hey guys, as stated earlier i recently just purchased this truck.

its been getting cold here lately (reading pa) this morning was around 18 degrees..

i plugged the truck in last night around 9 pm, came out this morning, and it still did a cold start and went into a high idle. took forever for the truck to reach running temp which is also odd normally it gets warm by the time i hit the highway (running temp) which the highway is about 5-6 miles.


i plugged the truck into a standard orange 3 prong extension cord, ran right to an outlet. the outlet is inside my garage next to a breaker panel (garage has its own panel). the outlet i used also has its own 15 amp breaker in the panel.

the outlet was 100% working as i plugged a light into it and then also my phone to make sure the outlet was working.

my valve cover was cold. and the grid heater light stayed on for 20-30 seconds before going out. (im told should only be 3-5 seconds with the heater?)

anyone have any advice? im wondering if i need a new block heater element / cord?
and if so.. anyone know anywhere local i can buy one? or is it just the dealer? any diy for replacing? its supposed to drop colder tonight.. so hoping to rectify this quickly

the truck also seemed like it went into a 3 cyl cold start on first start up (sounded like a lope tune) once the grid heater stopped cycling it smoothed idle out and was normal. didnt break up, hestitate, or anything my entire way to work and ran on all six smooth as a kitten.

2005 ctd 5.9
smarty jr level 3
5" tbe to 6" tip
rest is all stock.

 

yup id say the block heater is garbage. shouldnt be hard to find one at all. If im not mistaken smarty has a 3 cylinder high idle function, someone on here who has one might know more about that than me though

 

Well I plugged it in at work. And sat there with a lazer thermometer (different cord obviously), no change. Temp didn't go up at all over the course of 8 hours. Pretty sure the element is shot.

Do I have to drain the coolant completely to swap it? The actual swap looks pretty straight forward just not looking forward to draining my coolant when it's 15 outside.

 

its located right by the oil filter i believe, pretty low location on the block... probably will have too drain alot of it you can buy a magnetic heater for the oil pan for now. slap it on at night on the bottom of the oil pan and let the heat rise through the block, it's better than nothing!

 

Ya I read somewhere about taking the intake completely off and it's around there in a freeze plug location. I was gonna just follow the plug from my grille til I found it. Haha. Just sucks. Good news is supposed to warm up to 60 this weekend here (weird as hell weather I'm telling you).

It doesn't hesitate to start. At all. Just runs the grid heater a bit longer then I like. Hmm magnetic electric heater? I don't think I ever saw one of
Them!? Hahahah. May have to make a walmart run and nose around.

Can't seem to find a diy on the block heater element replacement. Maybe that's a sign for me to make one? (Haven't made a diy in a longtime I'm a moderator on vwforum).

 

if your talking about your 05, i do believe it will be right beside the oil filter on the passenger side under the exhaust manifold, should be a simple twist out and twist in the new one, 55 ftpounds i do believe yea they are pretty slick, they just plug in and magnetize too any steel surface, its saved our old allis chalmers backo on a few frosty mornings.

 

Block Heater not working - Dodge Diesel - Diesel Truck Resource Forums

see and because of this im wondering if i have a broken cord / wire. since it seems the element itself is bulletproof.

i hate to just go throwing parts at it.

& you are correct.. by exhaust manifold / oil filter / cooler.

http://www.ramforum.com/f70/5_9_bloc...ormation-1254/

^^ in that thread theyre talking about the amps it pulls.. and to test it.. but this may sound stupid.. but i cant tell if they mean to test it with a multi meter while its plugged in.. or while its unplugged? im assuming plugged in.. (mechanically im sound.. electrical work.. not my expertise....)

http://www.dieseltruckresource.com/d...s-t291000.html
going to give this a try here at work and see what i cant figure out.. ill post my findings then.


figures.. i go out.. buy a magnetic heater.. and last night we stayed above freezing and came out this morning to 45 degrees.. telling you.. my part of pa lately is super strange weather wise.. and a few hours north west buffalo is getting slammed with over 8 feet of snow.. 5-6" an hour average.. (exactly why im trying to resolve this before i have real issues).

 

tested the ohms at the plug with a multimeter.

im reading 5-7.. it fluctuates as high as 7.5 ish.. and as low as 4.97 but its not going higher or lower then that range..
which if im not mistaken tells me the cord is fine.. and its the element.

 

Mine did the same thing last year. I picked one up on ebay (new) for $21 bucks delivered. Sure is nice to jump in and go without having to wait.

 

Yours was the element?