It Started!!

[Vaughn MacKenzie]

My truck actually started this morning, despite not being plugged in last night. It wasn't happy about it! I had to crank it 3 times before it caught and took off, then it kept missing pretty bad for several seconds. It was a good minute before it was firing smoothly, then I eased out and headed to work. It was making a big plume of white smoke which continued most of the way to work (3. 5 miles).



The clutch felt very stiff like molasses. The leather seats were hard as a rock. I hope it's never this cold again ever! Tonight I will plug in for sure.



Vaughn

 

[InThinAir]

I am new to the 3rd Gens, so is the plume of white smoke normal for these engines. Does that break in and stop. My 2001 doesn't do it, it billows a huge cloud of black smoke when it is cold. But it is well broken in now, and I had put 10k miles on it before it ever got plugged in. So I am not sure if it is a break in thing or something that I should get used to?



Also, another question. I may need to make a new post for this but here goes. I am wondering about if a truck has a build date of lets say 3/2003 and doesn't get purchased until now. Should I worry about the age of the oil? Should I change it real soon?



Way below Zero this morning in the high country of the Colorado rockies. I couldn't hear the engine of the '01 over the growl of the power steering, it took over 20 miles to stop growling at me. But it didn't get above -5 for that whole time, at least till I got down to about 6000 ft.



---Doug

 

[gonzo2]

I wouldn't worry about your oil. Fresh oil doesn't go bad sitting for a while in a new engine. It's only as the oil gets diluted that bad things start happening (condensation etc. ).

 

[Vaughn MacKenzie]

At -19F during the night and -14F at startup this morning my PS pump was nice and quiet. My engine didn't rattle either, way way quieter than my 2001.



I couldn't really tell how much of the smoke was actually steam. It was still rather dark. In the headlights behind me the exhaust was very blue.



My truck has 22,600 miles so it's getting broken in. It's just flippin' cold. Shocking cold for this area which rarely sees below zero temps. Last night tied the coldest temperature ever recorded during the month of January since they started recording temps!



Vaughn

 

[DPelletier]

Vaughn,

How cold was it? I was up at the ski hill on Sat. and it was - 30 deg. Celcius. I had buddies with two PSD's. The first was a 1999 7. 3 and we couldn't get it to start. Eventually had to plug it in and wait 3 hours, then it started. The other is a 2004 6. 0 PSD. He cranked it about a dozen separate times before it started. Huge clouds of black smoke and it sounded like someone was hammering the block with a sledge hammer for the first couple of minutes. Unfortunately, I had the wifes Jeep rather than my Ram. I would have LOVED to have mine start right up!!!



Dave

 

[willyslover]

Vaughn... are you using #1 or #2. . or do you get a choice in your area for winter



How About further north. . like Cd'A. . Bob do we get #2 during winter ? . . [ getting closer to move time ]



Dave that would have been cool to spank them in start up also LOL

 

[JJW_ND]

You got the nice thin oil in Vaughn????

It is air temps below -15 that make Full Synthetic 5W oil shine. Batteries are very tired from cylcling the girds to have to deal with 15W40 (not plugged in and well chilled) thick oil. This is a good time to put a bottle of your favorite 15W40 dino oil out in the snowbank over night to see how much it flows in the morning.



While these sub zero (day and night for several days now) are pretty normal here it is the daytime temps staying below zero tht are not to common. And did I mention wind. Wind child staying below -30 (this is with the balmy new wind chill scale).



Hey! At least there is no mosquitoes!





jjw

ND

 

[rmcnamee]

Of course it started... it's a CUMMINS not a PowerJoke... ... Sorry, couldn't resist.

 

[smartineau]

JJW-ND,



That -30 degree stuff is one reason I have not been back to the old farm/homestead since 1976, when I was a kid. The other reason is the mosquitoes. I suppose that there is a two day window each spring and fall that are not too bad.



steve

 

[BHaner]

Mine started this morning without any troubles. No block heater... No smoke at all... at 0°F. Went right to 1000 RPM after about 2 seconds of cranking. I love this truck.

 

[lawdog1]

Manual says that you need to let the engine idle for 3 minutes when starting after an extended "Wait to Start" light, i. e. if the light stays on more than a few seconds prior to starting. The three minutes is to allow the heater grids to complete their "post start cycle. " If you don't give it the three minutes, that is when you get the white smoke... I have noticed that the overhead dome light will actually dim intermittently after starting while the grid does the "post start cycle", that thing must be using some serious battery juice!!

 

[Vaughn MacKenzie]

Willyslover it's probably about 50% #1, but I have a good dose of Amalgamated in it!



JJW_NW there's Amsoil 15W40 in the crankcase and the oil pressure came up quick





A coworker has a PSD and his *barely* started this AM, took some cranking. He wasn't plugged in but he drove his truck last evening and I did not, so mine had several more hours of cold soak.



This cold snap has been bad, and a very expensive night for a lot of people. The forecast was for +5F, so they blew it by 25 degrees! Caught everyone off guard. Two HVAC coils blew at the hospital and it's been very hard to keep the place warm. Going to be a $$ repair bill. I imagine a lot of cars will have busted blocks because many people don't keep their antifreeze up very well.



Power kept going out all night across the city due to electrical demand outstripping supply. There's loads of frozen and busted pipes all over town. I imagine it's going to kill a lot of stuff like the desert plants and palms people have been growing here for quite a few years.



We're supposed to get a whollop of snow tomorrow. This is turning out to be a dandy of a winter!



Vaughn

 

[barbwire]

Aye " this be Global warming " "Ya know"

 

[BillGotthelf]

Darn it was chilly here this am. Was down to 64 when I went out at 7:00 am. Though about plugging in the block heater but couldn't find it. Truck started with no problems though.

 

[lil red cummins]

hey vaughn, i think your weather is coming my way. i will find out how well mine starts in the next day or so. don't think it will hit zero, but could be teens to single digits. the garage at home is kept at 60 so thats no problem. at work it is next to an open field where the wind whips through. that will be the test. haven't been below 28 yet here



jim

 

[DougR]

Originally posted by BillGotthelf

Darn it was chilly here this am. Was down to 64 when I went out at 7:00 am. Though about plugging in the block heater but couldn't find it. Truck started with no problems though.

Bill you forgot to mention that we did warm to a comfortable 82 degrees.

 

[juicedcummins]

I know of one 04 that didn't start this am. It has around 1k on the clock and it wasn't even close to waking up. The temp was cold [-40c] with no block heater. These trucks do not have big enough batteries to wake the computer up and crank at the same time at this temp. Off the top of my head 700cca are the factory issue,they should have 1100cca.

 

[barbwire]

where ya at juiced?

 

[willyslover]

Vaughn. . off topic. . your e-mail rejects a return e-mail ?? and many others I have sent lately also [the sixshift one]

 

[Vaughn MacKenzie]

Gary I'm sending you the new improved one tomorrow. Sixshift has been spammed to death lately and fills up. . .



Vaughn