Cold Start Problems

[Carlos]

Hey all, been a member for a while, but don't post much.

Anyways, not too long ago, my father gave me his old '05 6.0 PSD and it has run perfectly fine, until the cold weather arrived. I knew he had problems getting his truck started when it got really cold, and sometimes it just wouldn't start at all! Anyways, these are the problems I had today:

-When I try to start the truck, it cranks and cranks but can't fire up. In order to start it, I had to pump the accelerator a few times, then hold it all the way down and finally it would start up, but really choppily and I had to keep giving it gas for a bit. When it gets REALLY cold, it won't even start up!

The thing is, it's not even that cold where I live, it hit 26 degrees coldest last night, and it's about 36 right now during the day. I did some research, and I read about some reflash, FICM and what not, but some of the jargon just got me frustrated.

If anyone can help, I'd really appreciate it!

[tony 340]

We switched oil in our 7.3 that wouldn't start in the cold to T6 Rotella 5W-40 and it fires right up now in the cold. Couldn't believe the difference in cold starts, it was like a different truck.

Might be worth a shot before you go tearing into the motor.

[Carlos]

That's true, it could be the weight of the truck is not suited for the colder weather. I'll give that a shot, it can use an oil change anyways, thanks!

[dhanna6powerstroke]

Check the voltage on the FICM. I'll almost guarantee that's your problem.

[SixStringMadness]

Originally Posted by Carlos

That's true, it could be the weight of the truck is not suited for the colder weather. I'll give that a shot, it can use an oil change anyways, thanks!

you've got more issues than oil dude.

you could change your oil and drop a couple bottles of Rev-X in it and see some improvement, but you have injector issues, and it they don't go away with new oil weight or rev-x. plug it in at night, and that will help it start too.

[HAM_RADIO_MAN]

Detailed FICM Repair Procedure - Diesel Forum - TheDieselStop.com

Follow this link for a PDF that shows what you need to do to test and maybe fix your FICM. You may only need to do a little soldering. See the t-shooting guide in my signature for more info.

This looks a lot like FICM problems.

[shans]

I just completed the FICM repair as outlined by DrQuad. The before crank voltage was 27.4 V after the repair the crank and run voltage is a steady 48. The repair was not to difficult and I would recommend it to anyone who is willing to attempted it. Follow the instructions exactly. I did not use hair dryer but very carefully cut and pried the amber material out. The only issue I had was the micro size the R0075 resisters. Not only were they tiny but were very close together. I picked up 300 power reading glasses and a new 20 Watt solder iron with a tiny angled tip which allowed me to get in there with out bridging the resistors together. It all worked out fine. Thank You to all who posted on this issue. I did it and it cost $30 not $6-8 hundred.

Steve