99 7.3 cold no start

[ford8992]

I have a 99 7.3 that has a problem starting up in the winter. I have checked the glow plugs and relay and they are good and also new as of last year. Is my oil too thick? It is in the low 20's and I have 15W-40 in it. Also, I have 850CC Amp batteries, are these too weak? I can only run through a few glow plug cycles and cranks before they get weak. If the truck gets plugged in, it starts like a champ. I am leaning towards a thinner oil.

[Fireman40]

I seem to have the same issue with mine. Here in Maryland its been in the 20's at night if i plug it in I have no problems. But if I dont' on really cold mornings it almost wont start. seems like the batteries dont have it. They are new last year and so is the alternator. I was thinking about thinner oil also. What do you guys out west do when it gets in the single digits all winter?

[Rockstar Edition]

yeah my buddy just picked my truck up tonight and they had to plug it in for it to start.....cold hearted biznitch LOL.....also realized why it kept pouring smoke on start up.........forgot I did an AIH delete whooooops

Chad

[Blusmoke]

Don't know what the guys out west do, but here in the mountians of Upstate NY, we generally will get a solid week of sub-zero nights in February. I've owned my '96 7.3 since new, and here's what I do:
40-20 - 1 GP cycle
20-10 - 2 GP cycles
below 10 - plug in 1 hr before starting. I only plug in an hour before for 2 reasons - 1) thats all it takes to open the thermostat, and 2) the block heater is a massive electric draw since it's only 110V $$$$$!!!

[NDstroker]

I have a 01 F-250 I live in North Dakota and it gets COLD the last couple nights have been below zero and i have to plug it in before it starts if i dont it starts really hard

[Bad Night]

Originally Posted by ford8992

I have a 99 7.3 that has a problem starting up in the winter. I have checked the glow plugs and relay and they are good and also new as of last year. Is my oil too thick? It is in the low 20's and I have 15W-40 in it. Also, I have 850CC Amp batteries, are these too weak? I can only run through a few glow plug cycles and cranks before they get weak. If the truck gets plugged in, it starts like a champ. I am leaning towards a thinner oil.

I don't think the oil is your prob .Take your batteries out and get them load checked . They have to be load tested unhooked and individually for proper results . If batts are good check all grounds and battery connections . Plugging in the truck helps for obvious reasons , takes less power to crank a warm (not hot) diesel motor than a frozen one . If all is well though you should not have to plug in your truck to get it to start . I live in n.e. ohio and it gets pretty cold for weeks at a time below 20 down to neg 5 or so and I have never plugged my truck in (it sits outside) I cycle my glow plugs once and fire her up . She starts right up , goes on high idle , no white smoke . I usually let it run about 3-5 min just to warm up the inside () Then off I go .

[Bad Night]

A lot of diesel owners say you have to plug your truck in once it gets cold . Usually I have found that is because they have had one prob or another that they didn't know about . Either weak batteries , bad grounds , dirty battery cables / terminals , bad glow plugs , gp relay , and so on . Our trucks are designed to start without being plugged in . The plugs are there to help but are not a necessity . Your truck should crank fast for several min if you wanted it to (I don't recommend this) but it should be able to .

[ford8992]

Thanks for the help guys ! I will get my batteries down to autozone and get them tested. If they are bad, what is a good battrey to buy?

[TommyBoy#1]

its been in the low teens a couple weeks ago well below freezing at night and my truck will fire like a champ just forgot to put some stanadine fuel suppliment i had alot of fuel jelling injectors sounded like sh!t

[Cowboyboots]

my guess was glow plugs or relay, i just checked my truck out and the drivers side valve cover harness bleew the outside pin (glowplug). check those out and make sure they are ok, i have to plug my truck in because of this, dont have the money right now. Out here i have trouble with the diesel gelling a bit though.