On 10 December 2016 at 15:35 Bill <anotherdrunken...@gmail.com>
wrote:
A couple of months ago I spoiled myself in a major way and bought one
of
the new Nissan Titan diesel trucks, equipped with a 5 liter turbo
Cummins engine. This is my first foray into the world of diesel
engines.
I expect there are a few people on the list that have more experience
with the things.
My questions all revolve around cold weather starting.
What is considered cold for a Diesel?
Too many variables for that to have an easy answer. There are winter
and summer
grades of fuel. If there aren't many diesels around there, you could
have
picked up a tank of summer grade from a slow moving supplier.
Should plugging in the block heater make a difference?
Yes. There are variations in block heaters, too. Maybe your vehicle
has one
designed for higher temps than yours, fitted to keep the production
line
running. Is it plugged in all night?
Can glow plugs be flakey?
Yes but not until you've done a considerable mileage. I'd be more
inclined to
suspect the power feed, or even the software control of them in such a
new
vehicle.
It's not all that cold here right now. Anything below about -16ºC is
an
issue for this truck. This morning was -27ºC, and it took multiple
attempts to get it running. Starting is completely automatic, the
only
control the driver has in this regard is a PHD button that initiates
the
start cycle. After that, it's up to the truck.
I like the truck, but if I need to go out and start it and warm it up
every 5-6 hours during the cold months, it is not going to be a
pleasant
vehicle to own. They say don't idle it for extended periods because
of
the particulate filters, and if it is idled to much, it goes into
perpetual regeneration of the filter, which means it's dumping raw
fuel
into the exhaust to burn off the soot. This drops gas mileage to
about
60l/100km. One it is running, it is a joy to drive.
Dead right about the filters. DPF equipped vehicles need to be run on
longer
journeys, mostly, with regular vigorous use to keep the filters working
well.
