[Pocket]

Past few weeks I've noticed my truck was extremely laggy on the bottom end, smoking heavy when taking off from a light, and idling funny (RPM's surging from 500-850). My boost gauge was reading very low boost for several weeks, but EGT's were normal. So I've been struggling to find the problem.

Poking under the hood yesterday the only thing I found was my fuel bowl heater element was unplugged. The wire was just hanging there in the engine valley. No other problems were found, so I plugged it in and took it for a drive. To my surprise the engine idle was back to normal, and the smoke on the bottom end was gone. Never knew the fuel heater in the stock bowl was so important.

Boost was still reading low, so today I finally traced it to the back of the gauge, where the fitting was hanging on not even finger tight. Finally figured that one out when the gauge quit working yesterday, and I was hearing air rushing in from the pillar pod.

Anyway, thought it was interesting with the whole fuel heater thing. Figured I'd pass it along.

 

[CATdiezel]

Its makes absolutely NO sense.

To me anyways. What do you think the trucks that remove the fuel filter bowl all together do?

 

[skylinedan]

Did the SES light ever come on? I agree on how would the heater not being plugged in have any effect on engine idle, or performance????? The reason I ask about the SES is maybe it was in a limp in mode, but do our trucks have one? ounds damn strange to me Pocket, youy might want to look around the fuel bowl just incase you bumped something that was the real couse of your problem.

Dan

 

[smorris]

I agree. Too many talked about unplugging the fuel bowl wiring, after the heater went bad causing a blown fuse/no-start condition. The one on my dads 450 dump is unhooked and runs fine. I'm assuming thats why its unplugged.

 

[Pocket]

I don't know why it made a difference. Never once set a code for the fuel heater, just awlays sets the standard EPBV and AIH codes because I removed those a while back.

Asked Jody about it yesterday and he also said it didn't make sense. We did come to the conclusion that I'm getting air in my fuel because of a knock that won't go away. Maybe the introduction of air makes a difference with the fuel heater unplugged?

Also found during tuning that my map sensor won't read above 13 psi of boost. Something else to check into.