20 deg in ATL this morning. Started like a champ.
 

Don't even have the wiring for the block heater. It misfired a few times but so much better than it was in the past.

12 in TN and no heater.Fired 1st time.

It was 5˚ here this morning and it took about 12 seconds of cranking for the CD to get going.:(

Plus the doors were frozen shut. I had to lightly hip check the doors to break them free and then pull hard. I was praying that the door seals wouldn't rip, they're not cheap on the CD.

Max wouldn't start this morning. I have a block heater but have never used it. Are you supposed to leave it plugged in all night or do you just plug it in in the morning?

I did double glow and have the purple wife pulled.

The biggest difference in cold starting for me was increased fuel.

19 in Lawrenceville this AM and my 300SD cranked right up after a 30 second glow.
I did have my typical squirrel in the cluster squeal until the cabin warmed up enough for the speedo gear lube to thin out though.

Not pulling the purple wife can cause rough starts for sure.:D:D

I did the double glow but don't have afterglow. I do reset the glow cycle before attempting to start though. That way my plugs will still glow while cranking.

I glow until the relay clicks off, then reset and glow until it clicks off a second time, then reset and start after the light goes out. About 70 seconds all together.

Currently it's 3.9 degrees here in Indianapolis. Last night it was 1. something. The wind chill is FAR below zero.

Yes my 300SD has been plugged in. It sits on the street so it gets the grunt of the wind chill. It started right up with no problem yesterday and today. Yesterday I plugged it in about 2 hours before departure. Today it was plugged in all night. I just turn it on till the glow light goes out, hold the pedal to the floor and crank. I have started it without being plugged in down to about 12 degrees.

They funny part is... it's SOOO cold out that while driving around last night the temp never came off 40 degrees C. I have since added some cardboard to the radiator and now it get's back up to the normal 80. The heat isn't nearly as hot at 40. I made several stop's last night, each one about 30-45 mins, and when I came out to the car the temp was all the way back to zero. The wind and cold air cooled the engine down very very quickly.

I wish I had 2 keys so I could just leave it running. :cool:

Duplicate keys are $12 each at the dealer. You can just give them your VIN to have it made.:cool:

Thanks I just called World Wide Motors here in Indianapolis. They charge $16 but it take at least 24hrs. I go to Detroit in the morning till Saturday. Guess it will wait till next week. Might be a good time to get my mileage badges too, I think I am due like 3 of them.

Thanks

Lots of threads on this, but to summerize:
-You can leave it on all night, it just sucks up extra electricity. 500 watts * 12 hours = 6000 watt hours --> 6 KWH. 15 cents a KWH * 6 KWH = 90 cents a night.
-2-3 hours is usually enough.

-Jim

Using a timer for the Block heater is the way to go. Make sure it will pull the Amps and any extension cord you use will do it too. I think it is 30Amps you need IIRC. A heavy duty timer set for three hours is about perfect. Make sure you drape the Extension cord over the mirror and in your way so you don't forget to unplug before you crank and drive off.

Although I normally do not bother unless I need to get an early start in below 20F degree weather. Anything above 20F I will cycle the glow plugs two or three times before cranking. This works for both my Diesel vehicles.

500 watts / 120 Vac = 4.2 amps.

Just about every timer out there is rated for 10-15 amps. Plenty for the job.

-Jim

Its more like 3.5-4 amps! 30 amps is 3,600 watts, that's like 7-8 halogen shop lamps. :eek: Most outdoor cords have plenty of capacity for a block heater....they're generally 14 gauge and support 1600ish watts.

It got DOWN to 20? :) It hasn't been UP to 20 in a couple days here. -13F this morning. My Mercedes temp gauge read -24.5C on my drive this morning. I had it plugged in for 2.5 hours.

Unless the oil pan is made of human skin wind chill means nothing
Good glow plugs , good compression , good batteries and good starter the reason they start. Anyone see a common word there?
Everything of mine starts easily down to zero except the boat she is missing that one vital element of compression. A gallon of Lucas gives me fake oil pressure so I can sleep at night

4F this morning, my '85 190D fired off after the glow light went out no problem.
At idle while I cleared the driveway the car wouldn't get over 40C indicated. Once I started driving temp climbed to normal pretty quickly, not as fast as I'd like though, she's due for a coolant flush and a new thermostat. A new FRENCH thermostat (which is what World-Pac delivers. The Chinese made ones you get at FLAPS are NOT as good.


The block heater draws 400w or just a bit less, will work fine off my Coleman 400w inverter.

I was in tshirt and short drinking beer at the pub on Friday outside. It was wet but quite pleasant.

Clothing attire for weather is relative. My parents are in their first winter in FL. My dad gets up in the morning and takes his dog for walks in shorts and a t-shirt in 50-60F weather. His neighbors think he is crazy. :D But he is used to the temps I am having now, so 60F is warm.

I remember when I was in wrestling in college. We flew out to San Francisco during January one year. When we left the temp was 0F. When we landed in San Fran is was 60F. It was a weight cutting day so most of us went for runs outside. A lot of us had our shirts off because it seemed pretty darn warm for us. A lot of people told us we were crazy as they walked around in their thick jacket. We told them we were just in 0F so this seems warm. It's all relative (as Einstein would say ;))

In the spring when it starts getting up to the 40sF here people start wearing shorts and t-shirts. My SO had her first winter here last year (she grew up in Las Vegas) and didn't believe me but sure enough when it reached 40F, people were wearing them. She actually said to me, it does seem warm. :P

I was driving around last night when it was -5; I had it plugged in for two hours, and that made a big difference. However, my throttle linkage lube was not happy- a few times, I'd accelerate up to 2000 rpm and when I let off, it just stayed there! Kinda scary. Looks like it's time to re-lube

$12 for a replacement key? My d@mn dealer charged me $35 a couple of years ago and it had to be ordered. It also came with that pos head that falls off after about a month. I finally looked through all the key blanks at Lowes one day when the key guy wasn't there and found that the 123.617 keys (I'm not sure what year MB changed the keys) are the same blanks as the older Toyota (Axxess 31R) blanks. You just have to file the shoulders a bit using your original key as a guide. Now I have a key with a head that stays intact.

See attached pic. The green arrow shows where the shoulders will need to be filed. The red line shows the shape of the shoulders prior to filing.

I'll start another thread on this. I should have done it a long time ago.

That's pretty cool. Yeah I paid $12 each for 2 keys from my local dealership one year ago. It took 2 days to for them to be ready for pickup, but I placed the order over the phone with my VIN.

18 F in Athens. Started immediately with one regular glow cycle and block heater. No smoke, ran smooth.

I think it was colder than 20 this morning here in the ATL!

Coldest I can remember starting my CD was 11 degrees. She has only failed to start once and that was inop glow plugs, not excessive cold.

I have yet to have a 123 fail to start due to cold with working glow plugs and a good battery, and I've never owned one with a block heater.

Winmutt - have you drank beer at the Porter Beer Bar? Have heard pretty good things about that spot.

I keep it to east atlanta plenty of bars and clubs and I can walk home if needed.

Wind chill was 6 degree.

Yeah lets start talking real cold though, its been single digits 2 days in a row for me, not over freezing in a week.

Won't the wind affect how fast an object chills down to the ambient temp?

Sure but it won't ever get any colder than ambient temp.

Well this morning when I got up, it was 42Deg. and when I decided to venture out side. it was 55Deg. at 11:30am

One glow and she kicked right over:P, and I was off to PNP.:D

Do I need the block heater :confused: :D.

Freezing my ___ off in calif.

Charlie

Winmutt......two for two up here, and we hit 17F...

Both started 1st hit after two glows. :D

I was happy because the F-350 I didn't even try to start....Seems someone forgot to add a little #2 to the B100....:rolleyes:..... my bet is its fuel is somewhere between Crisco and solid state. ;)