A question for anyone that lives in cold weather
 

i have a 12v cummins and i work in the mountains during winter and can anyone give me some tips on what to do because the last time it snowed it got down to 9 degrees and i had the block heater plugged in so it will start easier but i can drive around for an hour and the temp gauge will just sit around 150 so the heater wont work i was thinking about putting a sheet of plexiglass in front of the radiator with hols drilled in it to restrict airflow but does anyone have any ideas thanks

I live in Iceland, maybe you should change your thermostat.... does your radiator have enough water/antifreeze in it ?

has plenty of antifreeze just runs cold when its cold out but on a normal day it runs normal never gets any hotter than 175 like it will go to 190 but drops down to 175

we have sub zero temperatures here.... but mine is the same, i still get hot air from the ventilator...

mine will go to about 160-170°F ( that's about 70-75°C )

normal operating temperatures are 90-100°C on any automotive engine... mine won't reach these temperatures here... even in the summer...

Get a winter front that covers the front grille. It will increase the engine temperature which in turn creates heat for the heater. You can buy one that snaps on or make your own using cardboard.

This is what I have: FIA WF923 1 Combination Winter Front Bug Screen | eBay

Wierd, i'm not experiencing this.... maybe i have another thermostat...

Genos make a winter front now too.

Sounds like you have the wrong thermostat. Don't get me wrong, mine takes forfookinever to start making heat, but once the engine is up to normal temp it stays there.

thanks guys ill check into the winter fronts and ill go ahead and change the thermo stat and do a cooling system flush with it since i always do it before winter in every vehicle i have owned

Mine was doing that but I had heat to the defrost but nothing to the floor even on mix, I replaced the heater core and now it heats I am in North Dakota so I take heat Seriously

BADJUJU95, sounds like you had vacuum leaks...

i custom made me a thing out of plexiglass and i put it in front of the radiator support bars and so far it works great and i have 3 zip ties holding it in place so if its a warm day like 75 i take it out and it only takes 2 mins to put in or take out but its just a temp thing till i can order my winter front

I have an alaskan tarp, that snaps in front if the radiator and I will run 190* at 60mph when its -10*f

I've run 190 at 60 when it's around zero, no block offs necessary. The problem is that it takes 45 minutes of driving for it to get up to that temp, and I'm shivering my balls off until it does. I've never seen a vehicle take as long to warm up as this truck. My wife will start her Subaru in the morning when it's single digits out, put her seatbelt on and immediately pull out of the driveway. From walking out the door to driving down the road in less than two minutes, total. Before the house is out of site there's hot air blowing out of the vents.
Meanwhile, I let my truck warm up for a half hour and the temp needle doesn't even move. It's F***ing ridiculous. I've blocked of everything from some to all of the radiator, and it takes just as long to warm up. The only difference it makes is that it doesn't stop warming up, and the next thing I know it's over heating.

sounds like the clutch in the fan might not be working properly or it can be something in the cooling system or maybe needs a flush and if you had an engine block heater it would help some i mean plug it in at night and start the truck in the morning and unplug it ... at 9* my temp gauge will be at 140* with the block heater plugged in but it drops once the antifreeze goes thru the engine but im thinking about getting some heating tape and wrapping the radiator with it so i can have both plugged in so i can have some warm air when i need it but i dont know if t will work:humm: but its an idea

Damn with my block heater, oil pan heater and my tarp after .25 miles down the road after a 5-10min warmup im aleady close to 190 degrees and its a suana in my truck..

mile will be like that i just need to experiment with some ideas

New fan clutch, new coolant, radiator, heater core, multiple thermostats. I plug the truck in every night if the temp is going to be below 40*, and it stays plugged in until I start it the next morning. If I don't plug it in it starts like crap, if it starts at all, but it still takes pretty much the same amount of time before it starts making heat.

clean your heater core put cardboard in the front it should heat up faster. Is ur block heater cord good ?

Cord looks fine to me, I've followed it to the end. Cardboard made no difference in how fast it warmed up, just made it not stop warming up. Brand new Chrysler heater core made no difference, and the entire cooling system was changed at the same time, completely flushed. I don't think cleaning it again now is the solution. Then again, I can't find anything else wrong either...

use a genuine cummins stat,will keep temp more cosistant