Engine/Transmission (1994 - 1998) Hard to start when cold, won't heat up over 140 degrees

[Blacksdieselhp]

I've just bought a 97' and now that its gotten cold, its hard to start. It runs fine after I get it to crank and it runs for a few minutes. But the first start of the day it runs rough and blows a lot of white smoke. Also, it won't heat up over 140-150 degrees unless I'm pulling a load. I checked and reset the timing at 14. 5 and I checked the thermostat and it looks fairly new. Any suggestions?

 

[Blacksdieselhp]

No replies. Thats odd.

 

[SMorneau]

I don't know what you call cold. But the behavior you describe sounds pretty normal for my truck when its been sitting at 10degrees or so for awhile. Takes a long time to heat up and won't go much over 140 or so anytime without a load.



Try a cold start at -20F sometime and what you are describing won't seem so bad.

 

[Joe G.]

The first thing to check is idle speed. Give it a little pedal and see if that helps.



These things don't heat up very well in cold weather. I've driven over 20 miles before the t-stat would open on a morning when the temp was close to freezing. Most guys who live where it really gets cold remove the fan and block some of the air flow through the radiator.

 

[Nick2]

I have the fan off and piece of cardboard as a winter front and Im lucky to see 160-170 unloaded. such is life

 

[Skydiver]

Blacksdiesel,

Are you pressing the go pedal 1 inch while starting?

I live in the same region as you and I have my grid heaters are disconnected until it drops below 25 degrees F. Reason is I don't like working my alt. that hard. And also the grid heater relays stick on.

Tim

 

[TPCDrafting]

Mine was rough running when cold even when parked in the garage. Not to mention summer time! We advanced the time to 16. 5 and it doesn't do that anymore. I started it the other night at around 12 deg F and it was rough for about 30 secs then it was fine. I use the pac brake to warm it up, that works very well.

grid heaters disconnected, Tim that sounds like a bomb to me!

 

[Kirwin]

Hard starting truck

I've just bought a 97' and now that its gotten cold, its hard to start. It runs fine after I get it to crank and it runs for a few minutes. But the first start of the day it runs rough and blows a lot of white smoke. Also, it won't heat up over 140-150 degrees unless I'm pulling a load. I checked and reset the timing at 14. 5 and I checked the thermostat and it looks fairly new. Any suggestions?

What do you mean by "after I get it to crank". Does it start hard? Do the grid heaters cycle like they should? Hard starting would make me suspect the fuel line return hose under the intake manifold. If the grid heaters are not working properly, the engine will not run well for several minutes after it does start. The heaters stay on after the engine starts and continue to keep the intake air > 68 F. This makes a significant difference as far as how the engine runs for the first 5-10 minutes on a cold (< 32 F) start. As far as slow warm up this is pretty standard. You can block off some of the radiator but be careful as this also reduces air flow through the intercooler. I don't recommend you pull a trailer with the air flow reduced. As an example I can drive 12 miles to work with the cab heater off at 10 F and the theromostat opens just about the time I pull into the parking lot. Hope this helps Ken Irwin

 

[johnrv4]

My buddy has a '95 that was doing the same thing(hard start when cold). I would check both grid heaters and make sure they are both working . On his truck, he said he could see the voltmeter dropping, but only one grid heater was working. His truck would blow a bunch of white smoke when it was cold. I checked it out, and found out one of the heater solenoids had a corroded connection on the ground wire. I cleaned the inside of the connector and the post on the solenoid, and it was fine after that.

 

[Blacksdieselhp]

The truck will crank ok when cold, I just have to crank on it for about 10 seconds before it starts. When its warm it cranks as soon as I hit the starter. I reset the idle at 800 rpm. I also reset the timing to 14. 5. It was a little low. That helped a little with the water temp. But it still won't get over about 150 degrees. The main reason I want to fix that is because the heater doesn't blow very warm. I had another truck that wouldn't warm up but I set the timing on it to 16 degrees and it ran at 180-190 degrees after that. I've never replaced the fuel heater on any of my trucks, and I thought that might be causing the cold starting problem. It smokes white and runs pretty rough for the first couple of minutes and then it smoothes out. Thanks for the info.

 

[wtrenholm]

Make sure both heaters are being supplied 12V. One of my relays was open, it would click but was unable to carry current. Smoked and missed something fierce, sounded like my 24 valve on three cylinders.



As others have mentioned try depress the pedal a bit, I have a stick that I put between the seat and pedal. It also is the "high idle" stick to set RPM to 1200 to 1300 for a few minutes, if you let it run at base idle it'll still be under 140 three days from now.



Also, my 12v usually runs 150/160ish all winter, and it doesn't have the most impressive heat. New stat and coolant flush did nothing. My 1st gen and 24V have great heat and always run normal coolant temp. My 12v is the poor performer of the bunch, so I guess that's why it's my plow truck?



HTH,

Wayne

 

[Lsfarm]

Timing too low

Advance your timing to 16. 5 or 17, and most if not all of starting symptoms you describe will go away. When cranking the engine, give a small amount of throttle, this will give enough fuel above idle fuel to get the engine to catch and run quickly. Just idle fuel alone with the starter cranking isn't enough fuel to get the engine to catch and run very quickly.



Put a piece of cardboard with an 8" diameter hole in it over the radiator, align the hole with the center of the fan. Or buy some winterfront grill inserts This will help with warmup. But the 12v's don't have the cab heat that a 24v has.



Plug in the block heater for starts under 40* helps too.



Hope this helps. Greg L

 

[DPinkston]

I have the fan off and piece of cardboard as a winter front and Im lucky to see 160-170 unloaded. such is life

I had thought about doing this. Mine runs pretty cool too, less than 160 if I interpret the mechanical gauge right. I would think a small amount of mileage could be gained by removing the fan too.

Danny

 

[Woodenhead]

Be careful using the piece of card board as a winter front. The card board will restrict air flow to the fan and can cause fatique cracking and failure of the fan blades. It's best to use some grill inserts that will allow the fan to still get some even airflow on the blades.

 

[DPinkston]

No fatigue cracking here because I took my fan completely off this morning. It may have run a few degrees warmer but not much. I think I'll leave it off till spring unless it gets to running too hot (that's doubtful).

Danny

 

[JoshPeters]

As others have mentioned try depress the pedal a bit, I have a stick that I put between the seat and pedal. It also is the "high idle" stick to set RPM to 1200 to 1300 for a few minutes, if you let it run at base idle it'll still be under 140 three days from now.



HTH,

Wayne

Spoken like a true Minnesotan! I have an Ice Scraper that does the same thing! I've had my truck up to 180degrees operating temp... let it idle... went into the store... came back out... . it wont' even read on the guage! I use the cardboard idea with no hole. I have been told the fan deal like this. As long as the fan doesnt' have any air or all air your best off. that way the fan blades aren't cutting air at 12 oclock, and nothing at 3, ... they flex and will break.

I use a full sheet of cardboard behind the intercooler, and take the fan off.



Josh

 

[PLaFrombois]

I'd stay away from cardboard. If it gets wet, and starts falling apart there go little pieces of cardboard into your fins. Best thing would get a 1/8", or 1/4" piece of plastic to use as a winter front. Stay away from cutting a round hole in the middle, it puts more strain on the cooling system. Cut 6-8 horizontal slots, this will still allow air to flow through in a more even area.



Paul