Nebraska Cold Start

[a91eagletalon]

couple questions I live in Nebraska and the cold winter mornings can get very cold like this morning it was -4 .

I am currently in the proses of building me 400-500hp DD and was wondering if I was going to have any problems with starting in the morning to go to work.

is there anything I need to plan for on my build to help with that.

thanks
MP

 

[RallyEclipse98]

Keep your EGR valve. Block heaters work pretty well from my experience. Not worth the money though IMO.

 

[CanadianTalonTC]

Keep your EGR valve. Block heaters work pretty well from my experience. Not worth the money though IMO.

As someone who live in a climate where it gets down to -40F block heaters are an excellent investment. They go into a freeze plug and heat the coolant inside the engine, they are expensive to run for long periods of time however so get a timer for the cord you plug it in with.

The oil pan heaters do not work as well as the block heater, nor do the inline coolant hose heaters.

That all being said, I never plug my DD in (2001 Rodeo) and it started this morning when it was -45 with the wind chill. It was a pretty rough start but it managed. If I plug it in it starts like nothing.

Joel

 

[AKfrankenstein]

I personally have an oil pan heater with one under the battery. Last fews weeks it has been 0 degrees out and the car starts without hestitation. Like said above timer is a great idea also

 

[RallyEclipse98]

In Nebraska, a block heater is a silly investment from my experience. Rarely is it in the negative degrees. The people I know who have them stopped using them after one winter because it's not even worth it to waste the electricity.

In some climates, sure, but in Nebraska money is better spent on something else.

 

[gofer]

^^^ Agreed ^^^

I'm from Nebraska too and very rarely is it below zero, lately though I've seen that it's been freaking cold. What type of fuel do you plan running to achieve your HP goal? It's tough to cold start a DSM on E85 even in 30* weather but for me running a step hotter plug, like a BPR7ES, and using ECMLinks cranking fuel adjustment to richen things up it will start on the first crank in the cold out here in Arizona. Seems strange but we've been getting down into the mid 20*'s this week too...

Worry about getting to 500whp first before worrying about how you're going to start it in negative temperatures.

GO BIG RED!

 

[a91eagletalon]

Thanks for all the advise

Do higher HP engines tend to start harder in colder weather. Or is it all in your set up.

I am going to stick with pump gas for my fuel.



thanks
MP

 

[bastarddsm]

With pump gas it will be just fine. Just don't run heavy oil in the winter, and keep a full size battery in the stock location.

 

[GST with PSI]

It's tough to cold start a DSM on E85 even in 30* weather but for me running a step hotter plug, like a BPR7ES, and using ECMLinks cranking fuel adjustment to richen things up it will start on the first crank in the cold out here in Arizona.

A BPR7ES plug would actually be a step colder, than say, a BPR6ES. You probably meant the latter.

 

[gofer]

A BPR7ES plug would actually be a step colder, than say, a BPR6ES. You probably meant the latter.

No, I run a step hotter. BPR8ES is my E85 summer plug and what I run at the track, I run a 7 in the winter once it drops down in the 30*'s at night and I'm DD'ing the car regularly.

 

[bastarddsm]

Why do you guys think you need such hot plugs. I keep 8's in my car year round. It starts fine in 0deg weather on E85.

You do know that heat range has nothing to do with cold start fouling.

We should be down in the 9- 10 range. Run the coldest plug you can that stays clean through use.

 

[gofer]

In my less than expert understanding of spark plugs the hotter the plug the more heat is retained in the tip. Running a 8ES on E85 gapped to .026" it takes 3-4 attempts of cranking the motor over before the engine will even attempt to start. Switching to a 7ES gapped the same it will start the first attempt without making any changes to my CoolantTempFuel or CrankingFuel tables and this is just in 30*-40* weather. Theoretically you're probably right bastard since the hotter plug is rated "hotter" at normal driving conditions but I've noticed it also works during cold starts on E85...

I think most of us (E85 users in general) E85 users like running a plug that works with 91oct too.

 

[GST with PSI]

No, I run a step hotter. BPR8ES is my E85 summer plug and what I run at the track, I run a 7 in the winter once it drops down in the 30*'s at night and I'm DD'ing the car regularly.

Ah, I see. I guess It's all about where you start. Typically, a BPR7ES plug wold be considered a cold plug since the 6ES is the norm/stock DSM range, which is why I was asking. It's a whole different ball game with E85 I suppose.

Is your car garaged, or left outside overnight when it is cold? Most guys I know running E85 can hardly get their cars to start at all <30*.

 

[gofer]

Garaged now. When I lived in San Diego though it was always parked outside on the street, it never saw <30*'s there more like high 30's to low 40's, but that's where I was struggling with cold starts and the plug switch helped it.

 

[JusMX141]

Lower hose heater. Typically $30-$40.

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Buy one in the correct size, plumb it into your existing lower rad hose...then when summer gets here, buy a new lower hose at the parts store and swap out the entire hose with the heater in it until next winter.

 

[gofer]

Haha. What do you do with that 4ft cord while you're driving, lay it on the exhaust manifold or drape it across an axle?

 

[JusMX141]

Some guys will let them hang out of the hood (shitty). I'd plumb it into the stock sidemount compartment or somewhere out of the way so you're not hunting the plug end every night.

 

[bastarddsm]

In my less than expert understanding of spark plugs the hotter the plug the more heat is retained in the tip. Running a 8ES on E85 gapped to .026" it takes 3-4 attempts of cranking the motor over before the engine will even attempt to start. Switching to a 7ES gapped the same it will start the first attempt without making any changes to my CoolantTempFuel or CrankingFuel tables and this is just in 30*-40* weather. Theoretically you're probably right bastard since the hotter plug is rated "hotter" at normal driving conditions but I've noticed it also works during cold starts on E85...

I think most of us (E85 users in general) E85 users like running a plug that works with 91oct too.

I just don't understand this. The heat range only has to do with the plugs ability to transfer heat out of the insulator, and into the head. If the engine is cold it it doesn't matter. I really feel like this is a placebo effect.

So many people talk about fouling plugs, and such, I just don't get it. This isn't an old carbed flathead with a 6v points ignition.

Were getting ot tho.

Point is, these cars will start on gas in really cold weather with a good battery and proper oil.

 

[gofer]

I agree and maybe the switch to the hotter plugs just happened to improve cold start performance because they were new plugs.

 

[V8srslow]

Ect would be the first think I look @. My old 1g started fine not plugged in @ -30 or colder, with full synthetic oil. This week it's been about -35celcius and my 2g won't start even plugged in with inline heater, but not synthetic oil.. Pretty sure it's just getting too much fuel from a bad ect. Something to consider checking IMO.

 

[JusMX141]

I just don't understand this. The heat range only has to do with the plugs ability to transfer heat out of the insulator, and into the head. If the engine is cold it it doesn't matter. I really feel like this is a placebo effect.

It's weird, but switching to a hotter plug on some of my old two-stroke race bikes would cure cold-fouling. Yamahas were the worst- a few of my buddies had YZ's and they would cold-foul a plug almost every time they started them back in the late 90's, and this was even when they were properly-tuned and using good 2-cycle oil, though it seemed to be much less of an issue for them when running C12 race fuel versus pump 93.

I always ran OEM NGK 8's in my RM's but the Yamahas would come from the factory with a 9 and some folks would need to run as hot as a 7 to keep from cold-fouling on the starting line or while riding to the staging area.

 

[spoonman]

Just a Nebraska FYI.

My family just moved to a new house in Nebraska. Well the garage is full of boxes so both cars say outside.

And my 2012 Chevy Traverse didn't want to start. And my dodge Ram barely turned over but did start. Both very new vehicles. It's kinda cold