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4108 hard to cold start

viking

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"I have a Cal-39 with a Perkin

"I have a Cal-39 with a Perkins 4-108 and Borg Warner reverse gear. It is hard to cold start when left for more than a few days. The boat lives in the Pacific Northwest and so its cool enough most of the time for it to be slow to start. In the colder months it can take 30 to 45 seconds of cranking to get it to begin to try to run. Usually I will crank it for about 15 to 20 sec and then wait a minute or so and try again and after a few times I usually go ahead and crank it for 30 sec or so and then it will light off. This is usually the way it goes when it is in the 40s.

I have good clean fuel, new filters, fresh overhaul on the injectors, two good 12v starting batteries in parallel, so it cranks at a good speed.

Once started it runs great. After the huge white cloud(at start up) dissipates, the exhaust looks fine. Very little smoke unless I push it over 2500 when underway, then it will put out black smoke. It will start right away when warm or even after it has been shut down for a few hours. If it is in the 50s or 60s it will still start fine after a day or so but gets progressively worse as days go by and temp goes down.

The boat will make 6.5 to 7kts at around 2100 RPM and everything feels like it's running ok. Temp is good, aprox 180deg (on the gauge).

I have had the boat for over a year. The engine has aprox 2500 hrs since overhaul and has (according to the previous owner) always been hard to start when cold and always ran fine once started.

I am worried about destroying the starter motor and I think I would rather replace the entire engine than try to replace just the starter motor.

Any thoughts on this will be appreciated."
 
sounds like you looseing fuel

sounds like you looseing fuel prime. look for wet spots around fittings and hoses. try primeing fuel system next time befor starting.
 
Does your 4-108 have glow plug

Does your 4-108 have glow plugs? I can not remember seeing them on any other 4-108. They are used for colds starts. All diesels are hard to start when cold as they rely on heat from high compression to light the fuel off. When the block is cold it robs the heat. Farmers used ether to start diesels because it lights off at a lower temp. I do not recommend using it if you can avoid it because it is not good for the engine if over used and your boat is a confined space and you could cause an explosion if it lights off in the air below decks. WD40 works well and is safer. I would also suggest putting a space heater or even a dip stick oil heater like in a car. If you are determined to replace the engine get one with glow plugs or you will end up in the same predicament.
 
"i have owned 4108 ,s that are

"i have owned 4108 ,s that are also hard to start, they were not equipped with glow plugs, but they had a perkins flamer which injected diesel into a heating element in the air intake, very unreliable. the easiest thing for you to do is tap the inlet manifold to take two glow plugs, they are cheap to buy and just need a high amp starter button to operate them, we have done this before and it works quite well."
 
"You can heat the inlet manifo

"You can heat the inlet manifold with a heat gun or hair drier, anything to raise the inlet temp. The 4-108 should have a cold start device mounted in the intake just below the air cleaner screen. It will have one wire running to it and look like a small blow torch. Fuel flows to this device from a small tank or from the fuel return and is ignited and burns in the inlet raising the air temp. It is activated from the key switch or by a stand alone switch while cranking the engine. I suggest you read the Perkins repair manual to fully understand the working of this device."
 
"On an additional note, the sm

"On an additional note, the smoke may be from oil leaking past worn valve guides. When the engine sits, oil in the valve train drains past the valve stems onto the top of the pistons and burns off when the engine starts. As another poster pointed out, WD40 makes a great starting fluid for a diesel and poses a much smaller hazard to your engine than ether. You can even use it to "run" an engine while bleeding the fuel system to prevent water backing up in the exhaust due to excessive cranking."
 
"I would switch to synethic oi

"I would switch to synethic oil, in any temps the engine spins faster. Also you can use a cold weather additive in the diesel fuel like truckers do. I would also check the injection pump timing and check the lines for leaks. Many times I come aboard a vessel and can tell by smell that it is a diesel boat. This just means to me that there are small leaks that need fixing. Soft fuel lines that are weeping. Also rig a block heater, most new diesels have heaters on them, with the block warm starting improves. 2500 hours is not a lot on a diesel, but if in those hours it has not been upgraded, maintained, it could be alot. Water lines may need to be changed out, etc. Good luck"
 
"of course it's hard to st

"of course it's hard to start, it's cold!
easy fix. put a cheap electric heater in your engine compartment so the oil thins. with a heater, it's no longer cold.
if you're away from your doc, an alchohol heater might do the trick."
 
"TO SV.HORIZON

You might be


"TO SV.HORIZON

You might be my saviour . I have been trying to get hold of the feeder tanks for the pre-heater for my Perkins. You're the first person I have ever found who actually knows about this systems. Now, do you happen to know where I can get replacement tank or do you have advise on how to use the fuel return without comprising performance?

I live in Ireland but I'd be happy to pay shipping to anybody who can supply the little tank, 4 inches by 5 inches high.

Thanks
happy.gif
"
 
"Spray oil in the cylinder air

"Spray oil in the cylinder air intake before, or as you are, cranking the engine. The extra oil in the cylinder makes the compression better when the engine is cold (or not been used for a long time). It normally takes time for the engine oil to get up to the pistons, especially when its cold."
 
"I too experienced hard starti

"I too experienced hard starting of my 4-108. The "flame thrower" was burned out. I replaced it and would say my engine starts down to around 40F with about 20 seconds of pre heat. My flame thrower is piped so that the return diesel flows to it, then through a short pipe nipple (in at bottom, out at top) back to the fuel tank. This provides a standpipe to feed the pre heater. The previous owner was using ether which I discovered when I rebuilt the engine, cracked the #1 cylender rings scoring the walls."
 
"I have 2 x 4107, rebuilt &amp

"I have 2 x 4107, rebuilt & updated (4108 parts) in 1999. They have glow plugs which are working. Port engine starts & runs like a dream, the starboard engine will only fire with the aid of vast amounts of ether & many minutes of cranking.
Since purchasing the boat in the autumn (fall) it has always been a stubborn starter & has got progressively worse. Once running & warm it is fine. The engines were 'serviced' before purchase.
Any words of wisdom?"
 
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