My '98 Ram 2500 5.9L V8 has been a reliable starter and runner since I bought it last spring. This last week, it has decided to become very difficult to start, and I thought it'd be a good time to get some sagely wisdom from you guys.
The engine cranks fine, but takes a long time to get it to fire at all. If I can get it to fire at all, it starts up immediately. It now runs badly (die if you didn't gas it) for the first minute or two until the engine warmed up a bit, and then everything runs great.
Here's some recent history:
1) It burst a brake line 3-4 months ago and sat until I recently had a chance to fix it. Was running fine at that point.
2) After I replaced the brake lines, it wouldn't start initially. I saw the gas gauge was on E, so I added a gallon from a gas can, and it reluctantly started in 15F weather, and needed me to feed it gas to keep it from dying for a minute or two.
3) It started, restarted and idled just fine while I was bleeding the brakes.
4) This evening, she wouldn't start at all. Cranks fast, but no fire. Added another gallon of gas. No improvement
5) No check engine light.
6) I checked the air filter. It was dirty, but more importantly, had a mouse nest under it, and had a big circle where the mouse had chewed up the filter to make the nest. No rodent corpses in the air line. Not sure if bits of filter could've been sucked into the engine. (Or if an engine would have any issues with passing/burning bits of filter paper)
Next time I get a chance, I'll check the 3 basics: Fuel, Spark, and Air.
1) Fuel: What's the best spot on the 5.9L to pull the fuel line and check that fuel is flowing? Can I also assume this engine could benefit from starting fluid in the air filter?
2) Spark: If I don't find the issue with #1, I'll buy some new plugs and wires. Does the 5.9L gain anything from nicer plugs and/or wires? Or are OEM equivalents just fine?
3) Air: I'll be replacing the filter and probably adding in a bit of aluminum window screen as a prefilter/rodent guard. Not much else I can do here.
This is my first time playing with a 5.9L. Any wisdom from the trenches is appreciated if there are any peculiar issues of the 5.9L that might be relevant here.
The engine cranks fine, but takes a long time to get it to fire at all. If I can get it to fire at all, it starts up immediately. It now runs badly (die if you didn't gas it) for the first minute or two until the engine warmed up a bit, and then everything runs great.
Here's some recent history:
1) It burst a brake line 3-4 months ago and sat until I recently had a chance to fix it. Was running fine at that point.
2) After I replaced the brake lines, it wouldn't start initially. I saw the gas gauge was on E, so I added a gallon from a gas can, and it reluctantly started in 15F weather, and needed me to feed it gas to keep it from dying for a minute or two.
3) It started, restarted and idled just fine while I was bleeding the brakes.
4) This evening, she wouldn't start at all. Cranks fast, but no fire. Added another gallon of gas. No improvement
5) No check engine light.
6) I checked the air filter. It was dirty, but more importantly, had a mouse nest under it, and had a big circle where the mouse had chewed up the filter to make the nest. No rodent corpses in the air line. Not sure if bits of filter could've been sucked into the engine. (Or if an engine would have any issues with passing/burning bits of filter paper)
Next time I get a chance, I'll check the 3 basics: Fuel, Spark, and Air.
1) Fuel: What's the best spot on the 5.9L to pull the fuel line and check that fuel is flowing? Can I also assume this engine could benefit from starting fluid in the air filter?
2) Spark: If I don't find the issue with #1, I'll buy some new plugs and wires. Does the 5.9L gain anything from nicer plugs and/or wires? Or are OEM equivalents just fine?
3) Air: I'll be replacing the filter and probably adding in a bit of aluminum window screen as a prefilter/rodent guard. Not much else I can do here.
This is my first time playing with a 5.9L. Any wisdom from the trenches is appreciated if there are any peculiar issues of the 5.9L that might be relevant here.