White smoke on start-up and unexpected dieing???

[Black6.5L1TON]

Well I just bought my 1998 Silverado 3500 4x4 about a month ago and after about 2 weeks of owning it, it started getting really cold here. One morning I went out and started it and it puffed a good sized cloud of white smoke for about the first 3-5 seconds it was running. Also when Im sitting at idle every now and then the truck will just up and die. But befor it dies it runs VERY rough, shakeing the whole truck. Im currently trying to get in touch with the privious owner to see what kindof maintainance has been recently done on the truck. All I know for sure that has been done to it is the heads have been replaced (fresh black paint clued me onto that) and it has an SS Diesel Supply FSD Heat-sync. I really want to modify this truck for more power but Im afrayed to do anything to it till I figure out why its doing the things Ive listed. Also the truck seems very weak. I have never owned a diesel befor or driven a 6.5L TD befor this truck so I have nothing to compair it too. Another odd thing Ive noticed is that the truck seems to accelerate faster at 3/4 throttle as opposed to full throttle. I hope Ive given you guys enough info to diagnose the problem. Thanks in advance for your help.

Jeremy (6.5L TD newbie)

[Chevylover]

How cold ? Below 32° F you should use the block heater. You should find the cord on the frame (driver side) behind the radiator near to the steering.
At these temperatures you should have filled in winter diesel. If there's summer diesel in the tank it will clogged ?? your filters. Wait till it warm enough or bring the truck in a garage where it is warm, then remove the summer diesel an change the diesel filter in the engine compartment. fill in winter diesel, restart engine and drive for a few miles that the rest in the lines is burned .

Sorry for my english - I'm german !

Cu,
Sven

[TedReminder]

Sven,
Your command of the english language is better than a lot of us Americans.
I think you know diesel engines pretty good too.
Ted <<From German ancestory, but only knows a few words.

[Chevylover]

Sven,
Your command of the english language is better than a lot of us Americans.
I think you know diesel engines pretty good too.
Ted <<From German ancestory, but only knows a few words.

Hi Ted !

Thanks for your friendly words about my english. I owned a 1989 Chevy K5 Blazer with 350 TBI for about 4 years and after 2 years with a VW Passat because of children. Than i purchased this K2500 two years ago. With every car i own i read everything i can find in books or the internet.

Cu,
Sven

[Black6.5L1TON]

Sven,

Thanks for directing me to the block heater cord. I wasnt sure where it was located. It hasnt got quite that cold yet. Its been in the upper 30s. Probably cold enough that I should use the block heater though. I fill it up about once a week so Im pretty sure it has winter diesel in it. When it dies it has started right back up all but one time. That time I had to let it sit for about 5 minutes then it started. I got ahold of the kid I bought the truck from and he bought it from a car lot and I wasnt able to contact them today. Im really worried about the injectors. I have no way of finding when or if the injectors have ever been changed. I just bought this truck about a month ago and I really dont want to destroy the engine. Thanks again guys.

Jeremy

[RckyMtNDeZL]

I live in a cold climate, had my glow plugs swapped a few years back. Gotta use the heater, plug it in and it will gun right up in the AM. And far as stalling...hope your PMD isnt fried yet. I use a heath diesel PMD relocator kit. It has worked for 3 years strong now, my other cooler mounted in the engine only worked for a year or so. Or your fuel pump is taking a dump on you. Thats all I got, I fortunately havent had TOO much mechanical trouble, eletrical...a different story.

[Chevylover]

I live in a cold climate, had my glow plugs swapped a few years back. Gotta use the heater, plug it in and it will gun right up in the AM. And far as stalling...hope your PMD isnt fried yet. I use a heath diesel PMD relocator kit. It has worked for 3 years strong now, my other cooler mounted in the engine only worked for a year or so. Or your fuel pump is taking a dump on you. Thats all I got, I fortunately havent had TOO much mechanical trouble, eletrical...a different story.


Black6.5L1TON wrote in his first post, that there is a FSD-HeatSync built in in his truck. So i don't think that the PMD is the prob. I would say, try the blockheater and if then the prob is gone, it was to cold and you should think about new glow plugs. If not i would think clogged fuel filter, air in a fuel line, defective tank ventilation because you wrote that the truck is stalling and you have to wait about 5 min. to restart. What about the SES lamp ? Is the stalling prob only if it is cold outside after starting the COLD engine or does this prob occurs also while driving or starting the WARM/HOT engine ?

Cu,
Sven

[Black6.5L1TON]

Sven,

I bought a long extention cord on my way home from work today. Im going to start using my block heater on cold nights. The fuel filter only has about 5,000 miles on it. Its pretty new. As for the SES light when it stalls, no, there is no light. It hasnt stalled on me in about 3 weeks now so Im not really sure what happend there. Hopefully it might have just been a fluke. Im thinking about buying a set of glow plugs just for the heck of it. Id like to have a set of the Instant heat plugs anyway. Thanks again for all your help and Ill keep you posted on the situation.

Jeremy

[Chevylover]

Sven,

I bought a long extention cord on my way home from work today. Im going to start using my block heater on cold nights. The fuel filter only has about 5,000 miles on it. Its pretty new. As for the SES light when it stalls, no, there is no light. It hasnt stalled on me in about 3 weeks now so Im not really sure what happend there. Hopefully it might have just been a fluke. Im thinking about buying a set of glow plugs just for the heck of it. Id like to have a set of the Instant heat plugs anyway. Thanks again for all your help and Ill keep you posted on the situation.

Jeremy


Tell me, if i'm wrong, but service intervall for oil change and fuel filter on th 6.5l TD engine should be every 5000 miles / 8600 kilometres. In dusty areas every 3000 miles. In front of this you should change the fuelfilter.
But i think the prob you HAD belongs to the outside temp. If i want to start my truck here in germany below 0° C/32°F without 4 hours connected to the blockheater, it shows the same probs as you mentioned. Rough idle, sounds like a 3-zylinder engine and stalls after a few seconds. After a few trials it run smooth, with the heater - no probs at all below these temp.

Cu,
Sven

[Steeveo]

boys, I not so sure about your start up problem. I have a week starter which cranks slowly. Where I am it is common for -10C. I never bother to plug in until at least -5C and very common for me to be unpluged on weekends when away from home snowmobiling and no problems on start up. White smoke, no. Little bit of black smoke and maybe rough for about 3 seconds but completely smoth after that. and no stalling. I don't know it, but I do know that there is different causes for white smoke and black smoke. I am sure that there are others here with far more knowledge than I on the cause.

[Black6.5L1TON]

Tell me, if i'm wrong, but service intervall for oil change and fuel filter on th 6.5l TD engine should be every 5000 miles / 8600 kilometres. In dusty areas every 3000 miles. In front of this you should change the fuelfilter.
But i think the prob you HAD belongs to the outside temp. If i want to start my truck here in germany below 0° C/32°F without 4 hours connected to the blockheater, it shows the same probs as you mentioned. Rough idle, sounds like a 3-zylinder engine and stalls after a few seconds. After a few trials it run smooth, with the heater - no probs at all below these temp.

Cu,
Sven

I was planning on changeing the oil this weekend. I didnt know you should change the fuel filter with every oil change though. Ive heard horror stories about people getting air in the lines while changeing the fuel filter. What is the propper way to do this without much headach?

[RckyMtNDeZL]

I did see he has a FSD kit, but my PMD with heat sync failed on me a little over a year after I bought it. Bought another PMD, another fried. Went that way until I forked over big bucks for the relocation kit. Still on the same PMD 4 years later. Dont overlook it, just because you have a heat sync doesnt garauntee a 100% fix. Thats all I am saying. I would also check the lifter pump deal, of course fuel filters. Hate to be redundant but...stalling is either spark or fuel. If fuel is still flowing if you crack the water purge open, your pump is doing its job. Poor battery contacts still plague me to this day as well. And 6.5s eat batteries....I blame the side posts more than anything. Good luck, keep us posted on what it is.;)