BJ42 Glow Plugs (1 Viewer)

[Rye356B]

I have a 1983 BJ43 which has the 3.4L diesel, right hand drive, from Australia. It seems like the glow plugs don't last very long and the tip burns out. Maybe 2 years, and I'm not driving it every day, then it gets harder and harder to start so I pull out the glow plugs and they are burned out. I'm using SOR # 038-100F glow plugs.

I've verified that when I turn the key they are hot for about 20 seconds, and then deactivate. I was thinking they may not be turning off. Same 20 seconds if I start the truck right away. What should I expect the life of glow plugs and if longer, what else should I be looking at that could be causing them to seemingly fail prematurely?

 

[plink01]

I think you should be getting more than 2 years of life out of them.
You can test if they are getting stuck on by putting a voltmeter on the bus bar that connects all glow plugs together while the car is running. That would at least rule that out and would only take a minute to work out.

 

[Rye356B]

I think you should be getting more than 2 years of life out of them.
You can test if they are getting stuck on by putting a voltmeter on the bus bar that connects all glow plugs together while the car is running. That would at least rule that out and would only take a minute to work out.

Yes I did that and posted that I was thinking that may be the issue but no. They stay hot for 20 seconds then power stops.

 

[tlaporte]

Couple of things:

• I’m assuming “BJ43” in the OP is just a typo and the “BJ42” in your title is correct
• you should read Tom’s “Which Plugs Should I be Running” thread—heaps of good info there
• the info on SOR’s page for those plugs is strange to my eye, but SOR’s been around a long time and I’d hope that they have things right

Your truck should have originally come with a SuperGlow system, characterized by two separate Glow Plug relays, a dash light glow indicator (not a screen with a hot coil behind it), and a couple of resistance plates/straps in line connected from the Glow Plug relays to the bus bar/glow plug in cylinder #1.

Getting rid of all of that is quite common, replaced with a “Wilson switch,” basically a momentary push button that energizes the glow plugs while it is engaged.

The point of all of this background (and you really should read Tom’s thread linked above for MUCH more information) is to say that we probably need some more information about your setup before useful advice can be given.

From what I have read, the most common reason for wearing out glow plugs prematurely (barring cheap/poorly made glow plugs) is running them at too high of a voltage. This would be the case if, for example, you had 6V plugs suited to a SuperGlow system but, instead, had a fixed delay system in your truck.

 

[sodafeld1]

Couple of things:

• I’m assuming “BJ43” in the OP is just a typo and the “BJ42” in your title is correct
• you should read Tom’s “Which Plugs Should I be Running” thread—heaps of good info there
• the info on SOR’s page for those plugs is strange to my eye, but SOR’s been around a long time and I’d hope that they have things right

Your truck should have originally come with a SuperGlow system, characterized by two separate Glow Plug relays, a dash light glow indicator (not a screen with a hot coil behind it), and a couple of resistance plates/straps in line connected from the Glow Plug relays to the bus bar/glow plug in cylinder #1.

Getting rid of all of that is quite common, replaced with a “Wilson switch,” basically a momentary push button that energizes the glow plugs while it is engaged.

The point of all of this background (and you really should read Tom’s thread linked above for MUCH more information) is to say that we probably need some more information about your setup before useful advice can be given.

From what I have read, the most common reason for wearing out glow plugs prematurely (barring cheap/poorly made glow plugs) is running them at too high of a voltage. This would be the case if, for example, you had 6V plugs suited to a SuperGlow system but, instead, had a fixed delay system in your truck.

yeah, what he said x2