Trying to start M-373 Bever III

phoenix 1 · Aug 22, 2011

I am trying to start a M373 that has been sitting for about 1-1/2 years. This is what I know.
1. It does turn over.
2. There is power to the glow plugs, and they are not open. I don't know if there is a method for checking if they are actualy good, is there?
3. When it turns over there is white smoke coming out of the exhaust so I believe that it is getting fuel.
4. The fuel in it is at least 1 1/2 yr old, will it even run on this? I was hoping that it would start and that I wouldn't have to drain, clean, and blead the fuel sys. because I am not sure how to do this and have no manuals.

This belongs to a friend who is convenced that this tractor in to small to be of use and is thinking of selling it. They wanted to try and get it running first. After finding this group while looking for information I may talk them into keeping it and fixing it up. I am not sure how much time and money they want to spend on it.

oliver28472 · Aug 22, 2011

Make sure you have a good battery. Heat the glow plugs for around 20 seconds. Fuel should be OK, and should not have to bleed if you are seeing the white smoke. Do not use ether.

mit · Aug 22, 2011

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/mitsubishi-satoh/169656-mitsubishi-mt372-starting-problems.html

phoenix 1 · Aug 23, 2011

New fuel, bleed at filter and injector pump, charged battery. tried to start, got more volume of white smoke, changed to grey/black after several tries. seemed to want to start a couple of times but didn't quiet.
Glow plugs are getting hot to touch, guess this is good?
Any more ideas? what kind of fuel additive might help? What are the issues with using ether?i have seen people use it with diesels in the past.

OWElaine · Aug 23, 2011

Sounds like you need to heat the glow plugs a little longer. You're getting fuel, it's just not getting hot enough to ignite. Fuel, air, and heat to run. You're getting fuel so it has to be one of the other two. Perhaps your air filter is clogged?

mit · Aug 23, 2011

Starting my tractor, 1974 Long UTB 350 diesel farm tractor. Cold start - YouTube
Cold Starting a Cummins Diesel - YouTube
Allis Chalmers D19 Diesel Tractor Cold Start Success - YouTube
a smoky cold start (1? C) ford super dexta - YouTube
make sure the trottle is in the start position

mit · Aug 23, 2011

Very hard start of my 1959 Fordson Dexta - YouTube
do not use ether with glow plugs .
Diesel is fu**ing hard to start - YouTube
Cummins Diesel Engine First Start - YouTube
cold start 2240 john deere diesel tractor - YouTube

phoenix 1 · Aug 23, 2011

mit said:
Starting my tractor, 1974 Long UTB 350 diesel farm tractor. Cold start - YouTube
Cold Starting a Cummins Diesel - YouTube
Allis Chalmers D19 Diesel Tractor Cold Start Success - YouTube
a smoky cold start (1? C) ford super dexta - YouTube
make sure the trottle is in the start position

The start position would be the full throttle position ? most of the decals are gone.
Also the last time I tried to start it today the smoke became black, then it almost started. is the smoke turning black a good thin or does it matter? I really want to get it started, sorry about all the questions this is my first time working on a diesel

284 International · Aug 24, 2011

You're close to getting it started with the black smoke. Try different throttle positions when starting to see if something works better for your machine. I have a tractor that likes to start at idle position, one that likes to start at half throttle, and a couple more that don't care what the throttle position is.

The danger of ether in a diesel is that it is much more prone to pre-ignition than diesel fuel properly injected into the engine. Diesels have very high compression ratios-around double a gasoline engine-and work by compressing a cylinder full of air, then injecting a measured burst of fuel into the compressed (and thus heated) cylinder near the top of the piston's stroke. That causes the fuel to ignite, and propels the piston on its power stroke.

When ether is introduced to the intake manifold, it is not being injected into the cylinder at the top of the stroke, it's along for the ride the entire time. That causes danger to the engine because now it is an air-fuel mixture being heavily compressed. It will reach the auto-ignition temperature before it should under normal operation, causing the mixture to ignite, and the expanding gas will try to push the piston backward while it's in full up travel. That breaks stuff.

Another danger is that the glow plugs are going to be red-hot. Spraying ether into the manifold with them warm is the same as spraying ether onto charcoal.

Another problem is that it's extremely easy to overfuel with a spray bottle of ether. With your 3 cylinder diesel at 2400 rpm, the injectors are squirting 30 times per second. The tractor will probably run for 8 hours on 5 gallons of fuel, with the injectors firing at that rate. The blast of ether is much more fuel than the engine would normally see, which contributes to the tendency to pre-ignite and damage things.

To be fair, I've used ether on diesels before. Some BIG equipment comes with ether starting aids, but they are automatic, and each cylinder is bigger than the entire engine of our small tractors. It's not a good idea to use it on small tractors; one should fix the root cause of the starting difficulty instead.

Try connecting a battery booster on the start setting (200 amps or more) or a running car with jumper cables when you try to start it this time, and see if that gives you the extra "umph" to get it fired up.

The black smoke is encouraging, you'll get it there! Like OWElaine said, you may need more preheating time. If your glowplugs aren't all functional, it may be more critical. Another option is to see if you can leave the engine out in the sun for several hours and get it good and warm before trying it, too. It doesn't take much temperature change to let it fire easily. Sun-soaking it can raise the temperature of the engine significantly.