i have had my '01 ram for almost 2 years but have been stationed in north cariolina for most of the time. i now have moved back to the great north east an my truck is running cold. all other temps are normal(egt,trans,oil an differental temp). i have had diesel trucks before that i have run a winter grill cover on witch helped with this problem. i have been told the 24v cummins shouldnt run with one because it will inter fear with the intercooler. my question is if the good out weighs the bad when the ambiant air is right around 0.

 

Hey, just moved your thread to the appropriate section.

The 24 valves are cold blooded beasts. I keep a piece of cardboard right against the radiator, between it and the air to air. Allows some air to still get though the air to air, but not through the radiator.
How warm dose the coolant get to while driving, and when sitting idle? It could be a thermostat issue.

 

it stays pretty cold when im up north but when i was down south it warmed up like it should. i was thinking thremostat at first but its only cold when up north could the evevatin chang mess with the therostat?

 

Elevation shouldn't change your operating temperature. If the thermostat stays slightly open, as in 1/16" of an inch, you will see heating problems. I'm in Alberta, Canada, even further north into the cold, and I have no problem hitting operating temperatures while on the hiway. The cardboard definitely helps the situation.
I'd still be looking at putting a thermostat into the engine though. They are easy to change, and don't cost too much either.

 

i have a 2001 dodge that does the same once ur on the highway it will go up to 190 and stay there but it seems like the heater just don't blow alot of warm air. coolant was changed about 7000 miles ago and it still looked good but put new in anyway. it gets pretty cold in north dakota and wondering if you had any ideas. i also put cardboard in between the radiator and intercooler

 

Did you change your thermostat as well when you did the coolant change? It doesn't hurt to change them annually, just before the cold weather hits.

 

no i did not change it as far as i know it it the original one with 163000 miles i have heard its best to get one from cummins and stay away from the cheapo parts store ones