I don't like using ether period. Especially since you can start a diesel just as well with WD-40. WD-40 fog ignites easily so be careful!;)

Agreed. WD-40 is IMO useless as a lubricant, but well known among big diesel folk as starting fluid. Even works with Wankel (aka: rotary) engines where regular starting fluid will destroy them.

Using starting fluid of any kind in a glow-plug or heated intake engine is risky without disabling the glow-plugs and overdoses can cause bigger problems, even in big diesels it can cause stretched head bolts etc.

whunter;all,

it's been said for eons in the US Army that: "NOTHING can be made idiot-PROOF because idiots are so ingenious."

over the years, i've found that to be TRUE! = promiscious use of ether in engines of all kinds is one of those.

yours, tn46 :D

My '77 U1000 Mog has the ether injection option. No glow plugs in the OM352.963 engine. Of course the little cartridge cans to put in it are probably impossible to find now.

I had a CAT with ether injection also, called a "cold start aid". The trick is that the ether only goes in in a controlled shot, not as long as you want to hold the button etc., and was disabled if the engine was on. That of course was a non glow-plug direct-injection 10.4L engine, big difference w/o glow-plugs.

Oh, and I agree on "idiot-proof". In my too many years of Engineering, I preferred the term "idiot resistant".

Go to your local Penske truck service center. The original cans may be hard to find, but heavy trucks use this system and an upgrade is surely available!;)

I watched whunter use ether and he uses it exactly as described.
He didn't mention that he also does not run the glow plugs when he starts them this way. GPs and ether dso not mix.

Would it be safer to wait another minute for the glow plugs to cool off (from red hot) after you hear the glow plug relay click off before cranking the engine?

I have been told by several folks that the chemical make up of WD40 has changed and it is no longer flamable and will not help a diesel start.

My powerstroke truck sat for over a week in sub zero weather a month or so ago.

I plugged in the block heater a while and tried to start it - nothing. After replacing the fuel filter (I suspected it was frozen) pouring fresh diesel into the filter housing with the new filter - charging the batteries, etc.... it would crank and smoke, but not start.

wd40 had no effect...

In desperation, I sprayed about a 1 second burst of ether into the air filter housing AFTER waiting for the glow plug relay to shut off (and a minute or so after that) and the engine started - it did rev up over 2500 rpm even with that little amount of ether.


So - certainly it is a last resort and must be used with care.

one more method
 

room, my neighbors 1985 300d didnt get the heat from the block heater because of a broken ac cord,near zero degrees,i took 2 five gallon buckets and filled with hot water from the house water heater,poured slowly over the valve cover,kept the water comming for 4 total buckets,cranked the engine and got a start.
larry perkins lou ky

wd40 is not a cold start aid. It is a way to start the car if you have a need to bleed and for some reason your prime pump does not work correctly. You have to spray it directly into the intake and keep spraying it. if the engine is sound it will run on the wd 40 until the fuel lines bleed themselves and take over as long as you keep spraying.

Thanks for clearing that up for me - and for making the point about priming - as I'll be needing to do just that once I finally put my 606 back together again after replacing all the fuel lines, rebuilding the fuel pump, and replacing the delivery valve seals, and having the injectors rebuilt....
You probably just saved my new starter a lot of un necessary cranking!
Thanks a million!

My pleasure.

Using even a 1-second shot of ether into a high-compression, indirect-injection diesel engine with precombustion chambers and glow plugs is pure idiocy. Most cans of ether explicitly warn against using it in that type of engine. Cracked rings, bent rods, all sorts of fun things can happen. The ether simply ignites too early in the compression stroke.

Most engines can bs started normally (without ether, or WD-40, or gasoline, or anything else) if the glow plugs, battery, and starter are all in good condition. If they are not, fix them. Or you could be the proud new owner of a 1000-lb doorstop / shop ornament.

It's a shame the first post on this thread can't be deleted.


:deadhorse:

So if you are planning to use ether (starting fluid) and want to be safe...disconnect the glow plug relay. No chance of igniting the gp's and a quick 1 second burst into the air intake and you'll be good to go.

I have not had any luck using wd-40 as a starting aid. I have also never tried the gas on a rag trick. I'll keep it in mind if all other measures are out of the picture.