~7*F in NY today, won't start :( - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

ARINUTS · #1 12-22-2008, 11:11 AM

It was extremely cold this morning and my 83 300sd wouldn't start. I know the wind chill factor doesn't mean much, but I would think with all the wind , whatever "warmth" from the glow plugs would not last very long. So what do I need to do to have a reliable diesel at 0*F ? ( a heater that plugs into an outlet is not possible, as there are no outlets anywhere near by)

kerry · #2 12-22-2008, 11:16 AM

If you consistently get temperatures that cold, you need a block heater in my opinion. If a long extension cord won't work, a small generator might. At those temperatures, everything on the car needs to be up to snuff. Good glow plugs with no carbon around them, good compression, top notch battery, good starter, winter fuel or additives in the fuel.

Thinking a little outside the box, if you have a gasoline car that starts, you could put quick release connections in the hoses on the coolant system, start the gas car, circulate the hot coolant from the gas car thru the diesel until it gets warm, start the diesel and disconnect the cars.

vstech · #3 12-22-2008, 11:22 AM

is that minus 7 or around 7F?... and is that windchill temps? if it's winchill, then your car should start fine with good glowplugs. IF your car has good compression, good thin oil and a good battery.
if one or more of these are not up to snuff... good luck cranking and cranking.

Jadavis · #4 12-22-2008, 11:26 AM

Do the valves need to be adjusted?

-Jim

Chad300tdt · #5 12-22-2008, 11:28 AM

How long did you keep the starter cranking? I had to crank for 12 seconds before my CD fired up this morning in 5˚.

I made sure to explain this to my wife this morning, since she's used to starting gasoline engines in the winter. She wouldn't keep the starter cranking because she thought it was harmful to do so.

She left for work today being nervous about starting the CD after work. She'll be fine, she just needs to experience an extended cranking before all the cylinders are firing.

I think she's going to call me on the cell phone so I can "be there" when she starts it this evening.

kerry · #6 12-22-2008, 11:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chad300tdt

, since she's used to starting gasoline engines in the winter. She wouldn't keep the starter cranking because she thought it was harmful to do so.

Got the same issue with my wife. It's hard to think outside the gasser box.

I forget to add in my original post that synthetic oil makes all the difference in the world in cranking speeds below about 10 degrees.

pawoSD · #7 12-22-2008, 12:58 PM

9F this morning, mine started in 2 seconds.

MB battery, good wiring, good starter, good glow plugs, synthetic oil, valves properly adjusted, and good compression all make for easy starts.

I don't even need to press the pedal to start mine.

So far my record for starting is -12F.....

And thats all without a block heater.

Wind makes no difference to the glow plugs, they are sealed inside the pre-chamber....it will get just as warm in there with 50mph wind as with no wind at all.

Fitz · #8 12-22-2008, 01:30 PM

On the Eastern Front, they sometimes had to build fires under the tanks' engines to get them started. I think about those men every time it gets really cold like this.

cjdave · #9 12-22-2008, 01:41 PM

Some tricks that will help. As stated above everything needs to be in good shape, battery, valve adjustment etc...
Cycle your glow plugs at least 2 times before turning the starter. After that Hold the accelerator petal on the floor while cranking, if it doesn't start after a couple of seconds cranking stop and count to 10, cycle the glow plugs and try it again at idle or just a little bit of throttle. Cranking at full throttle floods the cylinders with fuel and seals up the rings a little and helps on the second try, counting to 10 lets the fuel condense on the cylinder walls helping the compression especial on a old diesel.

Flounder · #10 12-22-2008, 01:50 PM

I agree with everything stated above, plus I've been using 12-16 oz of Power Service (in the white bottle) every tankful. Maybe it's snake oil, but on the other hand my '81 did start this morning in 12 degree cold with no block heater. I did 2 glow cycles, and ran the starter for maybe 6 seconds and she was running.

I also have a new starter and big honkin' battery cables.

Hatterasguy · #11 12-22-2008, 04:32 PM

If its in good shape it will start, do some searching in the archives and go through it. If that doesn't help check the compression, it may just be worn out.

curtludwig · #12 12-22-2008, 05:17 PM

7F should start, follow the proceedure as outlined in the manual...
If the battery is more than 3 years old replace it. If the battery cables look at all worn replace them. If the glow plugs have more than 50,000 miles or 3 years replace them. Replace all fuel filters even if you replaced them just "a couple months ago". Run a bottle of Power Service through the system, adjust the valves even if they were done "a couple months ago".
If I had a nickle for everybody who did all those services "just recently" and then reset the valves and had their car start fine...

If none of that helps you might have low compression and nothing other than a rebuild will help. In that case you can mask the symptoms by using a block heater. If an extension cord won't work get a 110ah marine battery and a 400w inverter. Connect inverter to battery and block heater to inverter. You'll have a MAX of 2 hours heating time but at 7F 20 minutes should be plenty. Recharge the battery promptly or its life will be severely compromised...

LUVMBDiesels · #13 12-22-2008, 06:13 PM

The SDL started on the first try this morning. One glow cycle and no preheater.

jnc19610 · #14 12-22-2008, 08:58 PM

synthetic oil.... 100% battery...

the better it spins, the better chance you have at starting...

It's a compression engine... make it spin.. put synthetic oil in it if you want to start it cold.

Chad300tdt · #15 12-22-2008, 09:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kerry

Got the same issue with my wife. It's hard to think outside the gasser box.

I forget to add in my original post that synthetic oil makes all the difference in the world in cranking speeds below about 10 degrees.

Well my wife called me after she was already on the route home this evening. She successfully started the car in 12˚ after 2 glows and 3 seconds of cranking. She was quite happy that it fired up so easily and seems a bit more confident. It was a marked difference in her tone about owning a diesel. I think she's back to being happy again.

I'll have her start it tomorrow morning with me there. I'm sure sitting overnight without any sun will bring us back to over 10 seconds of cranking.

I looked over everything tonight and it all looks good. I think I'll start using the block heater on a timer since we'll be getting closer to 0˚ temps pretty soon. I've been considering a deep cycle battery in the trunk with a power inverter and timer so the block heater can preheat for an hour before she leaves work. Then I can hook the battery up to a charger when she gets home and let it charge until morning.