Nissan/Cummins Titan....finally some cold weather!

[DonFitzwater]

The Nissan folks have been up here driving around with the new Cummins powered Titan for cold weather testing. Up until a couple of days ago, we've had a very warm winter with hardly any below zero temps........well, that's changing. -20 here now and supposed to be -45 by tomorrow night. I can't wait to ask them how it's doing with the first cold snap!

They stop at the same place during the middle of the day and let the truck sit to cold soak. I'm probably going to see them today and will ask if it has any winterization provisions and if they've had any troubles starting. I suspect they have been parking it inside as I've driven by the Nissan dealer intentionaly looking for it and haven't seen it in the service yard.

I've always had poor luck starting glow plug aided engines when it's really cold so I'm watching this one closely.

 

[AH64ID]

I am sure there is something I am missing, but I don't understand why a modern engine would use glow plugs over a grid heater. I want to pump the warm air into the cylinder, not out of it!

 

[K5IP]

John,
I wonder about that too, but don't most, or all of the V configuration engines use glow plugs? Perhaps it has something to do with the configuration? Dont' know, also wondering.
Rog

 

[AH64ID]

Yeah all the automotive ones seem to.

I can think of a lot of con's, and zero pro's but there has to be one.

Maybe the total amp draw is less, and since V-8's are more cold blooded than I-6's of similar displacement they want to save some CCA's

One of the 2, Furd or GM, is using both these days.

To me it's just logical. The only time pre-heated air enters the cylinde on a grid heater is on the intake stroke, followed directly by a compression stroke and ignition... so much more effective than having a couple on intake, a couple on compression (wont fire till the next time anyhow), a couple on power, and a couple on exhaust.... Oh well, I'm no engineer. On top of that, all of the air is heated with a grid-heater, not just the little bit around the plug.

There is no way a glow plug effectively heats the air to where the truck idles like it does in early summer, unlike a grid heater even on a 0° day.. or colder.

 

[DonFitzwater]

Don't glow plugs simply create a "hot spot" to aid in ignition? I never thought about them being designed to heat air.........

 

[AH64ID]

Yeah... but that hot spot heats the air. The fuel isn't going to spray on it, which only leaves air to heat up.

 

[p-Bar]

Glow plugs suck had them in my 1st gen ford diesel . Amazed they went back in time as the grid heater was designed for sub zero temps
Pulled this from the Nissan ad:


CERAMIC GLOW PLUGS

Even if it gets to -25°F overnight, you still have to get to work in the morning. With advanced Bosch® ceramic glow plugs, you can have your engine firing in less than two seconds even at that bone-chilling temperature. And these plugs were built to last – they’ll be around for the life of the engine, with no maintenance.

 

[DonFitzwater]

I bet they don't get 75k out of those glow plugs in arctic use.

 

[Doubleclutch]

Perhaps it has something to do with mass of cold metal between the grid heater and cylinder. Short for and I-6, but pretty massive for a V-8 configuration.

 

[AH64ID]

Perhaps it has something to do with mass of cold metal between the grid heater and cylinder. Short for and I-6, but pretty massive for a V-8 configuration.

I'd bet it's not as far as you think. The grid heater to #6 is pretty far on our motor.

 

[rscurtis]

The engine probably doesn't need glow plugs, they're installed to insure quick, clean starts to satisfy all types of owners- and the Punishment Agency.

 

[JR]

There are various other diesels in the parking lot at work, couple of 6.0s, 2 7.3s, and a 2010ish Duramax. Every single one of them have longer crank times and once they light stumble like they're down a cylinder for a couple of seconds before they smooth out. The best one of the bunch is the Duramax, but my 17 year old Cummins lights off faster and idles smoother than it will.
Its quite comical watching the Ford boys sometimes. Every single one of them has been stranded in the parking lot at one time or another over the years. The 7.3 was really the fault of the owner, he had GP issues and chose to ignore it and it came to a head on a -20 degree morning and he ran the batteries down trying to light it off.
Another time he let the wheel bearing go until it was so bad he was forced to change it and the rotor out in the parking lot after work.
The 6.0 boys have had a couple of cam sensor failures causing a no start, a HPOP failure, a starter failure, and something else that cut fuel to the injectors preventing it from starting. Can't remember what the culprit of that one was.
They all rag on each other about whose got the best truck but rarely will they say anything to me. I've got the oldest truck in the crew by 3 years (12 years older than the newest rig) and use it harder than any of them. Most of those guys don't even own a trailer or a camper.

 

[DonFitzwater]

Temp was -48 this am...............Nissan boys should be having a good time about now!

 

[Patty]

Ram EcoDiesel uses glow plugs and has started great this winter, especially when plugged in.

 

[DonFitzwater]

I didn't see the diesel Titan on the road today.........

 

[JR]

Ram EcoDiesel uses glow plugs and has started great this winter, especially when plugged in.

As well it should

 

[EDankievitch]

The use of Glo-plugs allows for lower compression ratio's which in turn lower combustion temps lowering NoX emmissions. It also allows for the use of lighter cranks and bearings and crankcases. Cost savings all the way around....

 

[DonFitzwater]

Well the Nissan boys have been driving all over town but haven't seen them out on the highway much since the cold temps have settled into the interior.........Makes me wonder if they are having cold weather drivability problems and aren't wanting to venture out of town in these temps???

 

[mwilson]

Well the Nissan boys have been driving all over town but haven't seen them out on the highway much since the cold temps have settled into the interior.........Makes me wonder if they are having cold weather drivability problems and aren't wanting to venture out of town in these temps???

They shouldn't be worried, you'd go tow them back??? Right??? And get a bunch of pictures while doing so??

Which would be like "Awesome"....Oo.

 

[DonFitzwater]

I actually did that a few years back with the VW folks......they were up here with some Vw's and audi's and the vw diesels stopped running just down the road from my work. It was something like -54 and they had no fuel heaters........I stopped to check on them and offer a ride as they were woefully ill prepared and offered to take them to the shop and let them warm up and make some coffee. They followed in an Audi and as it pulled into the drive, it quite so we just pushed it into the service bay and let it thaw out......there were finished with cold weather testing for the day.

I keep waiting to see the Nissan stopped on the side of the road but it's zipping all over the place, nearly every day! Gotta love that CUMMINS!