Engine/Transmission (1994 - 1998) Cold Weather Running

[BigPapa]

I'm sure this has been covered MANY times before, but we're having an argument where I work about diesel engines in cold weather. I'm in Nashville so we don't get really cold temps here very often or for very long, but last week we had 2 sub zero nights in a row. My truck sat outside, plugged in, from Wednesday at 9 pm to 9 am Saturday. It was about -6 degrees when I started it up. It started fine, idled for about 10 minutes while I cleaned it off, and when I went to drive it off it died. I say the fuel gelled(?) up. A friend at work (who's a retired 3-million-mile OTR driver) has a '01 HO Ram Turbo Diesel that he drove the whole time mine was parked and never had a problem. We bought our fuel at the same place so he says I have something else wrong. He says it has to be at least -10 degrees for fuel to gel. He is about 20 miles further south and about 140 feet lower in elevation. I'm in a rural setting and he's in an urban setting. We're also having a discussion about just what the block heater does. Does it keep the block and head warm? Does it warm the fuel? Does it heat the oil or the coolant? We have a Power Stroke for a shop truck and they don't plug it up at all. Sorry for the long post.

 

[illflem]

What your truck did sounds like a classic case of gelled fuel clogging the filter.

Straight #2 starts gelling around +8°F. My feeling is your fuel gelled and your fuel heater may not be working while your buddy's is.

Another option--Fuel is heated pretty good (way over 100°) just by driving because of the return flow to the tank from the injection pump and takes quite some time too cool off, since he was driving his rig while yours was parked his fuel may have never gotten as cold as yours. The amount of fuel in the tank will also change the rate of gelling, fuller is better in cold weather.



The block heater heats the coolant. Due to convection (warm rises) the coolant actually circulates and will warm the entire block.

 

[Cooker]

I can't believe a PS started at all in sub zero temps The ones I have seen have a hard time starting at 15 degrees above zero.