HELP!!!! stuck in albany ny

[desi arnaz]

i was on hwy 90 today we stopped at the last rest stop going west. as we left i seemed to be losing power.we stopped to pay a $15 toll with a $50 bill and i was asked for identification, but i digress. the buss stalled in the lane . i was able to get it started and coast to a truck lot on the side of the road near the toll plaza. i took of the fuel filters and one was full and the other almost empty.the bus would not start so i called allstate they said a flatbed would be out in 70 min,they never came.the excuse was i was in a restricted area.so they had to send a police tow. the tow came and he hooked me up from the rear and towed me to his yard. keep in mind i have my 2.5 year old and a handicapped pregnant wife in the 100 dregree bus with no a/c as my genny is broken so i had A  cab come and bring them to a la quinta for $125 per night. i will hire a car from alamo tommorow to bring them back to new Hampshire. the question is what is wrong with my 4106? i think it is the fuel pump??? what else could it be? and how hard is it to install? and how much and where can i get one?  thanks   tom

[Van]

Try these guys, good luck!
http://www.superpages.com/bp/Albany-NY/Atlantic-Detroit-Diesel-Allison-L0500790939.htm

[technomadia]

We've only been 4106 owners for a month now - but the when we experienced a stall out while we were inspecting our bus before purchase, it was the fuel tank getting too low.  Adding 10 gallons and priming the engine worked like a charm.

It feels like it's too obvious of a thing to bring up, as I'm sure you're much more diligent about keeping your fuel tank above 10-20 gallons that the fella we bought our bus from.  But thought I'd toss this in the thread... just in case.

Best wishes on getting everything handled... dealing with these things in the extreme heat is extra torturous. Please do update as you find stuff out, us new 4106 owners are soaking up all the experience we can.

- Cherie

[Van]

Here's a better map, best o luck-
http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=&q=281+Wolf+Road+in+Albany,+NY&rlz=1B3GGGL_enUS351US441&um=1&ie=UTF-8&hq=&hnear=0x89de0c591f8577a5:0xc0cbe165ee8a5bbb,281+Wolf+Rd,+Latham,+NY+12110&gl=us&ei=EqcrTrzPOuyn0AHlkbXyCg&sa=X&oi=geocode_result&ct=image&resnum=1&ved=0CBYQ8gEwAA

There are also a couple of La Quinta's Not to far from the DD shop, hope this helps.
http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=&q=281+Wolf+Road+in+Albany,+NY&rlz=1B3GGGL_enUS351US441&um=1&ie=UTF-8&hq=&hnear=0x89de0c591f8577a5:0xc0cbe165ee8a5bbb,281+Wolf+Rd,+Latham,+NY+12110&gl=us&ei=EqcrTrzPOuyn0AHlkbXyCg&sa=X&oi=geocode_result&ct=image&resnum=1&ved=0CBYQ8gEwAA

[desi arnaz]

we had over 3/4 tank of fuel from the Indian reservation, it seems to be green when i poured it out. anyone know how much a pump is and do you all think that is the problem?

[luvrbus]

Change your filters and reprime you will probably be ok fwiw the fuel pumps cost a little over 100 bucks for a rebuilt pump and no guarantee it will work they are not hard to change but do the easy stuff first

good luck

[desi arnaz]

I filled the filters back up but will still not fire up. Why would it lose prime.?
Why would the pump fail? When i dumped out the filters all looked fine.
Wife hates me and is most likely asking for pointers from casey anthony or scot peterson.....

[pvcces]

If the fuel pump gets air in it, it will not pump very well. If it got air in it and you weren't out of fuel, then you could have an air leak in the fuel line coming from the tank. The pumps are very simple and I don't believe one would quit suddenly. More likely, there is something else causing your problems.

If you set up a priming pump, you will be able to get the fuel pump purged of air. Then, the pump ought to work okay.

You haven't mentioned some critical things, yet.

When you try to start the engine, does it crank normally? If it does, do you get a cloud of smoke, probably white?

No smoke, no fuel. In that case, you want to make sure that the shutoff lever on the governor is in the run position.

If it cranks too slowly, a short snort of ether (about one second) should increase engine speed enough to purge the pump IF you have the governor in the full run position. More ether can damage your engine, so don't get carried away.

Let us know what you find out. Perhaps, we can get it figured out.

Take care.

Tom Caffrey

[zubzub]

I wouldn't jump to FP right away.  More than a few have had a fuel line collapse from the tank to filter.  It is common to trouble shoot this by sticking a  hose into a diesel can, and attaching it straight to the FP, prime and see if it runs...
be careful though, use a big diesel can as without the fuel return the can will empty quickly....and then you will be priming again.

[Van]

Here's hoping that no news yet, means that this problem is being resolved and he gets on his way Being broke down on the Interstate is terrifying by itself, let alone on the shoulder with traffic zooming by. Guess it was fortunate it happened in the toll plaza where the traffic speeds are much slower, and some assistance was available . Glad everyone got off the thruway safely.

[jjrbus]

Sounds very frustrating, mine happened in a million dollar house Cul de sac! But you need to slow down and diagnose the problem. Not start replacing parts.

When it happened to me some well meaning people told me it was the fuel pump. I was ready to run off and order a pump but cooler heads prevailed and talked me through the process.  More than likely if it were the fuel pump the filter would not be empty.

This is opposite my experience, unlike an auto the pump sucks fuel to the engine it does not pump it from the tank. So as a shade tree mechanic I would guess the pump sucked the filter dry?

Mine turned out to be the fuel line plugged with alge. Alge can plug a filter and fuel lines it would look like a very thick clear fluid with small black particles in it.

Keep checking here there are some pretty sharp people willing to help.
                                                                                                        JIm

[Red Rider]

FWIW, on my 4106 I bumped the Emergency shut off while reaching for a drink out of the window. Thanks to this board I remembered to look at -- then rest my "flapper" and I was off and running.

When Luvrbus was installing my Jakes I took note of a cute priming pump he uses to restart engines. I have one in my tool box now.

[Van]

Mike pretty neat huh? I am partial to my elec prime pump, but I think every one should have at least some method of priming the system. after the accident last week (totally unrelated to this of course) I shudder at the thought of any one being down on the side of the freeways, too too dangerous!

  let's be safe out there
   Van  

[desi arnaz]

i have a cover on my reset and have no idea where the flappers are  there is not much chance of algae as i was down to 35 gallons and filled her up 300 miles before  i also have an algeex unit on the bus. the collapsed pipe sounds like it might be the problem? how should i hook up the engine  to my boat tank? i just got home in a rented car with the preagnant wife and the 2 y/o and will head back in the morning.

[desi arnaz]

it cranks but will not turn over  no smoke at all.