"Hi;
I’m Jon’s buddy with t
"Hi;
I’m Jon’s buddy with the 80 horse Lehman that won’t turn over. I thought I would add some more details that may help anyone out there that can give some ideas.
The engine is a 1983 (I think) Ford Lehman 4D254, 80 hp, 4 cyl, normally aspirated marine diesel in a sailboat. It is linked to the Warner transmission. It is currently fueled with B40 biodiesel.
The last time it was running, temperature, sound, power output, etc all seemed normal. It was shut down for about 2 months. When I tried to restart, the starter motor engaged but would not turn over the engine. Batteries and starter are good. The engine can not be turned over with a wrench and 3 foot breaker bar, although there is a small amount of movement at the flywheel when cranking the engine back and forth with the wrench (1/10” or less measured at the ring gear).
There is no obvious sign of water entry. The anti-siphon valve on the raw water line to the exhaust is working. There is no water or other obvious contamination in the engine oil. I took out all the injectors and found no sign of water or rust on the piston tops. Put Marvel Mystery Oil in the cylinders and let it set for a month with no results. The fresh water coolant has always disappeared slowly while running, but has not been run dry. I suspect it may be leaking out through the exhaust somewhere, but I don’t see how this could have seized the engine.
Jon and I worked on it the other day and did as he described with no results. When he asks if the problem could be in the gear driven “injectors”, he actually is asking about the “injector pump” (Simms inline pump). It appears to be gear driven. I don’t know if it could have seized and if this may cause the engine to lock up this solidly or not. I haven’t attempted to remove it yet. The oil taken from the injector pump looks normal, and smells about the same as the engine oil with the same hours of use.
I hope this extra info helps someone out there to give us an idea of what may be locking up this engine like this.
One other thought: Has anyone heard of the Warner transmissions on these engines locking up while sitting? It also worked normally the last time it was running. The propeller shaft still turns normally by hand. Oil in the transmission looks normal as well. It is a major job to disconnect the trans from the engine (probably involves removing the whole engine and trans together from the boat) so this is a last resort.
Any and all ideas are welcome! Thank you.
Wayne"
