I have a 1997 F-350 with 95000 on the clock. Now that it is getting colder in NH I guess I have to address the problem.

It takes a long time to get any heat out of the engine and it has never regestered past the N (normal) on my stock temp guage since I have owned the truck (it might hit O in the summer). Last winter I ran the attractive piece of cardboard in front of teh grill and that seemed to help a little but there was no difference in how fast it warmed up.

When the temperature is below freezing it starts fine(glow plugs are working), then I run it at high idle(1300rpm) for as long as 30min and still no heat until I drive. Then after 15min of normal driving the temp guage starts to climb.

I want heat faster if possible. Is this ultra-slow warm-up normal? If it is not normal what could the problem be and what should I look into? My brain tells me that if there were a problem with the cooling system it would get hot instead of staying cold. My brain isn't good for much though.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

Jason

 

Olot of the guys are running a 203 thermostat...


Look.... here... yours may be stuck....

 

Yep could be a stuck stat. It has also been my experience that no matter what stat you have your truck will not get warm unless you running down the road. I could idle my 95 (with 203 stat) for 15 minutes and still not have heat out the vents. They will warm up but not enough to heat the cab.

 

Here in Ca. where i live i let mine warn up for at lest 10 mins before i go but i have to drive 4 to 6 miles before any heat. My 86 6.9 was the same way. They have to be driving to warn up.

 

Within about 4-5 miles I have heat and within 8 miles she midway between C an H...sounds like the Tstat to me.
-----------Jeremy

 

mine has this cool little plug in the front grill, anytime the temp goes below about 40F I just plug it in when I get up in the morning and by the time I leave for work I have a warm truck.

 

you can either use the block heater or block off the grill

 

Just an idea, I have seen a guy that has a ceramic heater with a fan, that plugs into a power supply, in his dump truck. He says that it will heat the cab in about 8-10 min. I think that he said that he got it from JCWhitney. Just my $.02

 

actually, the 08's have an electric heater in the heater box so you have instant heat when the key is turned on. it uses the electric heat until the collant gets hot