The High Price Of Injector Failures

      Because of the fine filtration, a two-micron filter clogs easily. Dealing with this problem, fleets simply increase the filter screen, but at the cost of many thousands of dollars in fuel system deterioration that will manifest itself as poor engine performance, fuel dilution of lube oil, failed pumps and, more and more frequently, it seems, failed injectors.
      Typically, the injector failure from solids contamination is progressive. A gradual loss of performance and increase in smoke may well go unidentified. However, as the injector spray holes erode, the precise combustion is degraded. Ultimately, wear in the injector leads to slobbering and increased fuel in the lubricating oil. At the same time, fuel economy falls.
      Water contamination, though, may well be more dramatic, resulting in the tip of the injector being blasted off.
      And over the years, the cost of an injector has escalated in parallel with its increasing complexity and closer manufacturing tolerances. An electronic unit injector is a significant service item. Some maintenance managers are saying injector maintenance is a new line-item in their budgets, with replacement at lower mileages accounting for as much as a 75-cents-per-mile increase in operating costs.

Return to main article