04 is down! Cracked fuel filter cap?

[ramrugby09]

Ok well let me start at the beginning. I left for Afghanistan at the beginning of the year and my 04 F250 was left here with my wife. She barely drove it while I was gone. I get home and the truck seems to run fine so I load up my trailer with my 4Runner on it and the truck starts blowing grey smoke. I finally figure out that it was the #8 injector and replace that which fixes the problem. Now about a month later the truck has been idling a little rough at first start in the mornings but goes away after a minute or two of running. I figured it was just the weather getting cold. Well last night we are driving home at 130 am from a new years eve party and i had let my tank get really low. It said I had 10 miles before empty, well the truck starts sputtering so I figure I'm running out of fuel, I pull into a gas station and fill up. the truck barely starts and wont hardly move so I pull it into a spot and hope it clears up but it only gets worse and dies. I check the codes on my edge insight and and it says #8 contribution code I clear it and try starting it again, it runs for a minute dies again check the codes again and it says #2 contribution code. I turn it off and leave it there. This morning I head over and try it again it starts right up like normal with no codes so i drive it the 2 1/2 miles home right as i pull in it starts sputtering again and dies gives #8 code again. So of course I'm pissed off and start checking the wiring harness to the injectors while its barely running. as it dies I hear a hissing sound coming from near the fuel filter cap. I can see bubbling coming from the square hole on top. Its a tiny crack in the fuel filter cap. Can this tiny crack be causing all my problems? Has this killed my injectors? What do ya'll think?

[southend]

It's possible, you could also check for combustion gases in the filter housing, if the new cap doesn't clear it up.

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[ramrugby09]

What does it mean if I have combustion gases in the filter housing?

[southend]

Originally Posted by ramrugby09

What does it mean if I have combustion gases in the filter housing?

It typically means an injector is loose, copper sealing washer is bad, or the nozzle is bad.

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[ramrugby09]

Ok that makes sense to me. Thanks, I'll let ya'll know what happens once I get this filter cap on.

[southend]

Originally Posted by ramrugby09

Ok that makes sense to me. Thanks, I'll let ya'll know what happens once I get this filter cap on.

You can check for combustion gases in the fuel rail, pull the secondary filter, hfcm fuse, and ficm relay. Have someone crank the truck over, and see if you get gas or bubbles in the housing. Keep us updated.

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[twoicebergs]

Your report is a bit different, but there have been a few posts of cracks in the fuel housing causing problems like yours. My initial thoughts when I heard the first reports that fuel would be escaping, not sucking air. Whether your problem is coincidental with your low fuel situation is unknown, but it is possible that you ran a few injectors dry and may have had combustion gas going through your system.

Caps are inexpensive. Southend's test would be a good idea to see if you damaged any injectors. The early trucks had no built in protection to try and protect the injectors when running out of fuel.

[ramrugby09]

Ok i did the test you suggested and while the engine was cranking there were no gas bubbles. With the key turned on but with out cranking the motor bubbles did come from the port where the larger fuel line comes in but stopped during cranking....?

The new cap should be here tomorrow so once I put that on I will see if anything changes.

[southend]

Make sure your frame mounted filter cap is snug, maybe a good idea to pull it and make sure the oring is seated correctly. If not, it can pull air through the lower filter.

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[ramrugby09]

I'll check that tomorrow as well.