low heat

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has anyone come up with a cure for little or no heat? i run 30 miles to work everyday at highway speeds. my temp gauge goes up to about 170 then back down to right above 140. i put in the new t-stat and gasket change the anti freeze. i freeze my *** off. i blocked about 1 third of the radiator off still cold. i went to the dealer ,they told me to block off more of the radiator. i've been driving semi's since 1972, every type out there. i 've never had a tractor get up to operating temp then cool down . this has been going on since the truck was new. it's six years old with 133,000 on the clock.

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95 club cab auto 3. 54 gears pack brake bd torque converter prime loc remote filter horton fan magnaguard rear cover 270hp 620 lbs torque jim jessup tune up

 

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What I have to do on my rigs is block off all but 10% of the front for the winter and run the heater on recirc for about the first half hour after startup. When it gets below about 10°I start losing heat again, even though the engine is well warmed up, and have to cycle the heater back to recirc every once in awhile. I use a Lund winter front,they are easy to install/remove,inexpensive and look good too. The trade off for this cold running winter rig is that there is no need to worry about summer overheating,no matter what kind of load or outside temp. Diesel engines are inherently cool running,which is why they so much more efficient than a gasser. Remember also that if you are in either of the two defrost modes the AC comes on,this doesn't help your comfort much when it's cold out. Also if you plug in the block heater,even though it's not necessary for starting,you will get a jump on heating the cab. I've many times thought about buying a 12 volt electric heater for my rigs,I'm sure the charging system can handle one.
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95' 25004X4,AT,Driftwood,Banks Stinger,Warn fender flairs and running boards(Play truck)95 3500,5 speed,Driftwood,Banks&Phscotty,34,000 GCVW apple and tractor hauler(work truck)

[This message has been edited by illflem (edited 12-07-2000). ]

 

[Archive]

Check GENO'S garage book for a revised thermostat. part # 3934373 and replace.

 

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I have an ESPAR, and while it is nice to enter a 'warmed' cab, I have the same problems. It is funny to feel warm air coming from the vents before starting and then feel it go to cold after the engine starts.
Sure it does warm faster but one can really understanding the power of the cooling system when you see this happen.

I still have not blocked my radiator, except for the bugs I picked up in Glacier national park last summer #ad



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99' SB 4x4 : DDI's, HOT PE, SPA dual gauge, ESPAR, Line-X OTR, Ladder bars, AMSOIL, etc (GPS,Cell,CB,... . )

 

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Unless your T-stat is leaking I don't think changing it will help. I tried with no results.

 

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My stat stuck open and the gauge wouldnt even read it ran so cool. I have almost my whole radiator blocked off and it still takes 4-5 miles B4 I get any heat at all and this is in 40deg weather and it never gets over 190 deg even when its 70deg out and its still 90percent blocked. Block a whole bunch of it off and watch your gauge and un cover as needed.
Good Luck

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96 SLT Laramie CC 5spd, 3. 54, no muff, no cat, 5"turn down tip
80gal fuel capacity. BD Brake, EGT,Boost + fuel pressure gauges. Member NRA/USPSA

 

[Archive]

I tried the t-stat thing too. The rubber around the t-stat was just about gone. It did help the warmup some but not a whole lot. I've still got all but a 7 inch strip of the radiator blocked. I can get it up to 190 then the t-stat opens and it drops to 170 or so. Don't kow what else to do. From what i understand, these truck have an awesome cooling system in them. Maybe too good for the winter.

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Curtis Harris

"JAWS"(The Great White)
Updated 11/19/00
1997 Club Cab Dualie
correctly valved 5 speed. White, Brown Manf. brushguard and rear bumper,Sprayed in liner, Stock plate and AFC properly adjusted. That's all for now. More to come.

[This message has been edited by gitchesum (edited 12-08-2000). ]

 

[Archive]

I have not pulled the t'stat in my Cummins but most stats only have a small bypass hole that lets very little coolant to flow until the temp approaches it's opening temp. Therefore, blocking the radiator has no real effect on the rampup of the coolant circulating through the block only. Removing the entire fan however, does heat up the engine faster. Having only air movement across the engine forced through the grill proportional to vehicle speed instead of being combined with the fan rotation has a big effect. I've compared this on my short 7 mile commutes and the engine temp. rises much quicker than with the fan. Find yourself a cheap 1 7/16 wrench and take it off and try it. Cost was $5 and 10 minutes of time.

Darryl
ABQ, NM

 

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Is your clutch fan working properly?Im not too familiar with the Horton fan. I do know that oem clutches can freeze up.

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2001 HO 6spd,Quad cab,LWB,4x4,Flame Red,all options except for leather,Westin Brushguard/Push bar,Painless wiring,Radio Shack CB( so what it works},my own designed CB mount,Smittybuilt nerf bars,NW Custom rocker covers,Custom built stainless rocker light bars(more to come)

 

[Archive]

thanks for all the replys . i blocked off about 90% of the radiator and turned my heater knob to recirc. i got a lot more heat, but still not as much as the bride's durango. does anyone know if cummins has a hotter t-stat for the 12 valve?

 

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Have any of you checked to make sure tempature control door inside air/heater unit is working correctly?

 

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Originally posted by icarus33:
I have not pulled the t'stat in my Cummins but most stats only have a small bypass hole that lets very little coolant to flow until the temp approaches it's opening temp. ...

Unless I'm mistaken, the Cummins t-stat is reversed from normal gassers. To heat up the engine, the t-stat *opens*, thus allowing full coolant recirculation. Once the coolant is warm enough, the t-stat *closes*, which forces the coolant through the radiator.

My '98 12V heats up within a few miles with about 60% of the radiator blocked off, and ambient temp at 30F or so.

Y'all may want to ensure that your heater core is not plugged, and, as someone else here has suggested, ensure the heater door is moving fully to 'hot'. The adjustment may be a 'slip fit' on the cable (it was on my '88 F150), so adjusting the door position *might* be fairly simple to do.

Also, fan clutches usually don't last much longer than 75K miles or so, at which time they dry up some and no longer 'slip' as much as they should, which would cause too much air to be drawn though the radiator.

Your only other alternative is to put 2000 pounds of ballast in the bed and make the engine work harder!

Fest3er