MOPAR Cold Weather Kit ROCKS!!

[archer2500]

I realize that Im by far not the first one to come to this realization, but my 08 Ram is the 3rd Dodge Ram/Cummins truck Ive owned, and Ive never bought a winter front before.



Geno's has the MOPAR winter weather kit for the Dodge Ram/Cummins trucks, it has a pair of electric battery blankets, a cold weather front and a block heater cord all ran off of one wiring harness.



The 6. 7's run a few degrees cooler (my 2000 and 2005 had a 210 or 215 degree thermostat as memory serves) and my 08 has a 200 degree thermostat.

Well living in central IL the winters here get cold, not as bad as they do at my parents in central WI but still... . cold.

Ive always plugged the block heater in as soon as I park in the driveway, but Ive pretty much gotten used to driving +/-5 miles before I have any significant heat in the cab.

With the 08 Ram I discovered that the engine block heater cord was a dealer option, even though I bought the truck in northern Wisconsin! When looking for one I saw that Geno's offered either the heater cord alone or the winter kit, so I ordered the mopar winter kit from Geno's and with a little help from my brother, and a few Leinenkugels chilled nearby in the snow I installed the electric battery blankets, winter front and block heater cord, all powered from the same wiring harness. I would say it took me about 2 hours, and that was ONLY because it was so damn cold in my carport that I kept running over to my torpedo heater to warm up. Routing the harness is important, all the more so if you use a widgit block heater plug from geno's.

But by far, if you live in the midwest, or further north GET THIS KIT! By the time I am about 2 miles from the house I have hot air blowing into the cab, the truck cranks easier with the nicely warmed batteries, and this block heater even seems stronger than the ones used in previous models.

I realize this was a long post, but to summarize:

The mopar winter kit is worth the $180 that Geno's is asking for it!

 

[RSchwarzli]

Slick! I just got the front end kit for dads mega for Christmas so things are looking good for the new year!



Thanks for the product review!



Robert

 

[archer2500]

few more thoughts

I should also mention that the installation instructions are adequate but they leave some guess work too. I ended up removing the air cleaner box all together, as well as the air hose to the turbo, it made harness routing and installation tons easier, also I did not remove the batteries, I just removed the anchor block and bolt holding them down and shifted the batteries around as needed to install the blankets.

For the wiring harness, I laid it along the metal air tube from the turbo to the intercooler and zip-tied the harness to it, leaving enough slack to allow movement. This gave me enough slack in the harness to allow me to cut the end of it off and hook it into the widgit block heater plug on my front bumper.

It is fairly easy, and although I did not take any pictures during installation, if anyone wants to see how I did it, just let me know and Ill take a few pics.

 

[Coalsmoke]

Good writeup, thanks for telling us about a good product kit. Has anyone here needed the battery blankets on the 6. 7 yet? I had to cold start mine in about -10*F this year and it started right up. I have 100% solid winter fronts and the Canadian block heater, but the block heater was on a timer and the timer froze in the off position. At what point are the battery blankets really a necessity.

 

[Pawpaw]

Uh... What's a "Canadian block heater"?

 

[MHammond]

I have had no problems with the battery's down to -38 with the truck plugged in.

 

[Coalsmoke]

Its the higher amperage version. Apparently they come in two or more power levels??? I'm not sure if it is right form the factory on Canadian trucks or a dealer order option or what, just what my dealer was telling me when I bought it.

MHammond, thanks for the info.

 

[archer2500]

Ive noticed slower cranking if the temp is in the teens above 0 and any temp below, but nothing Id call a problem. I wonder if they helps battery longevity though? A warm battery will not have lost as much voltage and amperage as a warm battery would have. Maybe keeping them warm improves battery performance or something? I dont know. But since they are all powered off of one harness, I figured it definately wont hurt to use the blankets too. Most of the time, even with temps in the teens, as long as the truck is plugged in I dont even get a wait to start light, with my 2000 and 2005, even when plugged in, if it was cold outside, Id still have to wait a little.

 

[RDHamill]

I have no idea if Canadian block heaters are of higher wattage than US versions, I do know that in Canada all the trucks come with the block heater power cord. I can also confirm that my block heater draws just a bit over 12 amps, which makes it just about 1500 watts. I have an ampmeter on the circuit that feeds my outside receptacle.

Perhaps some others might know what theirs draw, just to compare.

good luck

 

[cumminsfhama89]

how are the 6. 7's starting in the cold weather?

 

[gsbrockman]

how are the 6. 7's starting in the cold weather?

Not an extremely cold temp, but mine fired right up this past Friday after sitting for 5 days, no block heater used, with 4*F temps.



Shot straight into automatic high idle; turned on the exhaust brake, then, after the grid heaters finished cycling, I turned up the manual high idle to 1200 rpm and it created cab heat fast.



Never even remotely thought about skipping a beat. :-laf



Greg

 

[cumminsfhama89]

Not an extremely cold temp, but mine fired right up this past Friday after sitting for 5 days, no block heater used, with 4*F temps.



Shot straight into automatic high idle; turned on the exhaust brake, then, after the grid heaters finished cycling, I turned up the manual high idle to 1200 rpm and it created cab heat fast.



Never even remotely thought about skipping a beat. :-laf



Greg

wow thats good to hear, 4* is pretty cold when sitting for over 5 days

 

[RDHamill]

Both of mine started this morning, at -27. They growled a bit, but started right up.

 

[Coalsmoke]

how are the 6. 7's starting in the cold weather?

Mine is starting in the cold weather considerably better than my 12 valver would.

 

[rlsjeep]

is the cold weather idle option always activated? Does the dealer need to turn it on? My dad has a 08 6. 7L. Do its act like the 04's, when you use the crusie buttons to idle it up?

 

[CTRice]

Hey guys, What about a low milliamp trickle charger/maintainer unit?? I have one on my HD Ultra all winter and the battery is always fully charged. Wouldn't this also work on our trucks??



Chuck,

06 Laramie 3500 SB QC 4x4

 

[Skyhigh]

Hey guys, What about a low milliamp trickle charger/maintainer unit?? I have one on my HD Ultra all winter and the battery is always fully charged. Wouldn't this also work on our trucks??



Chuck,

06 Laramie 3500 SB QC 4x4

Should work just fine, but I don't see a need unless your leaving the truck sit for extended periods.