things, if we change the oil there will should be fuel in the oil right? and how much fuel is actually going to leak out through that, the entire contents of the fuel tank? or just whats in the water separator bowl?

[DieselDano]

Your probably going to get a little bit of fuel in the oil due to the liquid in the cylinder slowly creeping by the rings. BTW I have seen this happen before.

[snowmobile74]

Originally Posted by DieselDano

Your probably going to get a little bit of fuel in the oil due to the liquid in the cylinder slowly creeping by the rings. BTW I have seen this happen before.

I think my dad had gotten information from a dealer about one of the injectors being replaced a few thousand miles ago. I can only guess the millage was reported incorrectly, because that would mean it went a few thousand miles on an iccorectly installed injector, only to come lose during a ride on a trailer??

[cajun1963]

I have never installed injectors so I have no clue. Can an injector work it's self loose? My truck rattles at highway speeds. It sounds like a gas burner running on cheap gas (valve rattle) and I smell fresh diesel. I haven't found a leak.

[snowmobile74]

Well, we got disel mechanics to take a look at this thanks to the guys at Lafrenz Ford dealership of Mason City, IA.

here... is what they found.

The service technician tried to start this truck, but could not get it started. When attempting to start the vehicle the engine locked up and would not turn past a certain point. The technician rotated the engine backwards and tried again; and again the engine locked up. The technician believes it is a mechanical issue that is blocking the engine from rotating. He said if it were a fuel leak into the engine from an injector the fuel would eventually leak past the piston rings and the engine would rotate past the locking point. That is not happening in this case.
A visual inspection of the engine by the technician revealed items missing, damaged, reassembled incorrectly, and wires, cables and tubing routed incorrectly.
The total cost of these items including a labor estimate to install is $2133.44. This does not include the labor and parts costs of repairing the mechanical problem that is preventing the engine from turning over and starting. Without a running engine making it a drivable vehicle, it is not possible to determine what transmission problems may exist if any.
The dealership said that it appears someone "worked on this engine then just threw it back together and closed the hood".
There are parts wiring and connections that are not routed properly. It appears there was a wiring fire or the wiring got very hot. The wiring harness is designed to route under the windshield cowling and this cowling is warped and melted indicating intense heat. The wiring harness is not in its correct position under the cowling; rather it is hanging behind the engine. The wiring harness is burnt, melted, and has black electricians tape applied in several places. The lower heater hose is broken in four places, if the engine were able to run radiator coolant would be running out onto the ground. The engine coolant reservoir is empty. There are numerous bolts missing from the valve cover.
Based upon the initial visual inspection the list of parts needed to make this engine run correctly is:
Item $cost
Wiring harness - 526.82
Injector wiring harness - 150.00 est.
Glow plug harness - 120.00
M.A.P. sensor bracket and hose - 100.00
CAC tube clamps - 25.00
Air cleaner housing - 416.62
Heater hose - 78.00
Glow plug controller bracket - 20.00
FICM bracket - 74.00
Valve cover bolts (16 needed) - 32.00
Fan shroud - 114.00
Fan stator - 252.00
Labor to install parts - 225.00
Total = $2133.44

So all that, before it even runs wow, thank god for ebay buyer protection.

I'll post the dealer later for anyone who's wondering.