I have a 1980 D4E 3304 Turbo serial# 28X01576 runs great and has decent power but when you are really pushing hard it bogs down a good bit with no increase in boost and zero black smoke and you can barely hear the turbo. There is also zero smoke when throttling up from idle. I put a boost gauge on it and the max it gets to is only about 3 psi. I assumed I must have a leak or bad turbo. To my surprise the turbo seems to be great. The shaft turns smoothly and very little play up and down and in and out. I have seen turbos with massive play that still made good boost so this one should be good to go. So I replaced all the boost hoses which looked suspect but I didn't actually find any cracks. The new hoses made no difference. I then thought I must have low fuel pressure even though the fuel pressure gauge is maxed out in the green. I checked fuel pressure and have 34 psi at the injection pump housing which is great. At this point it just seems like its not fueling hard enough to get the turbo spinning fast enough to make good boost. This machine has the sleeve metering injection pump. I thought I would just try turning up the pump fueling but I can't find any adjustment on it for that. All I see on mine is the high and low idle adjustment which only raised engine rpm when I moved it out. Still no smoke. All the manuals I have seen show a "fuel ratio adjustment assembly" but mine does not have one as they show. So I am baffled on how you can adjust it on this pump? I attached a photo of my injection pump. Anybody turned up fuel on a pump like that? Any help appreciated.
I went through this same thing on our D7 with a 3306. The fuel adjustment is located under the small housing in the middle of the pump housing in the picture. You basically add or subtract shims to allow the governor to open up more under full load. On ours the governor was worn out so first rebuilt that. That didn't change anything. Ended up replacing the pump plungers which helped considerably but still was lacking power. Could only get around 3-7 lbs boost. Turbo looked good but finally put a brand new one on and that cured the problem. Now get a max of 15 psi. I think the turbo housings get eroded after many hour of run time. The previous owner told us he had replaced the turbo but it was just the center section not the housing. Good luck
Well bugger me. I used to operate a new in 81 D4e but it was naturally aspirated. I never knew that a turbo version was around.
Thanks for the reply Larry, Thats just the info I needed. Turns out the torque rod was actually froze up but was actually froze in the full fuel position. I got it broke lose but obviously no change in full fueling since it had already been stuck wide open. So I adjusted the shims. I added .020 and saw a little black smoke and faster acceleration. I then added another .020 and was even better. I ended up at .060. Gives a nice little puff and quick acceleration and cleans up completely even under heavy load. It still seems to be lacking fuel overall though and max boost only increased to 4lbs. So I think you are right about maybe changing out the plungers and turbo. I have both ordered. This thing actually has great power as is. It can push a full blade of dirt even in 2nd gear and even spin the tracks in 2nd. I was tempted just to leave it alone but it bothers me only getting 4lbs of boost. I would like to see at least 10lbs. Also turns out even though this turbo looks factory installed it actually didn't originally have one. I had the cat dealer run the serial# and he said the blue print does not show a turbo. Neither does any parts book or repair manual. The engine serial# matches the tractor plate so its the original engine. It looks like d4e's didnt get a turbo until about 1983. Who ever converted it did a great job with all factory parts. You would never know. Not sure if this injection pump will be able to give enough fuel to completely utilize the turbo setup. I have a feeling that the governor weights are different and probably really wont open up the rack much when loaded down to really fuel the turbo to get full effect. Either way it actually runs great as is. Just want to see that turbo spool up a bit more and I will be happy and A little more power would be a bonus.. Anyway thanks for all your help.
Hi Jamie Glad you have made progress. I bet if you replace the turbo you will get the results you are looking for. Won't hurt to replace the pump plungers either. I know it helped with the D7. We also have a D4E but don't use it much because it has issues similar to what you are experiencing. It's on the list for repairs but will be awhile. Ours must be a later model because it has the factory turbo. I thought all D4Es had a turbo. You learn something new every day. Look for an aftermarket turbo. The one we got was a USA made one, good brand but can't remember who. It was in the area of $700-800. Way cheaper than a Cat. Good luck.
Hi Larry, Per your advise I had actually ordered the plungers as well. They are pretty cheap and easy to change so I figured its worth changing them out and it makes sense. The turbo came earlier this week. Still waiting for the plungers. Ya I learned allot researching this thing. I was very confused when the parts manual with the correct serial number range showed no turbo info at all.
Jamie The sleeve metering system is pretty simple to work on. Wondering if you have a manual. The only thing to worry about is getting all the parts in the right configuration so you don't get a run away when you start it. I have tried to attach a copy of the Sleeve Metering Fuel System service manual but it is too large. Not sure how to get it up where people can see it.
Ya I have many manuals showing the system looks pretty simple. I have rebuilt several bosch truck injection pumps before which are crazy complicated. This system is super simple in comparison. I will definitely leave the turbo intake open when I 1st start it and have a board ready to put over it just in case though.
OK Great. You have it handled then. It will be interesting to hear the outcome after you are all done. Good luck Larry
When are you going to put the piston coolers in? Bob