Underground parking and strata woes

[jessef]

the L400's don't need a turbo timer. IC/water cooled turbo takes care of the cooldown.

if you're on the I-5 doing 120km/hr in July at 50*celcius with a full load for a full day of driving, I'd probably idle it for 1-2 mins before shutting it off. Other than that type of scenario, turbo timer is better suited to the smaller 4D56 on the L300's.

[mycale2]

I think it's pretty clear that we don't idle the engine, and by cold in Victoria, we are talking maybe zero c. it's counter-intuitive to me, but my only experience in the past is petrol engines...so there ya go. I have to say that the more i read about it the better. It hadn't even occurred to me that idling was a bad thing. I did know about the Turbo cool down. my next big project is the diesel purge, thankfully my brother is coming out to Vic, he's mechanically inclined, I am most certainly not...I asked a buddy of mine in Toronto about Seafoam and he swears it's the worst thing on the planet. He has a friend who used Seafoam, dislodged some gunk and it literally blew up the engine. Frankly, I don't see the difference between Liqui moly and sea foam, both are essentially doing the same thing...not too sure why he would recommend one and not the other...but he did have one interesting tid bit about running the hell out of the engine every once and a while to help the engine along...I said, a good run up and down the malahat would do the trick...

[jessef]

if it's really cold below zero, then bumping up the idle speed to 1,200-1,300 RPM for a few mins is the proper way for an L400 if you must idle it.

If it's not really cold (above zero), then idling is not necessary with an L400.

The older L300's pre-93/94 are a different story. They need to be coddled in really cold temps as the manual throttle control is quite sensitive once the glowplugs start cycling. RPM's shoot up fast if the throttle is set too high. Makes for a funny start when you're brushing snow off and then the idle ramps up to 2k+

There was a good debate between driving away vs. idling a year or two ago.

The main point is the oil pressure. At low idle, it will take longer time to get the pressure up as opposed to ramping up the idle and/or driving relatively soon after starting it.

[thedjjack]

The only time I idle is under zero and I have to climb. I will fast idle under 2 minutes and then keep my EGRs under 600 once I start climbing if my water temperature is still cold.

Other then that turn key and drive. 1989 L300.

[bassnailer]

This is a good thread hi-jack. (Sorry about that, by the way) But there seems to be some honest misunderstandings here about idle times and warm-ups. This is my first Diesel, and although I have had it for a couple of years now, I still feel new to whole thing. And I don't think that I am alone here. So we may be answering some yet unasked questions by other diesel neophytes who don't know that they are doing things wrong.

[NoDelie]

I have installed a oil gauge to see what my old 89 pj was doing. On a cold day in calgary the oil gauge is up to 90 to 100, cold start not plugged in -10 ish. I let it warm up until the oil gauge hit 60 ish. This takes about 5 min. I only do this so i don't blow my head gasket. This is what i am to believe because in my 84 diesel rabbit i had blown my head gasket. It was a cold day in the rabbit -15 ish oil 15/40, Started the car got a smooth idle and headed off, only to see my oil light come on during the drive to work. Upon investigation, after adding oil , i see the oil coming out between head and block . Needless to say $ 800 later it was ok. Is it still ok for me to let the pajero do the above warm up time.

[FalcoColumbarius]

I warm my Delica up every morning. I do this for a couple of reasons: 1/ It's a diesel and should be warmed to when the thermostat opens (about 5 min.) before putting stress on the compression, father taught me that; 2/ My owner's manual tells me to do so.

I have a hand throttle, which I set at 1,100RPM the night before, which works just fine. One shouldn't let the engine idle lower than 600RPM as it shakes everything apart, really? If you are going to let the engine idle for an extended period of time then it is advised to run it faster, as Jesse mentioned, I like 1,100.
That's what I do.

Falco.

[konadog]

Warming up a car by leaving it idle is a waste of fuel. Funny how many people who idle their cars unnecessarily also whinge about the cost of fuel... It's just a bad habit.

[thedjjack]

if you drive hard on a cold motor it will blow up. especially alluminum head/cast block 22:1 diesel.


nice easy driving = to sitting at 1200 rpm no load


i keep my pyro pre turbo under 600. you do not need to idle.

wow thread de-railed!!

[jessef]

The weather here in the lower mainland is warm for these rigs.

It's been hashed over and over and the consensus (not limited to Mitsubishi's or Delica's) that..

1. driving a cold diesel engine hard (ie. starting it up and hopping on the highway right away) is not good.

2. idling a cold diesel engine for more than a few mins is not good.

The combination of both is to turn on the key, let the glow plugs initiate, turn the engine over, set RPM to 1,000-1,200 and either idle it there for a few mins (if below zero) or drive at that RPM for a few mins (above zero).

Idling for longer than that is a waste of fuel, pollution and noise. If you must idle it, 2-3 mins max. unless you live in the interior where you get below 10-40 on a daily basis.

Test it out and you will see. Idle for 5-10 mins and look at the temp gauge vs. set rpm at 1-1,200 and drive away. You'll notice the temp gauge rise at a normal rate.

I would like to see the factory owner's manual state that you need to idle the Delica for 5 minutes. My owner's manual (in Japanese) does not say to idle it for any period of time.

[FalcoColumbarius]

.....wow thread de-railed!!

Yeah.... shall we move this to a new thread of it's own?

Falco.

P.S.: We could call it "Subterranean Homesick Blues", instead of "Underground Parking and Strata Woes". Kinda works.

[NoDelie]

I have noticed when i do let it idle at low RPM it is cold ( low temp not very warm ) at any length of time. I do let it get to a smooth idle before i drive and oil pressure gets down. I do this because i was told by the fellow who fixed my diesel rabbit to much pressure on a cold day will find the weakest spot, the head gasket. Yes i do believe that if you idle at a 1000 to 1200 RPM it will be warmer and not so hard on the motor. So i will set the idle to a higher point when i leave to work. Thanks for the help.

[Manitoba deli]

Falco has the proper warm up procedure for a diesel engine. It is especially important when you have an aluminum head and cast engine block. The heat and pressures generated by immediately "driving easy" will cause the aluminum head to expand much quicker than the cast block, stressing the head gasket. While the exhaust gas temps. may be low while "driving easy" the pressures in the combustion chamber are much higher than operating the engine with no load (high idle), putting even more unnecessary stress on the head gasket. If you want to get the longest life out of your engine, let it warm up at high idle. Diesel or gas. Engine parts wear about 80% more when cold as opposed to warm. A good thing to remember, is the groups that say idling is a waste of fuel, is the same group that says driving a vehicle over 15 years old puts out too many emissions. These groups want you to keep buying new vehicles, they don't want your vehicle to last a long time. You don't have to be a rocket scientist to figure out the emissions produced to manufacture parts needed to replace prematurely worn parts will be far more than the emissions produced by warming up for 5 min. Not to mention the extra fuel burned making more trips to work to pay for the prematurely failed parts. If you don't plan on owning the vehicle for long, and are simply "flipping" vehicles, then no warm up is probably the best economic choice for you. Just too bad for the next person. And this is simply an opinion based on my schooling as a diesel mechanic, and experience fixing diesels (and some gassers) for over twenty years in the province of Manitoba, where the temperatures have been known to go below zero. I like to call it "real world experience". I didn't hear it from a friend who knows some guy, or read it in a magazine some where. Take it how ever you want. (I understand if the moderators want to move this, as this topic will probably never get back on topic now.)

Jason

[mycale2]

So anyways, back to the point of this thread. From what the wife tells me, our strata president is a bit of a cycling nut, which would certainly explain the issues he has with my truck in general. As for idling time, what i have been reading is that we on the Island rarely see temps below zero. So the idea of idling in the morning, in the garage is pretty much without merit. I can slowly make my way out to a "main" road and not really worry about revs going beyond 2k. In the morning, while i am at work, down by the water, after the truck has sat for 12 hours without running, i can idle for a couple mins and slowly make my way to the "main" roads. people in Manitoba very well might have to idle their diesel engines for a few minutes because -30c is damn cold. But rarely, if ever do we see those kinds of temps on the island. As for the strata, i doubt they have any say over diesel vs petrol engines. In fact, if anything, i should be complaining about ventilation in the garage, as should the president...UHHHGGGHHHH

[bassnailer]

So anyways, back to the point of this thread. From what the wife tells me, our strata president is a bit of a cycling nut, which would certainly explain the issues he has with my truck in general. As for idling time, what i have been reading is that we on the Island rarely see temps below zero. So the idea of idling in the morning, in the garage is pretty much without merit. I can slowly make my way out to a "main" road and not really worry about revs going beyond 2k. In the morning, while i am at work, down by the water, after the truck has sat for 12 hours without running, i can idle for a couple mins and slowly make my way to the "main" roads. people in Manitoba very well might have to idle their diesel engines for a few minutes because -30c is damn cold. But rarely, if ever do we see those kinds of temps on the island. As for the strata, i doubt they have any say over diesel vs petrol engines. In fact, if anything, i should be complaining about ventilation in the garage, as should the president...UHHHGGGHHHH

Hey, OP, don't hi-jack the hi-jacked thread!

Well, I don't live in a strata building, but I do live in a co-op, and I am on the board of directors. I am assuming that boards are usually run in similar fashions, and if that is the case then the president is usually powerless. I am vice-president and I have just a little bit more "power" than the president, and the reason is because I can vote at meetings where as the president can't. Sounds all very boring, but my point is this; I doubt the president has any authority to act on his own. It is not his will or agenda that he can push forward. It should be from a mandate from the members, through the strada. So, like someone else here mentioned, write a letter to the council and deal with them directly and stand up for your rights. I can guarantee that there is no clause in your rules that say you can't have a diesel vehicle in the underground. This problem you are having is born out of ignorance. Inform the dumb and you should see some change. And, maybe, get involved on the strata council. Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer.


(btw, I'm a cycling nut, too)