New owner of a 1995 450g. 6000 hrs. I have done a full service but it still cranks for a long time before starting. It has ether injector but has never been used. Is this characteristic if this engine? Runs great once started. If this is an old topic I would appreciate a link. Thanks.
Is there much smoke at the exhaust stack when engine is rolling over ?
No there is not.
Is it slow to start every time or mainly the first start of the day ?
First start.
Sounds like the fuel transfer pump is loosing its prime. Check for any cut or hardened o-rings at any joints in steel lines / hoses between the fuel tank and the transfer pump.
I will do that, thanks. This is the first diesel equipment I have owned that doesn't have preheaters. Can I expect it to start in cold weather without ether?
The fact that there is little to no exhaust smoke when cranking I think is the true issue. Ether shouldn’t be required at all until the temperature reaches at least -10 C
It should put a mist or fog out the exhaust by a few revolutions, so five to ten compression strokes that you hear. If it doesn't do that it's not injecting fuel and won't start until it gets fuel. It should start down to zero without ether if everything is in good shape. 20 is more realistically expectable. If it doesn't start above freezing, then something is more significantly wrong. Starting system is critical, as speed is the biggest factor in compression heat.
In colder weather it is good to give it more throttle when starting cold. Some recommend full throttle and as soon as it starts lower the throttle to a high idle around 1000 RPM. It's good to make sure the throttle moves freely before trying to start it. You don't want to start it and have it go right to full throttle. My skid steer is like this. It takes a few seconds for the rev's. to come up so you don't have to panic. Just don't let it get too high.
The equipment mechanic that I typically use suggested putting an injector pump on it but it runs fine once it actually starts. The transfer pump and lines sound like a much better place to begin. Thanks Guys. I have a lot of remote site cold weather work for it this winter, got to count on it to fire up.
Keep it simple check your fuel cap. Remove fuel cap turn over you will see two check valves one is for vacuum one is for pressure. The one for vacuum if stuck will cause this problem, remove valves free up plunger and clean drilled passageway. Do not swap valve positions when cleaning only remove one at a time. When vacuum valve is stuck a vacuum is created on fuel tank after unit is shut down and cools off this vacuum actually pulls some fuel back to fuel tank creating a void of fuel in injection pump. Engine has to crank longer to fill void. Sometimes this can also affect performance when operating unit but may be hard to detect. This cap is also used on Log skidders and some backhoes and i have encountered same issue on those units. Next check there is a fine mesh screen in fuel tank behind shut off valve sometimes when these begin to clog, they will create a fuel restriction which may not be enough to notice performance issues unless you have a keen ear and have encountered this problem. Best test to check screen is to remove fuel line at shut off valve there should be a good solid stream of fuel coming out of fitting. Hope this helps.
Those items will certainly be easy and cheap to check. Thanks
To answer your original question about if slow starting is a characteristic of this engine, no it is not. I have a 1989 550G. Even after sitting for weeks, it starts right up with just a bump of the key.