Perkins 4.108 Starter solenoid failure

[jamesjle]

Could anyone advise how to stop a Perkins 4.108 marine diesel if the starter
solenoid fails. It makes no mention of this potential problem in the operators
manual.

Thankyou

[FlyingCloud1937]

Originally Posted by jamesjle

Could anyone advise how to stop a Perkins 4.108 marine diesel if the starter
solenoid fails. It makes no mention of this potential problem in the operators
manual.

Thankyou

Turn off the battery switch.

Lloyd

[CSY Man]

The starter solenoid..? If that fails it would prevent your from starting the engine meh thinks, not from stopping it...

The stop function, at least on the 4-108 I had for 14 years was a cable to the fuel shut-off, nothing electric.

To kill a runaway engine, choke it with a rag in the air intake, or use the fuel shut-off valve between the tank and engine. (Ideally one before the fuel filter, and one after)
This could take a few minutes but better than nothing.

[jamesjle]

Thankyou for the replies. The engine will continue to run with or without batteries.

The situation I'm thinking of is if the solenoid fails after start. Air intake sounds OK
but re fuel cutoff, it would be good to avoid bleeding the engine if possible.

My engine may have had a cable originally, 1986, but like any 32 year old boat it has been worked over by various owners.

[btrayfors]

My 4-108 STOP solenoid (yes, folks, there is one) failed about 15 years ago.

I bought a replacement. Of course, it had different mounting flanges, etc., because Perkins has several models of every engine. I paid a lot of $$$$ to have the new one machined to fit where the old one was. Turned out it didn't have enough oomph to pull the lever to stop the engine.

In frustration I grabbed a thin white wire coat hanger, straightened it out, and cut it and bent it to fit. I put a small loop in the end for fingers.

That coat hanger is still in place and has worked flawlessly for 15 years!

Where to hook it?

There are at least two models of the fuel pump, but each has a tear-shaped lever with 3-4 holes in its longish dimension and a whole bunch of little holes around the fat end. This lever will stop the engine when pulled back.

Look carefully on your engine to see where the stop solenoid is fitted. Then, you'll know where to attach the coat hanger when the time comes :-)

Bill

[zeehag]

cracking injectors will also work to stop a runaway diesel. i know. is how we stopped mine. thankyou.
was a lot faster than stuffing anything in a mushroom air cleaner..lol....

[jamesjle]

Fantastic, thanks Bill. Why go anywhere without a wire coathanger

[undercutter]

Originally Posted by CSY Man

The starter solenoid..? If that fails it would prevent your from starting the engine meh thinks, not from stopping it..

Now that we have clarified that the OP's problem was a shut down or fuel shut off solenoid and not a starter solenoid, I did have a shorted starter solenoid on a M 135. Failed at 0300 when I awoke to the engine running. Didn't know what the hell was going on. When I hit the main cabin and heard the starter engaged I disconnected the engine battery switch and the starter kept turning with the engine running. Must have been the alternator keeping the circuit to the starter open. I pulled up the sole after rolling up the carpet and went right for the engine shutdown. This of course didn't do anything for the starter and when I let go of the shut down the engine started right back up. Only after I pull the power off the starter did the starter quit turning and then I could kill the engine. Probably took me 1 1/2 minutes and luckily there was no damage to the ring gear.

Took a week to get the starter from England to Malaysia. We were lucky as we happened to be in Langkawi. Now we carry every bolt on part for the motor and generator. But the biggest lesson learned was to disconnect the engine's batteries when not required. A short in another part of the engine electrical system could also have caused a fire or more extensive electrical damage to the boat.

[foggysail]

Originally Posted by zeehag

cracking injectors will also work to stop a runaway diesel. i know. is how we stopped mine. thankyou.
was a lot faster than stuffing anything in a mushroom air cleaner..lol....

I installed a Kabota 16HP (Universal) diesel into my old Hunter. I will say without pause, cracking an injector is the last thing I would ever attempt to do. Hell of a lot easier to place a book or a board across the air intake AND MUCH LESS DANGEROUS!

The POS single cylinder Yanma Hunter installed at their factory once ran away after I overfilled the crankcase with oil. I simply stuck the thing into gear and did circles until the engine decided to quit.