How cold is too cold to start a 3rd Gen unplugged?

[Hunter1]

Well, I bet you thought you would find out the answer here?



NOT!



But I can tell you how cold they will start unplugged with no problems..... would that help?



Anyway, to make a short story long, we went camping in the mountains for 6 days during this cold spell out West



The third night there, it got down to 14F, and our Komfort RV had no problem with that, did not freeze up, it stayed below freezing all that day



I got in Daisy, the 2003 Dodge, at daylight and turned on the key, after the warm up light went out, it started on the first bump! I was impressed!



The fourth night, well, the RV froze at about 1AM when the temp got down to 7F, darn thing!



Well, right before daylight when I left, the temp was -1F and I was a little worried about the old girl then, well, not to worry, key on, warm up light out and one bump on the key and she started right up, went right to 1,000RPM and stayed there, for a long time!



No problems with the starting, but if you go out in weather like that you better wear your mitts, as it takes a LONG time to get her warm to warm your fingers!



Anyone else got colder no plug in start stories?



Hunter1

 

[JPM]

its not a 3rd gen but,13 below in a '91 12 vlv, no 110v plug-in, double preheat with one battery! Rattled alot lots of smoke

 

[Dean Upson]

There has been much discourse on this subject. I live in New England and seldom plug in. I don't think plugging in hurts anything, but in my opinion it is not really necessary or particulary useful unless the temperature is in the single numbers and even then the truck will start right up. I think that a lot of folks plug in for their own comfort and piece of mind. Some have said that they plug in when the temp goes below 40*. To each his own.

The newer diesels sure start up better in cold weather that they did years ago.



Dean

 

[tobaccogrower]

20below zero in St. Johnsbury, Vermont last year.

cycled heater twice and she started right up! it was right after i had the high idle/3 cylinder reflash. man, the first time you hear you truck drop to 3 cylinders, you'll s#!t yourself! anyway, there were a few other dodges,two powerjokes and two durapads. they all were plugged in(and some still didn't start). i would have plugged mine in also but all the recpticles were taken!

 

[Mopar_Mudder]

Originally posted by Hunter1

Well, I bet you thought you would find out the answer here?



NOT!



But I can tell you how cold they will start unplugged with no problems..... would that help?



Anyway, to make a short story long, we went camping in the mountains for 6 days during this cold spell out West



The third night there, it got down to 14F, and our Komfort RV had no problem with that, did not freeze up, it stayed below freezing all that day



I got in Daisy, the 2003 Dodge, at daylight and turned on the key, after the warm up light went out, it started on the first bump! I was impressed!



The fourth night, well, the RV froze at about 1AM when the temp got down to 7F, darn thing!



Well, right before daylight when I left, the temp was -1F and I was a little worried about the old girl then, well, not to worry, key on, warm up light out and one bump on the key and she started right up, went right to 1,000RPM and stayed there, for a long time!



No problems with the starting, but if you go out in weather like that you better wear your mitts, as it takes a LONG time to get her warm to warm your fingers!



Anyone else got colder no plug in start stories?



Hunter1

Hunter that isn't cold yet, I started mine once last year when it was -25 and only cycled the heater once, poped right off.





Dean,



I have to totally disagree with you, pluging your truck in can take much wear and tear off from it do to cold start up. Not only does it warm the water but the oil is also warmed up in the process, have you ever tried pouring some 20w50 oil out of a container when it is 20 degs out I generally plug mine in below 20-25 degrees, the 40 like you mensioned is a little extreme yes.



And a great side benifit is that your truck will warm up many times faster... ...

 

[NSperduto]

Not a 3rd gen, but I was in VT in Jan with my friends gen 2 and it sat outside from Thurs night until Monday night, unplugged in 5 to -15 weather and on Monday it lit right up with no problems.



Nick

 

[realsquash]

For about the last month I've started my 03 probably 20 times below 35 degrees (F). One night it was about 28 and it started like the old gasser, albeit you knew it was a diesel right away



Andy

 

[Big MAK]

To save on wear and tear having it plugged in; simply use a timer to juice the plug about +/- one hour from your normal home departure time. That way it preheats just before leaving and not all night long.



Coldest non-plugged in start? -15deg with a -40 windchill; truck sitting in an open field in the full wind all day long. Ran kinda rough for about 3 minutes. Babied the throttle and let it gradually come around.



I don't even bother with blended fuel until it gets under 20degress -- although I always use some additive -- winter and summer. From 20 to about 5 I run 25% nbr 1 diesel; under 5 I run 50/50 diesel 1 and 2 blend. Sapp Bros is great for that -- seperate pumps so I blend it how I want it.

 

[bighammer]

I got tired of plugging it in (and un-plugging after startup) so I just quit. I've started at -15 with no problems. (just double cycle the heaters) I think plugging in makes the oil flow quicker and reduces wear at extreme temps, but it's effect is pretty minimal. If you're gona be that anal, get a pre-luber. Just my opinion of course.

 

[Mopar_Mudder]

Originally posted by bighammer

I got tired of plugging it in (and un-plugging after startup) so I just quit.

That sounds lazy... ...



I don't think trying to take care of a $40,000 truck and prolong it's life is being anal, quiet the oposite, but then that is my opinion.



Start your truck once at say 0 degres and watch how long it takes the oil presure to come up to normal(actually it will go past normal because it is so thick), then do the same thing when it is plugged in and you will see the difference instantly. It may seem like a small diffence, but any time a motor spends with low oil pressure is not good.



Hell you can just tell by how much smoother it runs when started up plug in compared to when it isn't. I leave mine pluged in all night long, the electricity is very minimal in your total bill.

 

[Dean Upson]

Re: Re: How cold is too cold to start a 3rd Gen unplugged?

Originally posted by Mopar_Mudder

Hunter that isn't cold yet, I started mine once last year when it was -25 and only cycled the heater once, poped right off.





Dean,



I have to totally disagree with you, pluging your truck in can take much wear and tear off from it do to cold start up. Not only does it warm the water but the oil is also warmed up in the process, have you ever tried pouring some 20w50 oil out of a container when it is 20 degs out I generally plug mine in below 20-25 degrees, the 40 like you mensioned is a little extreme yes.



And a great side benifit is that your truck will warm up many times faster... ...

Mopar_Mudder,



You certainly make some good points . My whole point (overstated) was that the plug in issue is, in my opinion, over emphasized. I live in southern New England (y'all) and do not get nearly as much of the bitter cold that folks north of me get. Our temps usually do not get much below the high teens or low 20's. I keep my truck in the garage and it really makes a heck of a difference keeping it out of the wind and weather. If we get a cold snap and feel it necessary, I have a timer and let it heat up for a couple of hours. There is definetely a difference in the warm up time and it is certainly beneficial to have the water and oil warm when you start.



Dean

 

[Mopar_Mudder]

Ya if it stayed in the teens or 20 here I wouldn't bother either, man I wish, it is them 2 weeks or so in a row at -0 that get real old in a hurry. If you can get it in a garage that make a huge difference also, even an unheated garage can be considerably warmer then the out side temperature. Unfortunately my garage is too big in the hips to fit in mine, and now that I bought a new truck I can't afford a garage, is that the cart before the horse thing

 

[DPKetchum]

The wind and wind chill has no effect on starting. It only effects living tissue. My 93 12 valve started first bump down at 8 without a plug in. I plugged in when possible below 32 for convenience and wear.

 

[bighammer]

I just noticed the title of this thread. I haven't had any real cold weather with the new truck yet. I probably won't be as lazy with the new one.



I saw very little difference with the old one. In fact, I wondered sometimes if it was doing anything at all. Maybe the new one will be different.

 

[Dean Upson]

Originally posted by DPKetchum

The wind and wind chill has no effect on starting. It only effects living tissue. My 93 12 valve started first bump down at 8 without a plug in. I plugged in when possible below 32 for convenience and wear.

I agree that wind chill has no effect on starting. I do believe that the wind and cold together cool the massive amount of metal and fluids in our engines when a vehicle is left out in the elements. In other words the wind and cold get the engine colder faster. In my own experience, a garaged vehicle suffers much less from the adverse effects of the weather than one left outside .



Dean

 

[Big MAK]

Your right of-course; wind chill has no effect on starting. However, a truck parked in a wind gets colder quicker because trapped heat is dissapated more rapidly. The bottom line is still the same! If it's -15 out it isn't gonna get colder then -15.

 

[Dean Upson]

Originally posted by Big MAK

Your right of-course; wind chill has no effect on starting. However, a truck parked in a wind gets colder quicker because trapped heat is dissapated more rapidly. The bottom line is still the same! If it's -15 out it isn't gonna get colder then -15.

And, at -15, I am definetely going to plug it in .



Dean

 

[LightmanE300]

Well at 9am it was 81F this morning. I thought about plugging it in but then figured I'd risk all the additional wear

 

[smartineau]

If I need to leave in the AM I plug in when the temps drop down to freezing. I like th easier start up and prior to backing into my driveway I place the temperature control all the way to hot and the other lever to defrost. Around here there is so much humidity we have lots of frost on windshields, with the above tasks mentions I have a nice arch of clear windshield. I start up the truck turn the exhaust brake on, unplug and role up the cord ( I know some will argue to unplug first, but on my old gasser after 214,000 miles the block heater worked great and was not cover or encased in crud). Within a minute or two the windshield is almost clear.



steve

 

[Hunter1]

Interesting all the feedback we got. Thanks guys!



I agree, plugging in would be the best solution, but we were in BumFlock, Oregon in the mountains and no plug ins available. I have always worried about that with the old Ford as it would hardly start below 20F, but the Dodge did not hesitate!



And, Dean, yes, correct, wind does not make it colder, just colder much faster!



I feel so much more secure in Daisy than my old "Red" the Ford truck.



So, I guess the best of all worlds is, when it gets down in the teens or so, plug it in, less wear and tear and faster creature comfort when you start her, but at least we have the piece of mind to know she will start at WAY cold temps!



Hunter1