Posted on 01/01/2014 8:32:17 AM PST by Gay State Conservative
The problem will be the fuel. Warm battery won’t help that. A -40 is way different from even -20.
Are you talking about microwaving already-popped, or still un-popped, popping corn?
And wouldn't the emanating water vapor be a problem?
Regards
i got a pair of leg warmers i got fer my wife fer Christmas at my local auto parts store in their “diesel fitter” department that you can have
On my 1990 F250 FWD diesel, there is a heater on the fuel filter nad a block heater. I am the second owner and the original owner lived in Miuba.
However, he was a geologist with a degree earned back wnhen a second language and calculus were required of graduates.
Being both intelligent and a hunter, his truck was ordered with cold weather starting insurance.
On - let the Greenholes badmouth diesel. Taht way the demand for diesel won’t drive my fuel bill up.
;-)
Happy New Year!
Not wanting to disassemble the fuel system, I tried to use a diesel additive called "Diesel 9-1-1" to unclog it but this didn't work completely. I then called about a half dozen truck stops and could not find straight #1 type diesel anywhere. After all else had failed, I then read the owner's manual and found that I could run a mix of diesel #2 and kerosine. After buying a 5 gallon blue fuel tank, I was able to get enough in it and that cleared everything up almost immediately.
I would recommend consulting your owner's manual and find the right fuel mix for your conditions. My guess is that it will be nearly straight diesel #1 or kerosine.
You’ve never been in -40 weather, have you?
Not in Tampa, its 59 here and were complaining.
Wearing parkas bought the only time they’ve seen snow up in the NC mountains too no doubt, lol.
First off, do NOT use any type of starter spray (ether) into the intake system. Your pre-heater or glow plugs will ignite it and can cause an explosion.
With the newer ultra-low sulfer diesel fuel, it will gell at a higher temp if not treated or blended. Treatments mentioned earlier can help a little. The best thingto do in that low of temp is to blend fuel.
I would use a 60-40. 60% #2 diesel, 40% #1diesel or kerosene.
You can do all the other things to ensure you get started, but without the correct fuel, you will not be going far.
I’m the diesel truck shop foreman of a local trucking company. If you have any questions, freep-mail me, or ask away here.
Good luck.
The difference between -30 and -40 F or C is major with respect to starting. For that matter, at -40 all the fluids turn to molasses: brake, power steering, transmission, diffs so when you first start out it will a few miles until the vehicle is driving half way normal. Fuel economy will take a hit even after warming up.
IMHO the 100W drop light under the hood is not going to do much good although seems like putting it at the battery and wrapping the a towel could give enough oomph to get the engine to fire up.
Last winter in Ontario, my battery struggled at -30 but -40 killed it. It was not all that old at all and over sized or at least I thought over sized enough. Wrong! Barely got it started and pulled into a Canadian Tire for a new battery. Whatever battery they put in the truck would spin the engine like a turbine at -40.
Long term if you need it, you need some heaters and I like to be self sufficient so no plug in required. Put in a separate deep cycle battery with an isolator to keep it electrically separate from your starting battery. Install immersion heaters into the oil pan and transmission plus an electric blanket for the batteries. Rig these to all power from the deep cycle battery and use on/off switches via a relays to energize the heat when needed. The alternator will keep both the OEM starting and auxiliary battery charged.
Good luck!
The worst part is travel. One time I got off the plane up north and realized I had forgotten it was winter. Did not even own a heavy jacket.
Bookmarking this for later, just in case it ever gets that cold down here in the South central part of the USA. (Global cooling, ya know!) ;)
If you don’t have coolant rated for that temperature, fill the tank and leave it running all night. Make sure you have winterized diesel fuel.
#1 Look for indoor parking - a local gas station maybe or a warehouse.
#2 Keep it out of the wind- Drive onto a big tarp and pull it up over the front of the car. Let it hang down on the sides. You can even tie up the lower part against the vehicle body.
#3 Use 100 watt lamps. One for the battery side of the engine and one for the oil pan.
#4 Leave the transmission in Neutral and the emergency brake off. Chock your wheels.
When it starts, keep the RPM below 1000 for five minutes. Wait 10 minutes before moving the car. Cover your radiator with cardboard while driving during the day if the temp stays below -20.
Make sure there is warm clothing for everyone in the car when driving. Keep food and fluids (and TP) in case you break down. This is the kind of weather than kills quickly so think ahead. Good Luck
Where will I be? central Quebec,a couple of hundred miles north of Montreal.What kind of truck am I driving? It's not a truck,it's an Audi A3 TDI (diesel).Do I have access to power to plug anything in? Nope! Should I keep it running all night? Maybe,but if forced to choose I'd rather not start than have to explain my theft claim to the insurance company...or to the police (in French).
I'll just give it a shot I guess...and if you don't hear from me again you'll know that I went to that big hockey rink in the sky!
Good suggestions, especially bringing battery inside. Any battery over 5 years old is suspect in average cold, but -40 will KO even a strong, new one.
I lived on Quebec border for several years. Key was to tuck nose of car up against a building to keep it out of the wind. If no structure is handy, orient back end of car into the wind when parking. Ideally, park on leeward side of a building to shelter from the wind. Look for a parking garage if in a city. Trouble lights work well, as many suggested. As another person noted, shifting was harder than starting the car. I had a manual trans Toyota that always started but was a bear to shift until it was warmed up.
Make sure you have boots/blankets/protective clothing for you and your passengers. Getting stranded due to an accident or breakdown can subject you to life-threatening weather. -40 is lethally cold and I worry more about human life than getting the car started. People not from the north often underestimate the danger of cold to themselves.
Anything past 20 below we just tuck her in right over the fuel injectors.
I was in ND recently. It was negative 10 or so then. Point being that I separated the ignition key from the remote control fob.
So I could start the car and leave it running, then lock it. No theft worries.
(Too cold there for most criminals anyway.)
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