Diesel heat ?

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scippy

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I've noticed now since owning a diesel truck that it takes twice as long for the diesel engine to warm up before giving adequate heat and even when it's fully warmed up the heat is never as hot as it was when I owned my 2500 5.9L gas engine.........is this typical in the 5.9l cummins?.....When I purchased the truck I complained about this and they replaced with a new thermostat, but it still feels luke warm....how can I know for sure if everything is working at optimal levels?...on really cold days it takes 15 minutes to really feel the heat...........something wrong here?
 

crash68

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Are you using a winter grill cover to restrict airflow?
 

MADDOG

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Yeah, I've noticed that diesel trucks tend to take their time warming up.
 

crash68

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with the Cummins, not only do you have a 1000+ pounds in engine, but an oversized cooling system and 3 gallons of engine oil to heat up. Also when diesels are not under load and/or idling, the engines cool down
 

SmokinJoeTDR

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I have had my truck since new, never ran the acid flush in the coolant system and when it was 30 below here in Michigan I did not get much heat at all. I am thinking my heater core is coated in corrosion and I cannot get heat to transfer as the coolant system temp shows normal. I have run fanless since new and it takes 15 minutes to get the engine to heat up. Only a 5 mile drive to work the last 17 years with my 2001....
 

dudeman2009

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Crash68 called it. Not only is that engine twice the mass to heat up as your old gas engine, but it has nearly 3 times the amount of oil and almost a gallon more coolant. Diesels are fundamentally different than gas engines in that when idling, they use barely any fuel, so they produce barely any heat through combustion. I've seen instances where the thermostat is just about completely closed at idle in the winter, its producing so little heat it can barely stay at operating temp. In some cases, when it gets very cold in the north, diesels can actually fall down 40+ degrees below operating temp.
 

crash68

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No wgc or restriction in air flow
Get yourself a winter front for when the weather drops below freezing(not really needed if towing/hauling heavy), most are adjustable.
https://www.genosgarage.com/category/winter
If it doesn't have one, add a block heater. Put it on a timer to come on a couple of hours before you leave, the truck will get up to temp quicker.
 
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scippy

scippy

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When I drove the duALLY home in Dec. (Ohio to NJ) roughly 500 miles she was 190* all the way with good heat.
Since then short trips in cold weather rarely do have to remove my coat in the cab because it's too hot, but it's
adequately warm not cold........I'm accepting of the consensus here, "more mass and fluids more time to radiate
heat"....so, nothing wrong here.
 
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scippy

scippy

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Get yourself a winter front for when the weather drops below freezing(not really needed if towing/hauling heavy), most are adjustable.
https://www.genosgarage.com/category/winter
If it doesn't have one, add a block heater. Put it on a timer to come on a couple of hours before you leave, the truck will get up to temp quicker.

I have a block heater. discovered it just 2 weeks ago and been using it since. Works great & faster starting times.....finding diesel is a different beast!
 

Podcast

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I've noticed now since owning a diesel truck that it takes twice as long for the diesel engine to warm up before giving adequate heat and even when it's fully warmed up the heat is never as hot as it was when I owned my 2500 5.9L gas engine.........is this typical in the 5.9l cummins?.....When I purchased the truck I complained about this and they replaced with a new thermostat, but it still feels luke warm....how can I know for sure if everything is working at optimal levels?...on really cold days it takes 15 minutes to really feel the heat...........something wrong here?
What year truck? I just got a 17 Ecodiesel and it has electric heaters that work until the truck produces heat via heater core. Even when it's cold I have good heat within 5 minutes. I use the grill cover but haven't used the block heater yet although I'll try that this week, figure it can't hurt. I drive 30 miles to work but I have heat by the time I get in after a remote start and 5 minutes of warm up time.
 

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Diesel's are more 'efficient' in combustion. More energy from the fuel is converted into rotational energy. Therefore it takes longer to get waste heat to the heater core. Plus, higher compression engines require more durable blocks ...i.e. more mass to heat up. The combination of these two make diesel's a horrible option for short commutes ....but great for longer ones. If you live 5 miles or minutes from work, a diesel is the wrong truck to own in cold climates. A grille cover would help a lot.

P.S. Don't ever put anything but highly filtered water, or distilled water in your engine!!
 
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kukufixer

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I have a block heater. discovered it just 2 weeks ago and been using it since. Works great & faster starting times.....finding diesel is a different beast!
It is a different beast. Sometimes an aggravating different. But a good different.
 

jlbayes

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They likely put the wrong thermostat in it. A ton of places have a habit of putting a cheap 180* thermostat in these when they should have a 190*. I also have a part number for a 200* thermostat if you want it.
 

Jeepwalker

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Bayes is right, big difference between 180 and 200. I've run my diesel car around plenty with a snap-on scanner attached. I had a bad thermostat and the engine was running at 160. It'll throw what feels like good heat when it's 40 degrees outside, but extremely weak at 10*. At 180 it 'feels' warm but takes a while to warm up. Between 195 and 200 it's nice and toasty. Over 204 you're starting to get a little concerned. During a short commute in a diesel, you'll be lucky to get the engine very warm. Does your tk allow you to view detailed engine temperature?

You might want to have someone drive the truck when it's warmed up, and sit in the passenger's side and feel around for any cold air coming into the cabin. There's always a possibility that an electric HVAC motor has become damaged ...or the outside air door isn't shutting. On the motors, it's fairly common that the female part of the plastic motor shaft that goes 'around' the square male hvac door shafts ...becomes cracked due to stresses and cold temps. The motor can function just fine, but if the motor shaft cracks it'll 'spin' on the door shaft which causes it to 'hunt' because it's trying to find it's 'closed state' so it knows where it is. During the 'hunting' process it can let in cold air. You'd generally hear it clicking as it spins on the blend door shaft, but maybe not if a piece breaks off. The outside air blend door, right above the passenger's feet is a constant source of problems. As a driver you can't feel the cold air coming in, and 0 degree air will do a great job neutralizing heat from the HVAC system. But as an astute passenger you should be able to feel the cold air with your hands to see if there's a problem. It's probably not the issue, but worth a quick check.
 
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dudeman2009

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They likely put the wrong thermostat in it. A ton of places have a habit of putting a cheap 180* thermostat in these when they should have a 190*. I also have a part number for a 200* thermostat if you want it.

This same thing shocked me in my gasser. previous RO had a 160 degree in it, so I stuck a 180 in when I first got my truck. Two years ago when I replaced the heater core I used a 195 degree. You wouldn't think 15 degrees is much, its about what makes water feel lukewarm, but damn did it make the cold air coming from the heat when I first put the 180 degree in 5 4 years ago turn right up to a near blistering heat. Some of that was the heater core i'm sure, but even before it had issues I was lucky to get more than lukewarm heat.
 
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scippy

scippy

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They likely put the wrong thermostat in it. A ton of places have a habit of putting a cheap 180* thermostat in these when they should have a 190*. I also have a part number for a 200* thermostat if you want it.

Yes would like that thanks!.......Are there any drawbacks to using a 200* stat over a 190*?..of course quicker heat would be preferred, but must be a reason for a standard 190* installed.
 
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scippy

scippy

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Bayes is right, big difference between 180 and 200. I've run my diesel car around plenty with a snap-on scanner attached. I had a bad thermostat and the engine was running at 160. It'll throw what feels like good heat when it's 40 degrees outside, but extremely weak at 10*. At 180 it 'feels' warm but takes a while to warm up. Between 195 and 200 it's nice and toasty. Over 204 you're starting to get a little concerned. During a short commute in a diesel, you'll be lucky to get the engine very warm. Does your tk allow you to view detailed engine temperature?

You might want to have someone drive the truck when it's warmed up, and sit in the passenger's side and feel around for any cold air coming into the cabin. There's always a possibility that an electric HVAC motor has become damaged ...or the outside air door isn't shutting. On the motors, it's fairly common that the female part of the plastic motor shaft that goes 'around' the square male hvac door shafts ...becomes cracked due to stresses and cold temps. The motor can function just fine, but if the motor shaft cracks it'll 'spin' on the door shaft which causes it to 'hunt' because it's trying to find it's 'closed state' so it knows where it is. During the 'hunting' process it can let in cold air. You'd generally hear it clicking as it spins on the blend door shaft, but maybe not if a piece breaks off. The outside air blend door, right above the passenger's feet is a constant source of problems. As a driver you can't feel the cold air coming in, and 0 degree air will do a great job neutralizing heat from the HVAC system. But as an astute passenger you should be able to feel the cold air with your hands to see if there's a problem. It's probably not the issue, but worth a quick check.

Did exactly what you suggested and no trace of colds air coming into the cabin..........no clicking either from the HVAC motor and doubt it's damaged.
 

dudeman2009

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Yes would like that thanks!.......Are there any drawbacks to using a 200* stat over a 190*?..of course quicker heat would be preferred, but must be a reason for a standard 190* installed.

In NJ, there isn't really an issue with running a 200 degree. If you were towing in florida, maybe, but maybe not as long as you dont abuse it. in the colder climates 200 may be the way to go, but 190 certainly is fine.
 

jlbayes

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No, there is no issue with the 200* stat. This is a factory part on the 6.7 Cummins engines. We had a long discussion about it on another forum. At any rate here is the Mopar part number 68067109AB.
 
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