7.3 cold start problem

[gbmayes]

I have a 2000 F250 7.3. About a month ago, the truck seemed slow to start and seemed to stumble slightly under power. Then it died under power when taking an Interstate exit. It restarted on the third to fourth try. Took it to a mechanic who found no error codes, and replaced the cam position sensor. He took it for a drive and it died again. He suggested it might be due to a near empty gas tank, though the low fuel indicator level had not been reached. I filled it up and it has run well under power since. Problem is, it continues to be hard to start cold, though the outside temperature hovers around 90 degrees. Took it to have the batteries checked and found one bad battery. Replaced the battery and it still is hard to start first thing in the morning. Turns over fast at first, then slow, then get nothing when the ignition is turned. Wait a moment and it starts up. I don’t know where to go next. Bad starter? Bad fuel delivery. I assume glow plugs are not the issue due high outside temperature. Any help will be appreciated.
GB Mayes

[SCUFFY828]

you said something about , turns fast then slow, that could be starter beginning to go, but you also said something about when it does that when you cycle the key it doesnt do anything , can you ellaborate more on that

[gbmayes]

Thank you Scuffy:
What I was trying to describe, poorly, about the starting, is that it behaves pretty much like you would expect from a weak battery. It turns over at first, but doesn't fire up immediately. When I crank it again, it turns slow, like the battery just doesn't have much juice. Then finally, when I turn the ignition I get that dead battery "click" or nothing at all. And yet the batteries are hot, and the the cables are on tight. If I wait a moment, and turn the ignition on again, it will likely fire right up. On a gas car I would guess the starter would be the problem but I've seen so much about glow plugs, glow plug relays, gas pumps, and cam position sensors I wonder if something else might more likely be the cause.

[Sabre2th]

It's a good idea to replace your batteries in pairs, the bad one may have taken the other with it.. Those symptoms can also indicate a bad connection. A poor connection tends to heat up and when metals get hot, conductivity decreases somewhat and the expansion may even break the connection. Clean ALL ends of your heavy cables, even the grounds.

[SCUFFY828]

Originally Posted by gbmayes

Thank you Scuffy:
What I was trying to describe, poorly, about the starting, is that it behaves pretty much like you would expect from a weak battery. It turns over at first, but doesn't fire up immediately. When I crank it again, it turns slow, like the battery just doesn't have much juice. Then finally, when I turn the ignition I get that dead battery "click" or nothing at all. And yet the batteries are hot, and the the cables are on tight. If I wait a moment, and turn the ignition on again, it will likely fire right up. On a gas car I would guess the starter would be the problem but I've seen so much about glow plugs, glow plug relays, gas pumps, and cam position sensors I wonder if something else might more likely be the cause.

i just had a truck in the shop with the exact same concern , acted like dead batteries, walked away from it came back ,and it would crank fine , i started by testing the batteries mine were good, checked grounds at engine and all cable ends at batteries , clean if needed , check all connections at glow plug relay , starter solenoid , and main wires going into both fuse boxes , my problem ended up being the fuse box in the dash going out , some of the early 99 and 00 truck had a fuse box that would seperate internally and cause similiar symptom , not sayingn that is your problem , thats why i say check all connections good before buying anything

[gbmayes]

Thank you again Sabre2th and Scruffy828. I followed up on Scruffy's suggestion about the starter. It tested as having a bad solenoid. I replaced it and so far it seems to have taken care of the problem. Without question the "new" unit is cranking the engine much faster.

[fordf250honduras]

i have the same problem after my mechanic change the heads now i have problems hard to start i hear noise in the injectors some body can take a pictures of glow relays?
thanks

[fordf250honduras]

i change the glow realys still have the problem hard to start when start the engine sometimes white smoke ? what i need to check

[orbyone]

Hi,
I have a 95 7.3 PSD that misfires when it's cold. After it warms up, it's smooth as you could ask for. I've read that bad injector O-rings and/or bad poppet valves will cause that.
I didn't work on diesels much but spent about 25 years as a mechanic, can you or someone tell me how to test this engine for injector O-ring problems or bad poppet valves or should I take it to a diesel shop and have it checked out? I replaced all the glow plugs, checked the relay, replaced the high pressure oil pump (leaked like a sieve), and replaced the fuel filter and gaskets, O-rings, etc.

Thanks for the help.

[mifyrstorm]

Originally Posted by gbmayes

I have a 2000 F250 7.3. About a month ago, the truck seemed slow to start and seemed to stumble slightly under power. Then it died under power when taking an Interstate exit. It restarted on the third to fourth try. Took it to a mechanic who found no error codes, and replaced the cam position sensor. He took it for a drive and it died again. He suggested it might be due to a near empty gas tank, though the low fuel indicator level had not been reached. I filled it up and it has run well under power since. Problem is, it continues to be hard to start cold, though the outside temperature hovers around 90 degrees. Took it to have the batteries checked and found one bad battery. Replaced the battery and it still is hard to start first thing in the morning. Turns over fast at first, then slow, then get nothing when the ignition is turned. Wait a moment and it starts up. I don’t know where to go next. Bad starter? Bad fuel delivery. I assume glow plugs are not the issue due high outside temperature. Any help will be appreciated.
GB Mayes

I have a 94 F350 7.3 Diesel and we are having a problem with hard starting in the morning no matter what the temp outside. (Starts ok all day after first hard start in am).We pulled the rear tank today and then the sending unit. what we founf was the unit was ok and so was the float but the screen and what lookds to be the check valve so there is no back flow was gone and in the bottom of the tank. It crumbled in our hands as we tried to get it out of the bottom of the tank. Now the hard part is trying to find the parts we need. Some say that you can put a tube with a V cut in the end with some type of submesible check valve or inline filter but I guess we will see.