John Deere 5520: No fuel coming out of injection pump

mechanic327 · Oct 30, 2014

If this tractor is cab model or open operator station then it needs an electric in line fuel pump installed. This is a common problem on the 20 series. The straddle mont tractors do not need this installed due to the fact the fuel tank is behind the seat and gravity fed to the injection pump. I have installed the inline pumps on the other two models and never had a problem again. Also, the customers have said the tractor has never run as well. This is due to the fact they never realized they were experiancing a fuel loss. It is a poor design on Deere's part and the do have a detac # for it, do not have that number now. The injection pump vane pump is only to keep pump full, shouldn't be used as a lift pump.

vealsff · Oct 31, 2014

my 5520 tractor is open operator station. i.ve installed an inline electric fuel pump. with this installed there was no help when it was started with no increase in rpm. now it still won.t start with thi installed. i installed it just before main fuel filter. pump primed tight. bleed screw on injection pump was shooting fuel out. fuel line on top of injectorpump was shooting fuel out. tried to start up tractor. wouldn.t start. hooked hot wire to injector solenoid and it clicked everytime i touched hot post. don.t know if it.s working or not. what would stop fuel from getting to injectors besides that soleniod switch inside the injection pump. i.ve noticed through all of this that my water pump is leaking and making a terrible noise, but all my antifreeze has not leaked out. has the water pump got anything to do with it not pumping fuel

jd110 · Nov 1, 2014

It sounds like you have covered all bases. THe injection pump has apparently failed. I was just wondering, has the tractor been sitting a long time? How old is the fuel in it? I have seen the delivery valve inside the pump get stuck with old fuel sitting in them too long.

Tx Jim · Nov 1, 2014

Try this simple test: loosen the 2 screws outlined in red,pry gasket loose(if it's stuck) and see if engine will start. If engine starts return line fitting or return line is plugged. Leaking WP won't keep engine from starting.

mechanic327 · Nov 5, 2014

Loosen an injection line on back of pump. Crank engine and watch fuel flow. If it just dribbles out then it is injection pump. If fuel spurts out then it should run. Rehook up line if fuel flow is good, then crack lines at nozzles to bleed it. When fuel is spurting out up top, lock them up and it will start.

farmer2009 · Nov 9, 2014

Double check flow direction on new fuel pump.

vealsff · Nov 18, 2014

does anyone know anything about the turbo on a 5520 john deere. iv,e had a fuel problem on my tractor, but that's fixed, I can set still and reev the engine up to 2400 rpm in a hurry, but when I put it in gear and take off. my rpm drops off. going up a hill it really bogs down. in low gears it does fairly good. but high gears. it,s awful. there is no white smoke or black smoke coming out of exhaust. all the time the smoke is clear. I do not hear or fill the turbo kick in. what drives the turbo, to make it kick in. like I said setting still I can reeve all the the way to maximum rpm. but just driving along, my rpm,s decrease. down hill is a little better, but with no turbo. what makes the turbo kick in.

jd110 · Nov 18, 2014

The 5520 turbo is very basic. There is no wastegate and no actuator. It relies totally on engine load and exhaust pressure to spool up the turbo. I wonder if you might have brakes dragging? If you push in the clutch or take it out of gear going down hill, does it roll freely? It is a fairly common problem on te 5000 series to have brake retractor problems and cause brake drag. If you jack up rear of tractor and put transmission and mfwd in neutral, you should be able to spin rear wheels freely.

Kyle_in_Tex · Nov 18, 2014

vealsff said:
my 5520 tractor is open operator station. i.ve installed an inline electric fuel pump. with this installed there was no help when it was started with no increase in rpm. now it still won.t start with thi installed. i installed it just before main fuel filter. pump primed tight. bleed screw on injection pump was shooting fuel out. fuel line on top of injectorpump was shooting fuel out. tried to start up tractor. wouldn.t start. hooked hot wire to injector solenoid and it clicked everytime i touched hot post. don.t know if it.s working or not. what would stop fuel from getting to injectors besides that soleniod switch inside the injection pump. i.ve noticed through all of this that my water pump is leaking and making a terrible noise, but all my antifreeze has not leaked out. has the water pump got anything to do with it not pumping fuel

That terrible noise could be the bearings in your turbo. It might not be spinning freely like it should. If so, it is just a big clog in your intake/exhaust.

redman135 · Jan 5, 2015

Hello , your fuel problem sounds similar to what happened on the bosses 6910. The trouble was tracked to the engine computer. This was replaced and the tractor ran perfectly. NB the symptoms perfectly mimiced a fuel pump problem. Actual problem was computer stopped talking to the fuel pump so nogo until new computer was got.