Geoff, how long has it been since the fuel filter was changed? I had a similar problem with my old-fashioned mechanically injected Toyota diesel. The filter housing partially filled with crud from a batch of dirty diesel which swirled around and intermittently block the filter when the engine was turned off. A few taps on the filter housing would usually dislodge enough crud to get the beast started. Only problem was the filter eventually clogged completely before I could get home resulting in a roadside filter change and injector pump reprime [I always carry spare filters and fan belts as these situations always happen off-road in areas with no mobile phone coverage
].I suspect you have encountered a load of dirty fuel in your travels - if the filter is found to be full of crud, I would change the next two filters early as they will have to remove the remaining crud that is still in the fuel tank.
