WMO cold starting

More specifically ATF at a 50% blend leads to tuff cold (60*) starts. Takes a couple of cycles. With 100% diesel no issues, no matter how cold! (Well, I am in FL, sorry for you Northern folks.) Once running no issues whatsoever. Anyone doing something similar? Are you switching tanks to cold start? Or, adding RUG? Thanks for any tips.


Sent by wing, prayer & ATT

I never ever cod start on wvo, sometimes I'll shut down on oil for a few minutes and start back up again, but never a cold engine start on oil.

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Interesting. I have been running a WMO 50%/D2 47%/ RUG 3% mix all winter long up here in MI where I have cold started with a block heater down to -25 and no heater to 10. It has usually taken a full two plug cycles and some cranking with no heater to start up. I only have a single tank set up right now because the fire department before I owned the truck replaced the bed with a single tank bed even though I have everything for duals except the aft tank and aft filler door. My truck has 95,000 miles FWIW.

How many miles are on your truck? Do you have good batteries and connections? I really don't see why an ATF blend would be hard to start on for you. When changing fuel filters most say to fill the new one with 100% ATF and shut the truck down when the engine noise changes and start up like usual in the morning.

I know my set-up isn't idea, but I am working on a college student budget to change it.

BDOGONE, check out the alternate fuel/bio/wmo section.
Using ATF might not be as bad as wmo, BTW is that ATF new or used???? I think any extra stuff in the D2 will make it a little harder to start, outside temp is VERY big.
Think Javier starts on almost 100% wmo, and he's in FL also, well see if he chimes in.....
Not trying to "peck crap" with the chickens, but to me a cold start means whatever the outside temp is, thats the temp of the engine block, then try to start using the GP's, good batteries, etc.
Don't get me wrong coyote, having it plugged in is the best thing for any engine in cold weather.
BTW nice amount of miles on that pickup...

I run wmo and have the same thing. Runs great on it but starts hard. I just plug my truck in then it will start right up.

Ugh, I'm sorry, what's
WMO?
&
RUG?

1994 Ford F250 Superduty, 2wd, 7.3L IDI, NA, E4OD

WMO- waste motor oil
RUG- regular unleaded gasoline

Lol, thanks for the answers

1994 Ford F250 Superduty, 2wd, 7.3L IDI, NA, E4OD

Brad, no hard feelings there. I do like how you define cold start. I was going off from the idea that a cold start is an engine that has been off long enough to cool to either ambient air or block heater temp. If I am remebering correctly Javier almost always plugs his truck in even. I am sure too he will be a long soon to chime in and correct if needed.

OP do you mean hard to start as in crank and crank and crank and crank and glow and crank again? Or just a few extra revolutions of the starter?

ATF used and just filtered. Mixed 50/50 usually and up to 70/30 experimenting.

Have a pair or 31C battery's that are less than a year old (1047cca. ra)

Spins over fine, no fire till the second cycle of the plugs. Again no issued with the diesel only tank.

I'll do some reading in the fuel section too. Thought it might just be an IDI thing?


Sent by wing, prayer & ATT

Coyote Red.... What's the theory on the 3% RUG? Is it just to drop the viscosity of the oil? Or is this the part I'm lacking for good start-up?


Sent by wing, prayer & ATT

I would think RUG would help it to start cold b/c recently I went to look at an '84 F250 with the 6.9L that I was interested in buying but the batts were almost dead and the glow plug controller was unplugged. The guy said it ran but he could not get it to start. I asked if he had any starting fluid and he said he did not but he said he had some gas. He wanted to pour some in the intake but I said no way and I had him soak a rag in gas and hold it over the intake while I cranked and it fired right up. I had remembered this trick from my auto mechanics teacher in HS in the 70s. The motor had a wrist-pin knock so I passed.

BDOGONE, you are correct. I use it to thin the viscosity of the oil before centrifuging. RUG is an excellent thinner, it has a much lower viscosity than the oil or D2. Thinning with D2 you will never be able to reach the ideal viscosity of pure D2 as you have a thicker fuel mixed in, eventually you can use enough D2 that the difference between the blend and pure fuel is so small that it doesn't matter. RUG also helps to settle out any large particulate that is suspended in the oil. Some guys around here are running on a mixture of WMO 85%/ RUG 15%. That seems to be the high limit for the ratio of RUG.

I blend my fuel twice for winter, the first step is WMO 85%/ d2 10%/ RUG 5% this is the mixture that I run thought the centrifuge for a while. I then have a transfer tank on wheel that I will fill with 50% D2 and 50% WMO blend before I fill my truck. It hasn't been warm enough for me to play with summer blends yet. Heck this is the first time I have drove home from work with the window down for two consecutive days since some time last October.

jas88, I have never heard of that trick before but it makes perfect sense. RUG has a very low flash point -45*f, starting fluid is around -73*f while diesel has a flash point of 125*f and motor oil is around 420-485*f. I found a few really good charts while I was looking this stuff up.
For flash points http://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/flash-point-fuels-d_937.html
For autoignition: http://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/fuels-ignition-temperatures-d_171.html

Thanks for that detailed info.


Sent by wing, prayer & ATT

Interesting there's no listing for ATF.

Numbers from 170-400 on the Internet forums.