Colorado road trip prep. 300tdi
- Thread starter leastonce
- Start date
Thank you. It looks pretty straightforward.
I have the a TEMRO block heater in my 200tdi. At anything warmer than -10C (14F) it'll melt the snow off the bonnet if plugged in for more than 3-4 hours.
Even at -30C (-22F) the truck starts like its already up to temp when plugged in. You may not want to drive off right away though, as the gearbox is still full of molasses...
I use an outdoor timer on my plug to have it kick in 3-4 hours before I leave in the morning.
Good functioning glow plugs do a ton to help cold starting. I check my glow plugs every fall, and so I go through a full set of plugs every ~3 years. I've used Beru plugs 3 times over the last 9 years, and they work great until they don't at all.
Even at -30C (-22F) the truck starts like its already up to temp when plugged in. You may not want to drive off right away though, as the gearbox is still full of molasses...
I use an outdoor timer on my plug to have it kick in 3-4 hours before I leave in the morning.
Good functioning glow plugs do a ton to help cold starting. I check my glow plugs every fall, and so I go through a full set of plugs every ~3 years. I've used Beru plugs 3 times over the last 9 years, and they work great until they don't at all.
So I just struggled a bit across Kansas ... egt seem to climb more quickly and had some fluctuations in temperature ( although it went down going up hill and uphill it went down. Eventually just used 4th gear and sat at about 60mph / 3000 rpm and 550 Celsius egt.
I have a 1.2 transfer case in case anyone is wondering.
truck seems down on power ... currently about 3000ft altitude stopedin Colby KS.
is this normal or is there a tweak for altitude?
cheers!
I have a 1.2 transfer case in case anyone is wondering.
truck seems down on power ... currently about 3000ft altitude stopedin Colby KS.
is this normal or is there a tweak for altitude?
cheers!
I have seen both of these before. One the floor mat was blocking travel of the accelerator pedal. The other the lower intercooler hose clamp slipped loose. Worth looking at.
Pretty sure cable works ok but I’ll recheck in the morning. I just checked the intercooler pipes and they are firmly connected.
I get rising EGT but no pull in 5th. Even 4th seems to be laboring on why I would consider mild inclines. Although Kansas seems to be one very log mild incline.
I took it for a spin around town and it feels pretty good zipping around but I couldn’t get into 5th where it appears to be a problem.
been suggested I swap the fuel filter so may try that tomorrow. It’s cold here so not exactly pleasant to be pulling the filter!
I get rising EGT but no pull in 5th. Even 4th seems to be laboring on why I would consider mild inclines. Although Kansas seems to be one very log mild incline.
I took it for a spin around town and it feels pretty good zipping around but I couldn’t get into 5th where it appears to be a problem.
been suggested I swap the fuel filter so may try that tomorrow. It’s cold here so not exactly pleasant to be pulling the filter!
I’ve climbed the Rockies several times in my 300 D90 with the 1.2 behind it. Nothing convinces you quicker that you have the wrong transfer case in it. My 300tdi 130 bounded up the Alps no problem with its 1.4, but the 1.2 90 struggles after the road slightly deviates from the horizontal.
The worst part is not that you have to down shift, it’s that you can often never have the correct gear - you get going too fast for 3rd or 4th but the truck won’t pull in the next higher gear.
I used to think that the 1.4 was the answer, now I simply think that the VNT is the answer. I’m so impressed with the VNT on the 300 in my 110 that I’m considering trying out the 1.2.
The worst part is not that you have to down shift, it’s that you can often never have the correct gear - you get going too fast for 3rd or 4th but the truck won’t pull in the next higher gear.
I used to think that the 1.4 was the answer, now I simply think that the VNT is the answer. I’m so impressed with the VNT on the 300 in my 110 that I’m considering trying out the 1.2.
I feel for you, we spent a couple days broken down in Kansas. Thats how one acts with a clogged fuel filter. Runs ok @ idle and low fuel demand but falls on its face as demand increases.
Y'all need Cummins, crossed Kansas with speedo buried with a 1.2.
Jason if its working crossing Kansas, fix it before you leave Denver metro area as you'll have little to nothing available to you West of Denver on 70 and thats where the real work begins. Again,my money is on the fuel filter. Goes without saying but fill the new filter before threading it on.
Y'all need Cummins, crossed Kansas with speedo buried with a 1.2.
Jason if its working crossing Kansas, fix it before you leave Denver metro area as you'll have little to nothing available to you West of Denver on 70 and thats where the real work begins. Again,my money is on the fuel filter. Goes without saying but fill the new filter before threading it on.
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I don’t know if it’s true, but all of the local rednecks here say to avoid those high flow truck stop pumps because they usually have more trash in the fuel.
Fuel filter is changed and yes I did fill up at a pretty shady spot. Seems to run ok but tomorrow I drive from Denver to Silverthorne so that’s the big climbing test
I have a hybrid turbo ... not a VNT but one with later model impeller so it allegedly spins up a little quicker.
let’s see what happens tomorrow. I only have about 60 miles to go ...
My local rednecks tell me the same, Jimmy.
I am my local Redneck and I approve of this message.