Quote:
Originally Posted by Windwalker
Down to about 20 degrees above, the engine should start on it's own. Below that, I would first try starting it on it's own, and if it doesn't fire, then try a shot of it. As soon as the temp gets below 40, it should be plugged in to keep the water jacket warm. It's a whole lot easier on the starter if the oil is warmer. And, once started, don't rev up the engine until you see the temp guage going up, or you could see much more oil pressure than you want.
When I worked for pepsi, the intake pre-heater on my assigned GMC Top Kick CAT engine burned out it's relay one winter. Winters in southern NM can get down into the low 20's, sometimes the teens. So as you can imagine, it took quite a lot of cranking and the spewing of white smoke until I got the engine to fire up and idle. It was so bad that my truck was parked at the far end of the lot, lol. When I finally got her started, I would engage the "fast idle", which was sticking an empty Pepsi 20oz bottle crate between the seat and the accelerator. If you got it just right, it would idle around 1000-1200 rpm. IT sure was nice when our mechanic got that damn relay replaced!
Then later that spring the engine had to be rebuilt after the compression was tested and found to be almost non-existant. Explained why it was eating oil like there was no tomorrow.