I recently inherited a ZD21 (unsure of the year, about 550 hours) from a business partner who passed away last week. He had it running, drove it onto a trailer, drove the trailer to our house and then it would only crank and wouldn't start. Im new to diesels, i jumpered the seat saftey to rule that out, and tried bleeding the fuel system at the pump and the injectors. Still no start. Any help would be appreciated.
ZD21
- Thread starter Justaguy
- Start date
One thing to know is that the mower has 2 inline fuel filters. One is visable and the other sort of behind the battery box and a pain to change. The painful one is closest to the fuel tank, therefore, the first to clog.
This might not be your problem but is an inexpensive thing to try.
This might not be your problem but is an inexpensive thing to try.
It looks like there’s 3 filters? Ill pull off the first one and see how it looks anyways though. Always interested in possible easy solutions
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replaced the first fuel filter, still just cranks. I tried a couple sparse shots of starting fluid and it fires for a second then dies
It was definitely a filter, it used to be clear and was pretty full of crap but replacing it didnt seem to fix it
Loosen this 10mm, turn key on and let the lift pump run until you have fuel. Tighten it. Try to start a few times. You may have to bleed the injectors. Don’t use starting fluid.
That was the first thing i did, then the injectors, and then i did that again after replacing the fuel filter
The filter you need to change is the one under the mower and tucked up against the battery box. Its first from the tank and will plug first. The metal can is your fuel pump and upstream from that is the other plastic filter, same as the one down lower.
Yeah thats the #3 in the picture, i just couldnt fit them all in very well. Ive replaced that one
One other thing is if you have algae or crud in your tank you will need to take it off and clean it thoroughly. Ive been there done that twice since Ive owned my zd. It can clog easily at the outlet.
Take the hose off the top of your filter, add a length into a bucket, and turn the key on to check if you have good flow.
One other thing, these are self priming, no need to loosen injector lines.
Take the hose off the top of your filter, add a length into a bucket, and turn the key on to check if you have good flow.
One other thing, these are self priming, no need to loosen injector lines.
at the top of which filter? The white one on top or the first one behind the battery?
see if the shutoff lever is stuck "off". I've seen more than a few with stuck/sticking shutoff solenoids. Grab the shutoff lever and see if it will move freely in both directions. The solenoid pulls the lever IN which cuts the injection off. If the solenoid sticks, it'll shut off but won't return back to "on" and it'll just crank and crank and crank and crank and crank but never start.