Date: Thu, 6 Jun 2013 15:35:17 -0700
Reply-To: Scott Ohana <scottdaniel@TURBOVANS.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Scott Ohana <scottdaniel@TURBOVANS.COM>
Organization: Cosmic Reminders
Subject: Re: Diesel good idea? Engine idling!
In-Reply-To: <BAY152-DS14DF7A2CA52144A5DBE7BFA0980@phx.gbl>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed
Very glad to hear truck stops have systems to supply110AC, wifi, and
cold air to parked trucks !
re 'warming it up at a cold idle' ..
I am sure you're going most likely stick to your methods ,
and ..
I suggest to ALL vanagons driver's or vehicle driver's of any type..
from a cold start, start it as gently as you can, run it a minute or so
at the most, then drive off gently ..
and drive gently for the first 8 to 10 minutes say.
At a cold idle , since when there's no load on it, it won't warm up very
well...
and that cold running, especially in gasoline puts acid in the engine
oil and into the exhaust system , shortening life of those parts.
another very helpful cold weather trick is ..this is quite important
actually ,,during the first say 8 to 10 miles of that gentle cold driving,
keep the heater valve off or mostly off.
Since having full time coolant flow through heater core/s can keep the
t-stat from doing it's job.
There are a few people who own vans and work on them that don't know
that heater circuit flow in any car is not thermostat controlled ..if
the heater valve is on ...there is coolant flow.
< exception being very modern cars where a computer manages all that >
Subaru even has a factory bulletin to that affect, as do other
manufacturers, do run heater full on from stone cold. It can keep the
system from reaching closed loop even.
That 'start and drive gently, pretty much right away' thing..
I believe you'll find that in the Owner's Manual for a 1959 Mercedes
220S car.
that's total bull about............... 'takes more fuel to start it than
to idle it.'
That myth is about 70 years old at least,
and is from the old carb days of the 50's maybe.
Any diesel that is working really properly ...sure if it's really cold
they might be a little harder to start..
but in any normal temps ..
a 'really right' diesel vanagon should start instantly after a few glow
periods down to ...25 F , or even lower.
Also ...anti-gell fuel treatments are appropriate in freezing temps.
it's just a very macho thing to do.
Something 'he-man' about it ..an idling diesel.
I once spent 40 minutes talking VW diesels with a guy while his diesel
rabbit about 50 feet away idled the whole time, for no reason other than
'A'hm a man - ah drives a diesel, and I leave it running to prove it !'
( there were two neighbor guys near me that would get off work, fire up
their F-250 Ford Diesel trucks..
both of them, then sit there shooting the breeze for 40 minutes. They
think that is just fine behavior.
gag me !
even the harshness of the idle sound is jangling.
and don't smell what comes out the tailpipe..
and when you pass bicyclists driving a diesel vanagon or whatever
...your engine exhaust is contributing to shortening their life.
Back up in still air with your window open ..you'll get a taste.
For full time diesel tow truck drivers ........
chances are very high their hearing will be badly shot when they are 55 ,
and their lungs damaged from particulate matter, and their life span, on
average, shortened maybe 6 to 8 years or so.
A factor for me is I have big diesel truck neighbors, and they sometimes
leave their huge diesel trucks idling for up to an hour about 150 feet
my desk, and I keep my barn door open unless it's really cold.
And do you think they care, even when I ask nicely ??
The poor souls...they are Proud of how much they don't care that it
bothers anyone.
I'll try to ease off , lol !!
S.
On 6/6/2013 2:06 PM, Dennis Haynes wrote:
> Most Diesel truck engines will burn a gallon an hour or more idling. A warm
> engine will start almost instantly. That myth just doesn't hold.
> When I bought my motor home back in 2004 it was programmed to shut off if
> the vehicle didn't move for three minutes. Since the engine controller is
> different than the transmission controller the shutdown timer did not know
> the transmission was not in neutral. So a few times if I was at a stop long
> enough and forgot to release the brake, or step on the throttle, or let it
> roll the engine would shut down. I had the timer set 5 minutes for a while.
> Found I couldn't run the engine in the driveway long enough to warm it up
> during storage. Eventually had that timer disabled.
>
> Truckers often idle the engine for heat or air conditioning. Many locales
> have banned that. Many are now being equipped with generator or battery
> based power systems and many truck stops have conditioned air supplies
> ducted to a window.
>
> Dennis
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf Of
> raceingcajun
> Sent: Thursday, June 06, 2013 1:38 PM
> To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
> Subject: Re: Diesel good idea?
>
> You know that has always bothered me also. So one day at the truck stop when
> fueling, I ask a trucker, he said it takes more fuel to start it than to
> leave it running???????? I didn't buy that, anyone know for sure. I think I
> could understand in very cold weather it would be a little harder to start.
> But idling all night?
>
> Howard
>
>
>> When it is not going somewhere, when the wheels are not turning,
>> please SHUT IT OFF.