3B glow question - Yes, I'm a noob! (1 Viewer)

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Green Lantern

Have Truck, Will Travel
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Location
Fort Worth, Texas
I need help from the vast, unpaid research department of IH8MUD. I've done several searches and haven't found an answer.

I have a 1981 BJ42 with the stock, 3B engine. I drive it at least once a week and it usually starts right up after letting the glow system light up.

In colder weather (yes, I know 40 degrees F ain't cold to y'all), the starter whines and the motor fails to catch. I simply turn the switch off and then turn the switch on again. The motor fires right up, but the glow plug relay under the glovebox chatters like an irate chipmonk. I have to give the motor plenty of fuel for a few seconds or the beast sometimes dies. There's lots of blue white smoke that clears as soon as the motor runs a minute.

I change the oil every 3000 miles and it doesn't seem to burn much (9 quarts in and about 8.5 back out). The blow by sometimes blows a bit of exhaust, but nothing consistent.

I haven't messed with the glow plug relay because everything seems to work. Do these symptoms sound like something y'all have addressed? Or, is all of this normal in a 24 year old BJ42?

Thanks in advance. This is a great truck and I worry over every new noise. ;)

Happy Trails! N
 
Are the glow plugs all good? You MUST remove the connecting bar to test them. 0 ohms is good infinite ohms is bad.
 
Hey Nick, I read your post and thought I would chime in.

Firstly if you want to read up on the factory manual, its available online at Birfield.com.


Firstly check your plugs, I was told to remove the bar and put a test light from the battery positive to each glow plug. Might be easier to use the ohms test as mentioned by Charles.



Secondly in the colder time of the day with a cold engine not having been ran for several hours, check the length of time the plugs glow. Two person process preferably, makes it a lot easier.

1981, I thought you had the manual glow system, but was wrong.


Good luck.....


Rob
 
actually i have found a test light can do just fine when testing the duration of glow...
cheers
 
crushers said:
actually i have found a test light can do just fine when testing the duration of glow...
cheers


Test light works great but you do have to check voltage also as the timer goes through its super glow process.

Rob
 
with the test light i use the light dims as the voltage drops, i also check the votages if in doubt...
 
Green Lantern said:
I have a 1981 BJ42 with the stock, 3B engine. I drive it at least once a week and it usually starts right up after letting the glow system light up.

The motor fires right up, but the glow plug relay under the glovebox chatters like an irate chipmonk.

I have to give the motor plenty of fuel for a few seconds or the beast sometimes dies. There's lots of blue white smoke that clears as soon as the motor runs a minute. Nick

Hello Nick!

Are you sure it is the glow plug relay that is clicking away? Clicking coming from the glovebox area is an indication to me that it may be your fuel control relay, which is attached with two nuts accessed from inside the glovebox. This relay controls your EDIC motor, and is your low oil pressure shutdown system.

There is a current thread that goes over checking the glow plugs. Remove the bus-bar and check each one. You have an advantage over the superglow...nice and simple single stage glow system (hold the key back till the screen glows red, or push the dash button till the screen glows red).

hth's

gb
 
Once warm and running does the engine ever shut down at idle.
 
Thanks one and all!

Yes, it's a manual glow system. Greg reminds me that the relay chatter is probably the EDIC relay.

I need to do some homework and learn how it works.
Of course, everything down here gets thin blooded after a while. My poor BJ wouldn't know how to act back in the North Country. ;)

Thanks!

Happy Trails! N
 

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