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2006 CAT 287B Running rough only 189 total hours

MotoMan ยท 2014-02-04 16:57

hard to start on occasion runs ok till about half throttle and then stumbles really hard. only has 189 hours on it. filters have been changed a few times. do they have a lift pump? any other ideas? Thanks!

Replies13
  1. #1Mobiltech2014-02-04 20:00

    It should have an electric lift pump. They are known to fail. Its on top of the primary filter. number 6

  2. #2Joeyslushr2014-02-04 22:34

    It's got fresh fuel right??

  3. #3MotoMan2014-02-05 09:39

    yes, it has fresh fuel. i bought the machine and it ran great for about 30-40 hours then the problems started. maybe i will completely drain and flush the tank. hmmmm. thanks for that.

  4. #4Joeyslushr2014-02-05 09:47

    Not being an ass just checkin. I seen it has very few hours and have had bad fuel run like that

  5. #5Mobiltech2014-02-05 12:28

    Does the electric lift pump humm when you turn the key to start?

  6. #6MotoMan2014-02-07 02:26

    not sure if it hums. I'm not at the machine until tomorrow

  7. #7chris allen2014-02-11 19:12

    Hey there, I worked for a cat dealor here in Georgia for bout 6 yrs, im familiar with the cat skid steers, im very aware of the electric fuel pump mounted on top of the fuel filter housing, I use to go out to work on skid steers with lack of power or starveing for fuel, ive seen the electric fuel pumps fail when the machine runs out of fuel, pump still works but want pick up the fuel, I have in the past pressureized the fuel tank with an air blower an towel a push air into tank an itll push fuel to electric pump, sometimes it will work fine for a while an then again if pump is bad it may still not supply enuff fuel for motor to run full power, also I have seen several times that were the fuel lines come outta tank or were they go into electric pump they were stopped up with pine straw an trash I have even found bee s in the fuel line, check lines from injector pump to filter to tank, the fuel filter houseings them self were bad about sucking air into fuel, if air is getting into fuel system it will run crappy an skip an miss an smoke. there is a repair kit ya can purchase to reseal the filter housing, I have the cat sis system on my lap top (witch is the same system that ur cat dealors have) I also have books on the skidsteers from were I went to school, if ya cant come up with nothing give me ur serial number an ill look it up for its issues.

  8. #8MotoMan2014-02-13 20:28

    Ok, so the pump runs, but only when the machine is running. I disconnected the fuel line from the pump to the injection pump and put it in a bottle, then jumped it to get it to pump. Ran it for 20 seconds and only got about 3 oz of fuel. Thinking that the line coming in might be plugged. Will get deeper into it tomorrow. So does the housing crack similar to the Duramax fuel filter housings? Could that be the problem? Thanks again for all the knowledge guys, it has been very helpful.

  9. #9Mobiltech2014-02-13 22:07

    If you have the sediment bowl style filter they can leak where the bowl joins the filter if not installed right. If you put the armrest down and turn the key to start momentarily the pump will run. Ok so maybe try taking the supply line from the tank to the pump off and blow in the tank to see if you get a good flow of fuel thru the supply hose. You could also try running a supply hose into a jerrycan of fuel to see if it will pump that. I'm still leaning toward a 50 percent chance the electric pump is bad. I've changed a few for that reason. There is a new model that's supposed to last longer.

  10. #10chris allen2014-02-14 21:47

    Saw were few guys were asking you if the fuel pump works when key is on ,,, well when I worked at cat an trouble shot fuel related issues or bleeding the fuel system out or even replaceing the filter with new, when im fooling with the fuel system of the cats with the electric pumps I generaly have the cab rolled up with the seat arm rest down , an with the cab flipped up look under the seat an unplus the seat switch an put a jumper with in the wireing harness part of the connection, then let the cab back down an with the arm rest still down reach in there an bump the key just enuff to kick the electric pump in, it should run for lil then when it builds press. the pump shuts off. its not gonna run constant at all times, the pumps are known to go out when ever they please, if ya look at were the pump mounts to the alumnimun housing it has a round black plastic nut that holds it to the housing, make sure it tite, check the oring under it, possibley remove pump from housing an love over inthere for trash ,also were the fuel filter itself sticks up in the housing theres a rubber grommet on the inside an outside ,,, have seen the housing be split or leak threw the grommets, you can go to ur local cat store an get a filter housing reseal kit, it ya need kit part number give me ur serial number an ill look it up in my sis an give it to ya, another thing the fuel caps are bad about being dirty an the tank developes an sucking, remove it an clean it off with compressed air.

  11. #11MotoMan2014-02-26 18:07

    So I replaced the pump and filter housing as an assembly for less than $200. Seems to have solved the problem. Thanks Again for all the help!

  12. #12chris allen2014-02-26 22:05

    No problem glade to of helped out,,, worked at our local cat dealor for few yrs ,,,seen that problem pretty regular,, lot of times if ya run the machine low on fuel an working on a good size slope,, the electric pumps are bad about picking up air an looseing its prime, sometimes if ran outta fuel its hard for pump to pick the fuel back up,,,, a little trick to help ya is to pressurerise the fuel tank with air while pumps working. (pushs the fuel to it) ive got cat software an books on ur machine for down the road info. if ya have any issues.

  13. #13Mobiltech2014-02-26 23:11

    Sounds good . The last one I got here in Canada was $400 for what they call the more reliable one. I took one apart but there is not much you can do with it because they don't sell parts.