Just thinking 20 years out when I can afford one....... and they are fully depreciated....... if they turn out to be reliable.......

Seriously, the CDIs are considered "no wait to start" diesels. How well does that fly in cold weather?

Ken300D

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1982 300D at 351K miles
1984 300SD at 217K miles
1987 300D at 370K miles

What cold weather?

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Kent Christensen
Albuquerque
'07 GL320CDI, '10 CL550. '01 Porsche Boxster
Two BMW motorcycles

EVIL statement...
what's the temps over there? here in southern NC it was 18F this morning...
John

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John HAUL AWAY, OR CRUSHED CARS!!! HELP ME keep the cars out of the crusher! A/C Thread
"as I ride with my a/c on... I have fond memories of sweaty oily saturdays and spewing R12 into the air. THANKS for all you do!

My drivers:
1987 190D 2.5Turbo
1987 560SL convertible
1987 190D 2.5-5SPEED!!!

1987 300TD
2005 Dodge Sprinter 2500 158"WB
1994GMC 2500 6.5Turbo truck... I had to put the ladder somewhere!

Look for videos of them on youtube....it appears that they start up mighty quick in the cold...compared to our old diesels anyways....

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-diesel is not just a fuel, its a way of life-
'15 GLK250 Bluetec 118k - mine - (OC-123,800)
'17 Metris(VITO!) - 37k - wifes (OC-41k)
'09 Sprinter 3500 Winnebago View - 62k (OC - 67k)
'13 ML350 Bluetec - 95k - dad's (OC-98k)
'01 SL500 - 103k(km) - dad's (OC-110,000km)
'16 E400 4matic Sedan - 148k - Brothers (OC-155k)

Answer is probably best found from the fleet manager of UPS, or FedEx or DHL in Alaska, Montana, or North Dakota etc.
I haven't heard any complaints of cold weather starting problems from Sprinter owners on the Yahoo group.

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1977 300d 70k--sold 08
1985 300TD 185k+
1984 307d 126k--sold 8/03
1985 409d 65k--sold 06
1984 300SD 315k--daughter's car
1979 300SD 122k--sold 2/11
1999 Fuso FG Expedition Camper
1993 GMC Sierra 6.5 TD 4x4
1982 Bluebird Wanderlodge CAT 3208--Sold 2/13

When I rented a Isuzu NPR truck last winter (5.2L 4-cyl diesel), it was around 20 degrees or so and it took a 7 second glow. Didn't need anything after that since the engine was hot or warm all day.

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Adam Lumsden
(83) 300D
Vice-President of the MBCA International Stars Section

couple of my local construction buddies have the sprinters they love em and they been drivin around all weekend in the minus temp range
I feel for you vstech 18 is not north carolina weather to me but i spent my winters on pamlico sound

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commercial fisherman diesel in my blood in my boats trucks and Dear old Dad has had me drivin them since i got my first license in 1968
1986 300 SDL 427654
1999 Chevy Crew Cab Dually 225423
1986 300 SDL 287000 Dad's
1987 190 Turbo 158000 Mom's (my inheritance)

I have a 2006 E320 CDI and it's been pretty cold here in Indiana. 9-10 F. Turn the key glows for maybe 1 second and off you go. No stutter, hesitation. From my past experience it does take a little longer to warm up but other than that it's wonderfu.

3 point start

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I fired up my 300sd yesterday evening after she had sat for two weeks through quite a cold spell. We had temps on the weekend down to -18 C.

When I started her it was -10 to -11 C or about 14 F. Started OK. You need to give a little extra gas pedal when they fire or it just seems to die .....my old VW diesel was just the same.

Much colder than that and I would use the block heater. When you want her to start, you want her to start!

I only used my heater once this winter....and it wasn't even that cold out....I got too lazy to plug it in since the car starts fine without it.

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-diesel is not just a fuel, its a way of life-
'15 GLK250 Bluetec 118k - mine - (OC-123,800)
'17 Metris(VITO!) - 37k - wifes (OC-41k)
'09 Sprinter 3500 Winnebago View - 62k (OC - 67k)
'13 ML350 Bluetec - 95k - dad's (OC-98k)
'01 SL500 - 103k(km) - dad's (OC-110,000km)
'16 E400 4matic Sedan - 148k - Brothers (OC-155k)

I use the block heater frequently. It started at 7 no problem, but I get heat quicker in the morning. Can't wait for the -6 F expected on Sunday.

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Adam Lumsden
(83) 300D
Vice-President of the MBCA International Stars Section

We had our new 2006 CDI up in Yosemite, starting up first thing in the morning, the ambient temperature was about 27 F, she started just as fast as she does when it is in the 50s/60s outside (1 second glow). One odd thing though the way she starts is that she turns over once before firing (kind of like a gasser) which is unlike my 87 TD which fires on the very first crank. I wonder if this is normal for a CDI? Could it be because the newer CDIs have lower compression than the older designs?

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sophie2
1987 300TD, 168K
1981 300D 220K
1968 250S W115 Diesel Converted,
2006 E320 CDI
2006 Yanmar 3YM30 / Vindo Sloop
29 Vintage Bicycles

Ya, I haven't used the block heater all winter......... Coldest I've had the opportunity to start at was 15F. Glowed her for about 30 seconds, cranked and she hit on the second revolution. A little throttle for about a minute, and she sat their and idled for warm-up about 15 minutes and I was off......

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-Matt

EPA Section 609 Certified MVAC Technician
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Oil Burner Kartel Member #10

Ahh the smell of Diesel Fuel, it's like coffee in the morning!

My Car:

1982 300SD Turbo Diesel (231,500 miles!) RIP

1984 300SD Turbo Diesel Custom (235,500 mi on driveline.) - On Road!!

www.icsrepair.com

I dont know how but my 2006 starts for me down to 15 so far first time every time, no hesitation. My 06 dodge ram on the other hand starts and runs ratty for about 30 seconds then smoothes out on high idle (1000 rpm) till yor ready to go

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2007 GL 450 alabaster white, macadamia leather, Premium I, plus lots 0 goodies
2006 Dodge CTD 2500 Megacab Laramie
1996 Mitsu eclipse spyder Conv