Cold Morning Rountines

[01_USACummins]

Hey guys just curious of everyone's cold morning routines I know everyone's cold morning may mean something different to everyone else. Well I'm in North Carolina and at about 45* out I may start the truck let it idle for about one minute and get rolling.. Is that bad? At what temperature out is it bad to let the truck just idle to warmup? And at what temperature should I let the truck idle for a few more minutes before I roll on to work? I have been really considering the high idle switch but I need the previous questions answered first and also what if you have a programmer such as the quadzilla or EJWA? Will the high idle switch still plug and play and work as it should?

[Me78569]

I really don't idle mine for long unless it is below 0.  30 seconds or so depending on how long it takes me to clean the snow off the window..  Once temps get down to 0 ish I will let it idle for a few minutes and kick it into 3 cyl mode.

Bigger thing is taking it easy while things warm up.  I keep boost down around 5 psi until temps come up to above 140.

I wouldn't worry so much about how long you warm the truck up.

 

The high idle switch works the same with out without any tuner on the market.  the nice thing about the high idle switch is it simply makes the truck think it is a set temp out to enable the factory high idle feature.  

 

If it is cold out or I am busy and have time to let the truck warm up I will flip on 3 cyl mode, and enable my exhaust brake, this will warm the truck up to 140*f within 5 minutes.  The Switch also allows you to do prolonged 6 cyl high idle if you ever need ot idle the truck for a long period of time.  This will prevent Cylinder washdown when idling for long periods.     

Edited November 16, 2015 by Me78569

[01_USACummins]

Awesome man thanks everything you said makes perfect sense. 

[Mopar1973Man]

Like myself. I live up here in Idaho and can get temps as low as -25*F.

Sub zero. I attempt to plug in if possible. If not possible I start allow the high idle software to do its job for a short bit allowing the engine oil to warm just a weebit. High idle either 6 or 3 cylinder typically can heat coolant at least 1-2*F a second. Once coolant reaches 80-100*F I move on. Oil temperature will be really close to coolant temperature.

ZERO to 32*F I'll fire up and allow a little idle time not much more than 1-5 minutes tops. Just long enough to gather things I need for the day.

Above 32*F I fire up and just leave.

In all cases I'll drive easy and light footed till the coolant temp crosses the bottom end of the normal span, which is about 165*F and then on to normal speed and driving style.

[01_USACummins]

Awesome such a peace of mind knowing that bit of information. 

[Wild and Free]

Like stated above mine is usually plugged in below freezing temps so it is usually just enough idle to get things pumping and circulating seat belt on ect and then drive easy until coolant temps hit around 140-150 then its game on.

[dripley]

Same here, not alot of idle time. Just take it easy until you get some heat in it. i usually dont see the temps some of the members do. I live in Hickory NC but work out of town all the time. 

[TFaoro]

Mine doesn't move unless it's up to 100*. Thanks to the 3cyl idle that doesn't take much time. I have my reasons though!

[Wild and Free]

On more than a few occasions on both the 02 and 05 I have had the front completely blocked off and have driven 60-70 mph for over an hour in temps of -20*f and colder in the wind and never saw the coolant temp pass 140-150*f and never get much past 40*f in the cab. Just so much environmentally related  parasitic heat loss it never warms up. Heck the tranny temps never even broke the 75-80* mark.

Edited November 16, 2015 by Wild and Free

[LiveOak]

Likewise, anytime I expect to drive my truck, I plug in the block heater either the night before or at least 4 or 5 hours prior to starting the engine.  Usually this is enough to bring what the IAT sensor sees to not engage the grid heaters.  If it is really cold (low 20's and lower) I let it idle for a few minutes with the exhaust brake engaged to get the coolant temperature up.  I also install the winter front louvers on the grill to restrict as much cold air across the radiator and engine compartment. 

Note: If you use your block heater and have a cat, make sure you either blow the horn a few times or check under the hood to make sure it is not all warm and cozey in the engine compartment.  Failure to do so can lead to a big mess under the hood and started the day off really bad. 

[Hawkez]

Just now, LiveOak said:

Note: If you use your block heater and have a cat, make sure you either blow the horn a few times or check under the hood to make sure it is not all warm and cozey in the engine compartment.  Failure to do so can lead to a big mess under the hood and started the day off really bad. 

[Me78569]

I must just be cheap, but I don't bother plugging it in unless it is below 0 lol.

[TFaoro]

-15* F with a blocked radiator and mine is up to 190 in 15 min of driving. That's weird W&F. I do put something between the intercooler and radiator though so there's literally zero flow through it.

[Wild and Free]

These are days we are talking -50 and colder wind chill days. Sub zero and 30 mph winds suck any heat away as fast as its generated then add road speed on top of that. We have outlets in our parking lot at work and I have had my cummins snort buck and fart and be extremely angry @ start up in extreme sub zero temps even being plugged in for 10-11 hours.

Anyone on the northern plains will tell you to stick the science and tails of wind chill not having any effect on iron. As a Diesel tech for over 20 years and a lot of it as a field tech can attest to the fact that the same engine at the same sub zero temps parked in the wind versus out of the wind act totally different. Can't explain it but all who deal with this know well that wind does definitely have an effect on iron, can't explain it but it does.

Edited November 16, 2015 by Wild and Free

[Me78569]

Strange,

 

I go back home ( international Falls Mn) about every year around christmas time.  If I plug it in for 2 or 3 hours it will jump to life regardless of how cold it is, could be -30 / -40 pre wind chill pretty easy.  However my truck at -30 driving struggles to build more than 140-160 coolant with the front blocked.  trans temp never hits 60*f

 

 

[LiveOak]

Me78569, it is not a required thing to do as these engines will start and run without any cold start aids.  I do this out of wanting to get the maximum life out of my truck batteries as a cold start with the IAT sensor reading less than approximately 60 degrees (59 to be more precise) results in the grid heaters being engaged until the IAT sensor sees 60 degrees or about 15-20 mph (typically with the door locks auto latch in my truck at least).

http://articles.mopar1973man.com/general-cummins/32-air-system/102-grid-heater

While the grid heaters are working, this places a tremendous load on the batteries and charging system.  Over time this can shorten the life of the start batteries. 

It is also far less wear and tear starting an engine that has some degree of heat or pre-heating prior to start.  It also rapidly accelerates the engine reaching full operating temperature. 

On edit: looks like you were posting while I was typing my reply.  At temperatures in the extreme cold range below zero, I doubt pluging in the block heater will get the engine intake track warm enough in temperatures like -30 to cause the IAT to see 59 degrees. 

In temperatures like that, placing the transfer case in neutral and the transmission in 3rd gear will be required to get the transmission oil warm enough to make shifting reasonably normal.  That or a transmission oil heater mod. 

Edited November 16, 2015 by LiveOak

[AH64ID]

Regardless of temperature Cummins considers more than 3-5 minutes of idling to be excessive. 

I wouldn't ever let it idle until warm, just enough to sure proper lubrication and drive easy (load and rpms) until it gets warm. Oil typically takes a while longer than coolant to warm up. If my thermostat opens after about 12 miles it may take 15-20 miles to see oil pressure stabilize with warm oil. 

 

Windchill is an apparent effect on living tissue. The only thing wind will do to a cast iron block is make it cool down quicker and slow down how quick it warms up. A block at -30° will start the same on a 0 mph wind day as a 50 mph wind day. All your truck cares about is ambient temperature. 

 

Since a couple of folks in this discussion also have 3rd gens they use 66°F in the intake manifold and run the post-heat cycle for 2 minutes or until 18 mph is reached. The post-heat cycle varies based on ambient temperature. The IAT can get well above 100° after startup but the post-heat still runs its programmed 2 min or 18 mph cycle. 

 

 

Edited November 16, 2015 by AH64ID

[notlimah]

Although I don't see temps below 0 and rarely even below 32* I still plug in and run 3cyl high idle any time I'm going to drive to work in the morning and the temp is going to be below 40. This is mainly because my drive to work takes less then 10 minutes so I can't rely on the drive to get her completely warm so doing what I can, pre-drive, to get things as warm as possible is what I see as the best thing for me. Obviously as you can tell by the replies, everyone's routine and take on this is different.

[Mopar1973Man]

Every thing I do is at least 100 mile day of driving. So getting to operating temperature isn't hard. Even my short days just going to Riggins, ID and back is 30-35 miles. Still get to operating temperature.

[CSM]

7 hours ago, Wild and Free said:

These are days we are talking -50 and colder wind chill days. Sub zero and 30 mph winds suck any heat away as fast as its generated then add road speed on top of that. We have outlets in our parking lot at work and I have had my cummins snort buck and fart and be extremely angry @ start up in extreme sub zero temps even being plugged in for 10-11 hours.

Anyone on the northern plains will tell you to stick the science and tails of wind chill not having any effect on iron. As a Diesel tech for over 20 years and a lot of it as a field tech can attest to the fact that the same engine at the same sub zero temps parked in the wind versus out of the wind act totally different. Can't explain it but all who deal with this know well that wind does definitely have an effect on iron, can't explain it but it does.

I don't miss that.  Working outside on those days sucked. 

As for how they act, I would imagine that any heat produced anywhere in the engine is reduced significantly faster via conduction than out of the wind.