803A smoking and surge after warm up

[America]

Hi I’ve been lurking around the forum a few years and recently purchase a mep803-A.anyway Its surging a couple hertz and has produced large amounts of carbon build up in the exhaust in just a few hours. I have changed the fluids and filters and cleaned the switch’s . Hopefully someone can point me in the right direction? Thank you

 

[Chainbreaker]

Would be helpful to know a bit of history...

1. Did you purchase it from a Gov't auction or Private individual?

2. How many hours on Hobbs meter?

3. Has it been sitting unused or do you know when it was last run and if it ever ran right?

4. Have you flushed the fuel system and put in fresh diesel?

4. Are you running it with a load or unloaded?

5. What does exhaust look like?

 

[Coug]

Another question, what type / how much load was it under during your few hours of run time? Just "loaded/unloaded" can be open to a lot of interpretation.

 

[America]

Would be helpful to know a bit of history...

1. Did you purchase it from a Gov't auction or Private individual? Private

2. How many hours on Hobbs meter? 110

3. Has it been sitting unused or do you know when it was last run and if it ever ran right? It has been unused, the exhaust build up looked normal until I stated it.

4. Have you flushed the fuel system and put in fresh diesel? Yes

4. Are you running it with a load or unloaded? Both and it has the same problem either way.

5. What does exhaust look like? It is literally filling with black carbon.

 

[America]

Another question, what type / how much load was it under during your few hours of run time? Just "loaded/unloaded" can be open to a lot of interpretation.

It has run all the way up to 12,000 watts and held it. Its running heaters That add up to 12,000 for testing. Also like I said the problem is happening independent of load. Hopefully this info helps Thank you

 

[Chainbreaker]

5. What does exhaust look like? "It is literally filling with black carbon."

Just to clarify...What does actual exhaust plume look like? Are you saying the inside of the exhaust pipe outlet became heavily coated as you ran it and is increasing? And by saying you "changed filters" you did check air filter & housing?

The fact that you say its "load independent" makes me wonder if you might have a bad/stuck injector. I'd try putting some injector cleaner (Seafoam or similar) in fuel and run it for 15 min or so and then let it sit a few hours or overnight and then run it loaded ~ 75% for an hour and see if it improves.

 

[Ray70]

If you have an IR thermometer you can try checking the exhaust temps on each cyl. this can give an indication of a sticky injector.
Or you can take the 10mm nuts off the exhaust manifold and lift it up slightly and use a flashlight to see which cylinder is smoking. You can do this with the top cover on or remove the top cover and take the manifold / muffler off completely for a better view. Also look at the paint on the block and head. You may see some discoloration if one cylinder is running extremely hot from a stuck injector.

 

[America]

5. What does exhaust look like? "It is literally filling with black carbon."

Just to clarify...What does actual exhaust plume look like? Smoking gray black

Are you saying the inside of the exhaust pipe outlet became heavily coated as you ran it and is increasing. Correct it has made almost a centimeter of buildup inside obviously not normal

And by saying you "changed filters" you did check air filter & housing? Yes I did

The fact that you say its "load independent" makes me wonder if you might have a bad/stuck injector. I'd try putting some injector cleaner (Seafoam or similar) in fuel and run it for 15 min or so and then let it sit a few hours or overnight and then run it loaded ~ 75% for an hour and see if it improves.

I did this as well. A whole tank full of the gum out brand. Maybe I should try sea foam as well?

 

[America]

If you have an IR thermometer you can try checking the exhaust temps on each cyl. this can give an indication of a sticky injector.
Or you can take the 10mm nuts off the exhaust manifold and lift it up slightly and use a flashlight to see which cylinder is smoking. You can do this with the top cover on or remove the top cover and take the manifold / muffler off completely for a better view. Also look at the paint on the block and head. You may see some discoloration if one cylinder is running extremely hot from a stuck injector.

I tried to use my IR thermometer and everything seems normal. I will take off the exhaust to see witch cylinder or cylinders are the problem this evening. Thank you

 

[Chainbreaker]

I did this as well. A whole tank full of the gum out brand. Maybe I should try sea foam as well? I think they all use similar chemicals but I've had good results using Seafoam myself and others seem to like the results. But I doubt that if the Gumout brand did nothing that something else in a can is going to fix the issue, unless you used it under the recommended dosage or it just needed more time to work. I think Ray's recommendation to try to find the offending cylinder/s is the right direction to troubleshoot further.

 

[America]

If you have an IR thermometer you can try checking the exhaust temps on each cyl. this can give an indication of a sticky injector.
Or you can take the 10mm nuts off the exhaust manifold and lift it up slightly and use a flashlight to see which cylinder is smoking. You can do this with the top cover on or remove the top cover and take the manifold / muffler off completely for a better view. Also look at the paint on the block and head. You may see some discoloration if one cylinder is running extremely hot from a stuck injector.

I took off the exhaust and it seems to look a even color coming out of each cylinder. What does this tell me? Thanks

 

[Zed254]

I keep thinking fuel and air. How long did it run at 12Kw? If it ran an hour then I suspect air flow is good and your air intake hose is not crimped. Bad fuel pump? Sustained run at 12Kw suggests good air AND fuel flow. Crappy fuel?

 

[America]

I keep thinking fuel and air. How long did it run at 12Kw? If it ran an hour then I suspect air flow is good and your air intake hose is not crimped. Bad fuel pump? Sustained run at 12Kw suggests good air AND fuel flow. Crappy fuel?

It ran for a couple hours at 12KW. I noticed that the rpm go up and down in a rhythm. I’ve seen other mep do the same thing when to much load is put on at once. But my 803A is doing it without a load and with. Also the diesel is brand new, and running other things perfectly. Thank you

 

[America]

I keep thinking fuel and air. How long did it run at 12Kw? If it ran an hour then I suspect air flow is good and your air intake hose is not crimped. Bad fuel pump? Sustained run at 12Kw suggests good air AND fuel flow. Crappy fuel?

Also the fuel pump is working.

 

[Zed254]

These articles all support Chainbreaker 's and Ray70's analyses: bad/stuck injector (s?).

Black Smoke Cause Impact and Prevention

Incomplete combustion occurs and soot is formed when there is an overabundance of fuel (both diesel fuel and lube oil), insufficient residence time in the combustion zone, and/or non-availability of sufficient oxidants. Over-fueling is the primary cause of black smoke from the exhaust of a heavy...

www.lubrizoladditives360.com

Causes of Diesel Engine Smoke - By Color

There are many common causes for diesel engine smoke from burning oil, fuel or regeneration issues and can be diagnosed by its white, blue and black colors.

www.capitalremanexchange.com

4 Causes of Too Much Black Smoke From Exhaust in Diesel Engines

Modern diesels aren't the sooty smoke machines of old. Though black exhaust plumes seem dirty, gasoline engines emit invisible emissions too. Properly running trucks with common-rail diesel engines should discharge minimal smoke. But EXCESSIVE black

cartreatments.com

I'd hit it with Seafoam again before pulling them.

 

[America]

These articles all support Chainbreaker 's and Ray70's analyses: bad/stuck injector (s?).

Black Smoke Cause Impact and Prevention

Incomplete combustion occurs and soot is formed when there is an overabundance of fuel (both diesel fuel and lube oil), insufficient residence time in the combustion zone, and/or non-availability of sufficient oxidants. Over-fueling is the primary cause of black smoke from the exhaust of a heavy...

www.lubrizoladditives360.com

Causes of Diesel Engine Smoke - By Color

There are many common causes for diesel engine smoke from burning oil, fuel or regeneration issues and can be diagnosed by its white, blue and black colors.

www.capitalremanexchange.com

4 Causes of Too Much Black Smoke From Exhaust in Diesel Engines

Modern diesels aren't the sooty smoke machines of old. Though black exhaust plumes seem dirty, gasoline engines emit invisible emissions too. Properly running trucks with common-rail diesel engines should discharge minimal smoke. But EXCESSIVE black

cartreatments.com

I'd hit it with Seafoam again before pulling them.

Okay I pumped the diesel tank out again. I then put one gallon of seafoam and one gallon of diesel in the tank. I will let it run a hour and then turn it off to soak over night. Thank you.

 

[Ray70]

So are you getting black smoke out of all cylinders? or is it a different color? ( blueish or light gray )

 

[America]

So are you getting black smoke out of all cylinders? or is it a different color? ( blueish or light gray )

Black

 

[America]

I think it’s the governor. Has anyone rebuilt one of these governors? If so what could be wrong with it, I was thinking bad springs. The way it sounds and runs is like when you changed the load really fast on a perfectly working unit. The only difference is that in a perfect unit it quickly goes away within minutes usual completely. It must be the problem. Anyone have any thoughts?

 

[Ray70]

I've been in the governors before, but only with the engine removed. Not sure how well you can see or access things unless you at least remove the radiator and housing. After that removing the front cover is simple. I've seen issues with incorrectly assembled internal linkage and other issues with the fuel rails being bent etc.
Either way, it's pretty easy once you get in there and follow the diagrams in the TM.