MustangFilly

I have a '97 2500 Cummins Diesel 4x4 with 430 000 km on it. Good truck - love it - it's never let me down. But... I usually reserve it for hauling and use it minimally in the winter. (I'm trying to make it last "forever" so drive my car to and from work). However, we're deep into a lovely Alberta cold snap and I'd sure like to have that 4x4 beneath me when I head down my deserted back roads and start bucking drifts tomorrow morning. (Stayed home to plow out today) It starts no problem when it's plugged in (OK, it's a little noisy, but it cranks over and fires fine), but I can't plug in at work and it will be -30 C or worse all week.

Note: Both batteries are new this year and it's got 5/40 synthetic in it...

My questions are:

Should I run it during the day and if so, how often and how long?

Is there any kind of "power pack" or portable power source that I can buy, to plug it into for a few hours at the end of the day? I'm thinking of something I can charge at home and take with me....? (not TOO expensive, please...)

Are there any fuel additives I should be using in cold
weather?

I have a portable jump start / charger - would hooking that up before starting be of any use? If so, which battery?

How long should it take for the temperature gauge to show a change / come up?? Even when I leave it running for a while, it doesn't usually come up noticably until I'm heading down the road....

Any other suggestions for cold weather operation / starting of this old girl?

Also... What is the top speed that I can safely drive in 4x4 without risking damage?

THANKS!!! I'm THRILLED to have found this resource - I've been running this truck - my first diesel and 4x4 - for 4 years and have been given so much conflicting advise... I'm sure I'll have TONS of questions for y'all now that I'm here!

M.F.

need12v

The best thing I have done so far was cut up some plywood and put it over the grille to get it warming up faster. There was a couple nights I got off at 2AM and while making the trip home I realized that the darn thing wouldnt have warmed to operating temp if it werent for the block offs.

I wouldnt drive over 50MPH with 4X4 locked in

dieselman2300

You can also stick a piece of cardboard with a 6" to 8" hole in it in between the radiator and intercooler.

I would leave it unplugged in the cold and see if she'll fire.
With ALL power items OFF, I usually let the grid heaters cycle twice (wait to start light), and then crank her till she starts you ARE going to have to get her a little pedal. My 97 will fire in any weather (NOW) in a couple of seconds. But I also spent alot of time getting rid of air/fuel leaks and making sure both grid heaters were working. At the beginning of the winter, I had a hard time with her starting, because I had some air leaks in the fuel system and only one of my grid heater relays were working.

Synthetic oil helps ALOT.

I would also run some power service additive (white bottle), helps cold starts, stops gelling, and brings the cetane points up to help cold starts. I but mine from Wal-Mart. Also but a bottle of Power Service 911 (red bottle), just to keep in the truck. This is in case your fuel gels up.

Have you changed your fuel filter lately? I would, just so you are sure its clean, and not going to plug up in the middle of nowhere.

As far as portable power, there really isnt anything. You can use a generator, but if the truck isnt going to start because if the cold, neither is the generator.

I also take my fan off in the winter, this way it really keeps the heat in the radiator.

Dartmouth 12V

You already have synthetic oil and new batteries so that it a really good start. As need12v said, blocking your radiator will really help. Since you are in a really cold area, you can block almost all of it. Try a piece of cardboard or plywood or something with a 4" diameter hole that is centered where the fan is(you don't want uneven airflow to the blades) and if the truck is getting too warm, you can enlarge it.

As far as what to do while you are at work, it is your choice. If you choose to run it midday, make sure that you take it out and drive it, it will not come up to temp just idling. You can also try putting a blanket over your hood and draping it all of the way to the ground. Additionally, if you can park in the sun that really helps.

From time to time the subject of a generator comes up for keeping in the bed of the truck. To me, unless you are getting a generator for backup for your house, it isn't worth it. If you do go with a generator, put battery warmers on too, it will make a big difference. Just remember, generators don't like starting at those temps either and there are many cases of people expending a lot of effort and still failing to get it started. You can't really do a battery driven system with an inverter since at the temperatures you are seeing, batteries do not work well at all. The other possibility is getting an auxilary heater like an Espar. If you really want to heat your block, this is the way to go.

dieselman2300

If you are going to idle your truck for any length of time, a piece of conduit or a broom stick cut to fit inbetween the pedal and the seat bracket works GREAT for a high idle.
You cant make any heat on these engines just idling. Most of us use the "high idle stick", and take the engine to around 1200rpm. If you let the engine idle for any length of time without raising the rpms, it causes cylinder wash (to much fuel and not enough heat) and it will pass the cylinder rings and the fuel gets into the oil (not good), it also causes scoring of the cylinder walls.

hipsi

Im in Ontario and I run piece of cardboard with a hole about the size of a deck of cards in the middle blocking the rad.. and its warmer here than Alberta and I have never had it go past mid way point on the temp.. so you should be fine blocking it all up..

Make sure you have good antifreeze at the correct Ratio in you system, synthetic in the diffs and trans / transfer case will help as well..

As for the 4x4, someone with a 4x4 will have to chime in but when I had my Jeep the general rule was that you ran 4x4 on surfaces that allow wheel slippage (unless its full time 4wd) given those conditions you are going to want to keep it to a moderate speed anyways.

hipsi

You could always carry a can of quick start in the event of an EMERGENCY as I am not a fan of using it in anything you care about.. just make sure to unhook the grid heater relay!

Sidewinder

I do not plug mine in and as long as the batteries are good it will start at any temperature we get. It will run REALLY rough for about a minute and smoke like crazy (white smoke) during this time but it does clear up. I don't know if it is good for the motor but it does start (so far) in any weather. You MUST have good batteries!! If not it will not crank fast enough to start.

MustangFilly

Thanks Guys!!! This is GREAT information! I've just finished blowing out my loooong driveway and farmyard with my diesel John Deere and still have to go to town yet tonight, so I'm gonna try the cardboard right away, and pick up the fuel additives while I'm there.

What is "Quick Start"? Is it like ether? I heard you could blow a diesel engine all to hell with that stuff???

If I could keep the inverter inside with me at work, would that make it feasible? Then, say, put it in an insulated carrier, take it outside at the end of the day, and plug the truck in??

M.F.

Sidewinder

Yes quick start is ether. If you want (or need) to use it, make sure you disconnect the grid heaters first. If not the heaters will ignite the ether and you WILL have a problem.

Dartmouth 12V

I thought of one more precaution that I would recommend which is to carry a bottle of the red powerservice 911. If your truck starts to gel, this is really the only thing besides warming the fuel back up that will get you out of the predicament. I also always carry a really warm sleeping bag.

As far as trying to run your block heater off of an inverter, here are some real rough calculations. At those temps, your block heater needs to run for at least 4 hours at 700W. This is 4 hours at 60 amps which is 240amp hours. Including the inefficiency of your inverter, you are looking at a 300Ahr 12V battery bank. This is the equivalent of two Trojan T145(they are large golf cart batteries at 72lbs each) in series. These batteries are too heavy to carry inside so you would be stuck with them operating at -30C. At this temperature, their efficiency is way down so you would actually need closer to 10 of these batteries. I made a few assumptions in these calculations but the order of magnitude is right. Personally, I would consider this not feasible.

dieselman2300

ECHOOOOOO.

Tate

If you can, take the truck for a drive at each break. Get it up to op temp, so it will have as much heat as it can. I just did the trip from Calgary to Medicine Hat, roughly -30 the whole way. Other than the PS being real groany for the first 15 minutes, its nothing out of the ordinary. The 911 Power Service probably wouldn't be bad to have, but gelling doesn't seem to be much of an issue with our pump diesel.

Being in the Edmonton area, an Espar would be good for you. Atleast us in the Calgary area get a break every couple weeks with a chinook.

Nomad

mustang, i'm up here in ft.Mac and it was -46ish with the wind chill today... and -39C without windchill... stupid cold!!! Mine needed to be plugged in for morning starts and started every two hours or so with no plug-ins around, and run for about 40minutes. I run 5-40rotella synthetic, and needed a snowmobile suit and bellaclava today driving around town, never did get warm enough to throw any sort of heat!!!... A wabasto, or espar is a great idea, a guy i work with has one and it is awesome! Anyhow, stay warm.
Cheers!

mopar-or-no-car

I agree an espar or wabasto heater would be your best bet and if you plan on keeping the truck for ever it would probably be worth it