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  #1  
Old 01-02-2013, 09:17 PM
Silber Adler's Avatar
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Location: Living on a gravel road in a Red State
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4 deg F not prepared.

We had the coldest day in 2 years. My Benz sat outside. It has 4 good glow plugs, a fair battery and 15w40 oil. I go out to hook up the block heater. The hood release cable doesn't work, it breaks off. It won't start with having 4 cylinders trying against one cyl just pushing back. Net result no block heater.

I go online to this forum and try to figure out how to open the hood. Not much luck the snow and sun almost blind me from seeing inside the slots in the hood. I lean against the hood star and it breaks off.

Get out the minivan, rip off the drivers side weather stripping when I open the door, all frozen. At least it starts. Come back at noon and start the diesel reluctantly. Put a vice grip on the cable and it finally pulls. Insert a temporary cable on the hood.

Take the car in for new snow tires. Everything is still ice here

Put in an order with Peach for a new glow plug, cable, handle and a Star, (wife's order) the Fricken Star cost more than the rest.

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  #2  
Old 01-02-2013, 09:30 PM
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Wish you better luck with the rest of your New Year!

For Me something unexpected also broke. I turned the latch on a Dead Bolt Lock to go out side and a lever inside of the Lock broke.
Not a big deal except that it is one of the ways out I had planned incase of a Fire.
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  #3  
Old 01-02-2013, 09:41 PM
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Hair dryer approximates a block heater in a pinch.
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  #4  
Old 01-02-2013, 09:50 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by moon161 View Post
Hair dryer approximates a block heater in a pinch.
That would have made his morning even more fun. Crawling under the car with a hair dryer because the car won't start and the hood won't open .
Then his wife comes out looking for her hair dryer. .

Happy New Year
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  #5  
Old 01-02-2013, 09:51 PM
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I hear your grumbles.

Just one of those things. My wife calls it a cluster fk.

Keep your door unlocked and some form of personal protection available.

I usually just keep my key in the ignition of my vehicles. I have a wire stuck out the side of my grill now.
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Iseki Diesel

In 2007 I didn't own a diesel.
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  #6  
Old 01-02-2013, 09:53 PM
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Don't feel too bad.

My "tuneup" on the van is now well past two weeks with no sign of completion...........


http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/open-discussion/332018-little-tuneup.html
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  #7  
Old 01-02-2013, 09:57 PM
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No worries about a hair drier. She used to wear her hair down to her but. Now she wears it an inch long. Besides me she likes cars without computers, knives and things that go boom.
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85 Merc 300D - Unwinding 31 years of wear
86 VW TD
Mahindra Diesel
Iseki Diesel

In 2007 I didn't own a diesel.
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  #8  
Old 01-02-2013, 10:09 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Silber Adler View Post
No worries about a hair drier. She used to wear her hair down to her but. Now she wears it an inch long. Besides me she likes cars without computers, knives and things that go boom.
That's a good wife you've got....
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  #9  
Old 01-02-2013, 10:24 PM
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I laughed so hard I almost fell out of my chair. but then it was in the high 50`s today and sun shine.

I guess we all have those days when one thing lead to another.
I can`t imagine 4 deg, thought 34 on the front porch a few morning back was cold.

Charlie
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  #10  
Old 01-02-2013, 10:29 PM
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I feel your pain. As the temps plummeted today, there I was at work patting myself on the back for having got the glow system back in working order just in the nick of time.

Whereupon I find my car with frozen fuel, when I go to leave work (-20 C, about the temps the OP had today). I pour in the remainder of a quart of Diesel 911, no luck.

One $64 tow home later, the car is plugged in and I am kicking myself for having let our last two mild winters make me forget about what a bit of moisture in my fuel will do, at those temps.
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2002 e320 4matic estate│1985 300d│1980 300td
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  #11  
Old 01-02-2013, 10:32 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Zacharias View Post
Whereupon I find my car with frozen fuel, when I go to leave work (-20 C, about the temps the OP had today). I pour in the remainder of a quart of Diesel 911, no luck.

One $64 tow home later, the car is plugged in and I am kicking myself for having let our last two mild winters make me forget about what a bit of moisture in my fuel will do, at those temps.
Is it a situation of moisture or simply diesel fuel that gels due to the cold? I would have also figured they have #1 diesel as standard now.........far less likely to gel...........but, -20C. is probably below the capability of that fuel as well.
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  #12  
Old 01-02-2013, 10:55 PM
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I feel your pain. Mine was less of a problem than yours.

-20 C Yeah that about like us here, cept about about 8 deg F colder. I too added some more deicer to the tank yesterday.

It is amazing how much we depend on being able to open the hood on these old cars.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Zacharias View Post
I feel your pain. As the temps plummeted today, there I was at work patting myself on the back for having got the glow system back in working order just in the nick of time.

Whereupon I find my car with frozen fuel, when I go to leave work (-20 C, about the temps the OP had today). I pour in the remainder of a quart of Diesel 911, no luck.

One $64 tow home later, the car is plugged in and I am kicking myself for having let our last two mild winters make me forget about what a bit of moisture in my fuel will do, at those temps.
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Iseki Diesel

In 2007 I didn't own a diesel.
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  #13  
Old 01-03-2013, 02:32 AM
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put a 100w shop light under the engine, with a heavy blanket on the hood.. ALL night. Always plug the block heater in. I've never had fuel gel, even jet A. Mix it with RUG. Working glow plugs, a good batt, and good compression is a must. One day, a couple years ago, it was so cold that While running errands I just left the old girl running and locked the door. I think she ran all day for like 14 hours.. If it bugs you.. just do the Army thing, piece of chain around the brake pedal and steering wheel with two pad locks.... keeps someone from steering and/or braking if they break in. Also, consider blocking off some of the radiator with a piece of card board, ala semi/school bus style. Before I use to do that, it never seemed like it got really warm in my car on those single digit days.


Food for thought: Large aircraft HEAT their jet fuel with engine bleed air(400 deg/F) while in flight at cruising altitude(ie: -74 deg/f)
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  #14  
Old 01-03-2013, 06:18 AM
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Talking

Quote:
Originally Posted by charmalu View Post
I laughed so hard I almost fell out of my chair. but then it was in the high 50`s today and sun shine.

I guess we all have those days when one thing lead to another.
I can`t imagine 4 deg, thought 34 on the front porch a few morning back was cold.

Charlie
Hmmm it was 103 f here today.
Going to get to over 100 for the next 5 days.
Just about ready for a 50 f & the heat has only just started here.
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  #15  
Old 01-03-2013, 08:33 AM
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Not so amused
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Brian Carlton View Post
Is it a situation of moisture or simply diesel fuel that gels due to the cold? I would have also figured they have #1 diesel as standard now.........far less likely to gel...........but, -20C. is probably below the capability of that fuel as well.
In theory, our winter diesel should have antigelling properties good to at least -21 C, or so I was told (furnace fuel is only -17, apparently). I assume it was a small amount of moisture at play yesterday.

I had a similar problem a number of years ago. Since then I usually add Diesel 911 when the forecast calls for extreme cold, as a preventative. Haven't seen gelling since, but I got caught with my pants down this year as we haven't seen temps get this far down, this early in the season, for many years.

Not to restart the "does windchill really only affect skin?" debate, but it was -27 C with the windchill factored in, and that parking lot is a wind tunnel anytime. The tow driver and I had a conversation about that, on our cold ride home... his truck wouldn't warm up up fully, so we only had weak cab heat.

Update: was -25 C during the night. Car just fired up on the first crank .

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2002 e320 4matic estate│1985 300d│1980 300td
Previous: 1979 & 1982 & 1983 300sd │ 1982 240d

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Last edited by Zacharias; 01-03-2013 at 08:48 AM.
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