Glow Plugs are Annoying

[Hoss 350]

As the title states, I am finding myself curious...

Cummins-Powered Dodges use an intake grid heater for their startups. As far as I can tell, they start pretty well, and the problems associated with IGH's are few to none, since they are so simple.

That got me to thinking. My Powerstroke has an IGH in it, since I haven't ever pulled it out... Glowplugs, on the other hand, have been an excersize in annoyance on every diesel-powered rig i've ever owned. I lost plugs regularly on my '81 GM 6.2 (I miss that truck...), and I lost a relay on my '95 PSD. On my '99, I have replaced the relay, but it still smokes like a wet fire whenever I start it, so I think I have a couple bad plugs. (Suprise, they are 150,000 miles old).

However, I would really like to experiment with a non-glowplug operation on my truck, and I was wondering if anybody else had ever done this or looked into it. What I think I'll do is this...

1.) Disable my GPs by disconnecting them at the relay.

2.) Wire the IGH to a relay that turns it on and off. I need to know volts needed (assuming 12) and watts/amps that it requires, so I can accurately wire it up.

See if it starts okay in the SFBACITMNAFO weather we have been having up here with just the IGH. If it does, i may have created a glowplug elimination mod. Then, at that point, I would want to hire someone that does this stuff to actually create a module that plugs in to automatically run the IGH under the same constraints as the GPs and possibly even the EBPV, to further aid in warm-up.

What I mean, is that like the GPs, the IGH will turn on automatically and cycle the WTS light like in the Dodges, when you turn on the key. Then, it will stay on for an amount of time to ensure the engine runs smooth and smoke free upon start-up.

Then, it will function like the EBPV, staying on until ambient, water and oil temps reach a certain degrees F, then turning off. I would guess that this would aid in drastically shorter warm-up times.

What do you guys think?

 

[whatabudro]

................SFBACITMNAFO weather we have been having up here...............................What do you guys think?

I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO THINK OF THAT

I would like to see you try it.

 

[Hoss 350]

I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO THINK OF THAT

I would like to see you try it.

Check your PMs

 

[Hoss 350]

I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO THINK OF THAT

I would like to see you try it.

Budro,
Do you think it would be worth it? Maybe just wire the IGH so i can turn it on when the GPs turn off to heat the intake and get rid of the smoke faster? Maybe this is all I need. If the Gps fail further down the road again, then maybe I can try the IGH by itself. I just dislike GPs, generally. an IGH seems so much simpler and easier...

 

[whatabudro]

Ok don't laugh too hard, cause I'm no diesel tech by anymeans. I'm not real familiar with how this all works....... but couldn't you wire the air intake heater, thats already on our trucks, to be controlled by you instead of the ecm to accomplish the same thing? As far as I understand, the aih does not come on unless in park, ambient temp. a certain level, oil temp a certain level, and then it has to be like this for certain time period? Help me out here.

 

[Doggy Daddy]

Well. the relay for the Intake Heater is right next to the GP relay, an easy experiment would be to connect the winding connections from the GP relay to the IH relay. I think that you will find that it is not that easy but it certainly can't hurt to try. The GP relay is the one that has 2 load wires on the "out" side of the relay, the IH relay has a single cable on both sides of the load circuit. I would disconnect the winding wires from the IH relay so that nothing backfeeds and then connect the GP winding wires (by extending if necessary) over to the IH relay.

It seems like most of the Cummins will start just fine without waiting for the intake heater. That cannot be said of most other diesels.

 

[roosterdiesel]

Interesting idea Hoss_350!-popcorn Wonder where the heater is on a Cummins? Do you really think the intake heater on our truck would supply enough heat for our big V-8 as opposed to the 6 cyl B-series CTD?

My truck smokes alot on idle at start up too! Some has to do with the AIH mod but it's more than last winter now with 107K miles.

 

[Crumm]

It would not work here in the winter but in the summer it would. Down there in Washington you might be OK year around but the glow plugs are going to get alot of build-up on them if you don't use them. You will either need to remove them and put plugs in the holes or just figure you will never get them out without pulling the heads.

 

[Doggy Daddy]

Rooster,
The heater grid on a Cummins is right where the air enters the intake manifold. You may have seen the elbow that connects the intercooler tube to the cylinder head and it is right at that joint that the heater is installed. I have known a couple guys that have removed the heater completely and had the truck still start OK here in western WA. In this weather a Powerstroke with half the glow plugs not working, or a bad GP relay, would not start at all and we are warmer than eastern WA.

I don't believe that the glow plugs would accumulate carbon faster if they were disconnected than if they were operational. I think that being in the combustion chamber is the rason that they accumulate carbon and that they do not self clean when they operate. Interesting thoery, but I don't think (can't prove one way or the other) it has any effect.

I think that the design of the cylinder head needs the GPs to get started and that the intake heater was an afterthought (was not on the '94-'97 or '99.0 trucks). I don't think that it has the heat needed to get the engine started on a 20 degree day.

 

[whatabudro]

I would guess that this would aid in drastically shorter warm-up times.

What do you guys think?

This is what I was getting at. I dont think it would help start the truck, but would help, cut the smoke on cold starts.