anybody know if u can put additives in diesel fuel for beeter peformance in cold weather?? what other upgrades can be done to deal with cold on 7.3 diesels? thanks.

 

I found out that my 7.3 definatly likes to be plugged in!
Last week it got down to minus 24, minus 36 with the wind chill, and my truck barely started. Thats with 15-40 oil in it too.

Now it gets plugged in Havent had a problem with any fuel gelling or anything yet.

 

Here is what I use:

http://schaefferoil.com/diesel_treat_2000_winter.html

Dieseltreat winterized formula. Much better startups in the winter plus the anti-gel additive and injector cleaner & lubrication. Then I switch to the dieseltreat regular during the warm months. Folks that use it see 1-2 mpg increase also. Much cheaper to add this to #2 than pay the higher price (+30 cents) for #1 diesel which gets lower MPG on average than #2 diesel.

 

Stanadyne Blue

 

Power service white bottle.

Rotella 5w40 syn. oil

plug it in

 

Yes, this is what I do. This is the first winter I have run synthetic, and with the temp below zero this morning my truck fired right up. Syn is worth it in cold weather in my opinion. Now, if the tranny would shift without driving 5 miles first.

 

Plugging it in is the best thing to do for it when it's real cold. An anti-gel additive is good, too, but if you live in a cold area they should be using a winter blend anyway. And like others mentioned, 5-w40 synthetic seems to help quite a bit... doesn't thicken up as much as 15-w40 dino does when it's cold.

Of course make sure your glow plug system is working strong, don't drive it hard till it's warm, etc.

 

You could try Schaeffer's 204SAT synthetic tranny fluid for your tranny. Has a pour point down to -60 degrees. It is waht BTS uses in there trannies. I have had no problems during the winters in South Dakota.

Here is the link to the tech data sheet

http://www.schaefferoil.com/datapdf/204SAT_r.pdf

Rich

 

i change my filter before it gets cold and again in the middle of january..always carry a spare as well..buy my fuel from a place that moves a lot of fuel..i treat every tank with DK..also carry a bottle of diesel 911 for just in case.. but i have had the same un opend bottle for 2 years now...with wind chills of 30 to 50 below..or when temps are 30 to 50 below.. i have never jelled up with both my PSD and the peter built i drive with a 425 cat....

 

Thanks, might be worth a try. When it is cold, neither of my trucks will shift in to overdrive until the tranny warms a little. I don't know if it is because the fluid is too thick, or if the pcm actually does this. Either way, I'm sure synthetic tranny fluid wouldn't hurt.