7.3 Powerstroke Cold Start: 2024 Ice Storm

[@cucvfarmer]

5w40 oil makes a huge difference. Also make sure your glowplugs are working properly and your relay is good. CNC Fab sells a good Densco starter. Good battery cables make a huge difference also. If you need new cables go bigger than OEM.

[@DeepSouthBayouDiesel]

Yesterday I had to let the glow plugs sit for over 2 mins on my 02 F350 7.3 super duty. It was 18 degrees Fahrenheit. It tried to start twice, so I let the flow plugs to sit a little longer, then BAM, fired right up😎

[@frankvacanti5277]

Pull the door from the bottom. I broke two latches. Here in Buffalo Arctic

[@cook4015]

I just put a Denso starter in my truck last week from CNC FAB. What a beast that starter is she spins and starts fast even in 3 degree weather not plugged in. I also run there western plow relay for a glow plug relay. Good oil and maintenance is key for a good cold start.

[@Powerstroke431]

0w40 is better. Rotella T6 is good stuff 👌

[@michaeltutty1540]

Full synthetic oil flows better when cold. When it comes to better cables I always upgrade to 1 gauge cables. I also tend to run 1100 amp batteries, and that is on my gas engine cars.

[@MrElh358]

Stay warm and safe, glad you bought another 7.3

[@mustangdbest220]

I've heard having a spray bottle with -40 degrees windshield washer fluid spring it on the ice of the truck would be so satisfying listening and watching it crack instantly

[@frankvacanti5277]

No smoke at all nice. I run 10w30 Amsoil here in Buffalo Arctic n.y. in winter. pull the door from the bottom i broke two lach's yahk'n on the latch.

[@LivingOnWheels]

got a little smoky after the glow plugs cycled off but cleared up nice and quick.

[@markdavis8888]

Bottom of the door does save the latch.

[@mustangdbest220]

7.3s ARE BEASTS

[@alyluvsdinos]

Good shit buddy, the the videos! I remember when i was up in Wasilla, AK for about 9 yrs only really had one instance where i couldnt get my 7.3 to start. Was a cook at the time and during my shift (closing) we had gotten down to around -20 and in the time of my shift she froze up on me! lol went in to my proprietors and made sure it was okay and ran a couple heavy duty extensions out to the truck waited a couple hours and she fired right up! But i also had what we call up there "heater tampons" which are the plugged heating pads that you can stick around the vehicle, mainly for the oil pan and batteries! Catch you on the next one bo! 🤟🤟

[@jchlo4790]

Been -20 in Wyoming ole 7.3s been ole reliable for sure starting after 2 tries

[@LivingOnWheels]

I’d trust mine in that weather after I replace the batteries 😂

[@fr0x41nk]

Thx for your videos

[@billmoody9736]

Glad I live in Texas. Ice sucks unless its in your tea. It's 18F right now and I'm not going anywhere today.

[@ET74019]

Just a tiny bit of ice there😂….the ol 7.3 still chuggin along 😊

[@LivingOnWheels]

Yeah… I’d say it’s definitely time for some new batteries haha.

[@ET74019]

@@LivingOnWheels for sure extreme cold/heat is bad on them

[@silvergrizzly316]

No worries Joe, y'all either have rain, sleet, snow, ice storms or down right blizzards with -0 temps🥶this time of year, makes working outside almost impossible. Can't wait to see your headlights video👍that'll be my next project. Stay warm and Stay Blessed my brother 🙏 Jay.

[@toddb930]

My 2000 F250 with the 7.3 L diesel use to be really hard to start when temps got below 15-20. When Shell came out with the T6 5w40 synthetic i haven't had any troubles. Yesterday I started it when it had gone through -10° overnight and was 5°. It wasn't plugged in any of that time.

[@LivingOnWheels]

5w40 definitely makes a big difference. The batteries were the big problem today.

[@blakee5230]

Hey man I had the same issue with mine cranking slow, you need the high torque starter they don’t draw the batteries down near as much it cranks pretty fast now

[@floydwilliams3321]

Good work as usual, Buddy

[@floydwilliams3321]

When it’s all icy, I usually use a prey tool for trim and put a towel behind it and wedged it in the bottom of the door

[@lewisking567]

I have an 2001 it was -7 last night in mid west mo it starts good but not trying it at this temperature without it being plugged in glad to see you.

[@LivingOnWheels]

I would definitely be plugging mine in at that temp too.

[@curtiscarver4135]

Yup I'm also a owner of 02 f250 7.3 and that's correct with starting a 7.3 in freezing temperatures is good batteries, starter and glow plugs. I'm also located in oregon to

[@DarrenT0dd]

Oofta that ice was no joke. Cool vid 😬👍🏻

[@LivingOnWheels]

It was pretty thick!

[@superspeed2956]

Yeah my 97 7.3 here in Texas had a tough morning about 30 degrees out. half my glow plugs aren’t even hooked took me 10 tries 😅

[@rurban01]

Love your videos - btw I’m pretty sure that NoCo is way too small (from what I can tell in the video) - this is the one for our diesels. That’s said in far north Texas and it took over and hour and then the 7.3 still stalls. I’m guessing g fuel is jelly because I’m not in cold temps enough to experience this. Not going anywhere in that old girl today or likely this week lol

[@mattvanatti4628]

It's negative 27 here in Michigan...7.tree fired up no problem because I plugged it in for 12 hours each night

[@cucvfarmer]

If your doors are frozen shut pull on The Bottom of The Door. Don't pull on the Handle. You will Break it. I had that happen on a rear door on my 2000 crew cab.

[@LivingOnWheels]

Good advice!

[@speedfreak8200]

He didn't, he broke it loose with a mallet & gently persuaded it with a cloth covered pry bar

[@stevenl34]

Dam man you need some gloves. I installed a battery maintainer under the hood and ran the plug down next to the heater plug and use a plug adapter so you can just plug in the maintainer or both if it's cold. I plug the maintainer in all the time even in warm days

[@LivingOnWheels]

I probably should’ve grabbed the gloves haha. I’ve thought about making a setup like that with the maintainer. These batteries were just toast. Got a new pair and the old girl fires right up.

[@stevenl34]

I Installed one permanently and plug it in even though my batteries are good. It keeps them topped off@@LivingOnWheels

[@CountryMileGarage]

Change the engine oil to a lighter weight synthetic oil helps a bunch for the colder winter months ... keep up the good work

[@LivingOnWheels]

Definitely does help. I frequently run 5w40 in the winter but didn’t work out with the oil change schedule this year. Biggest issue was just bad batteries though.

[@CountryMileGarage]

@@LivingOnWheels you are right weak batteries doesn't help matter especially with glow plugs draining the battery even before you get the first crank in lol

[@thevikingwolfpack836]

Get the gel batteries an I run 10 w30 with stiction eliminator.

[@davidmcnerney3048]

I run 5w40 and do my uvch's and glowplugs with riff raff parts. I keep new batts installed and also added 4/0 2/0+ 2/0 negs and 1/0 big 3. My 2 obs and sd all start down to 5 below, if it goes 5 below i may plug in if i have to leave early.

[@JesseJames-23]

I’m sure you covered this but why did you sell the last 7.3 that thing was sweet

[@LivingOnWheels]

I honestly just needed a change of pace. Got a little burnt out after pounding out so many weekly videos on it.

[@ikzelerts]

I like the black ford in the background. I have a 03 F350 same color as yours with 7.3 and a black XLT 1984 F250 4x4 in rough shape. Currently not running no spark. What year is your black one.

[@LivingOnWheels]

It’s actually a dark green 84 6.9 idi. My younger cousin picked it up late this last summer. It’s a good looking rig.

[@JLCmike4014]

My ‘99 F-350 is going to need batteries as well. It was -8 degrees (-34 with the windchill) today and she was a very slow cranker. Although after i had it plugged in for an hour and the batteries on charge it didn’t take much to fire up. The glow plugs are all working normal so it’s just too damn cold.

[@cucvfarmer]

Odyssey Extreme batteries are good.

[@JLCmike4014]

@@cucvfarmer, probably will just go with motorcraft MAX batteries. This truck will not be in cold weather much longer. Soon it will be only a nice weather vehicle.

[@cook4015]

Do what i did. Buy a Denso starter from CNC FAB she will start fast in any weather with good batteries and glow plugs.

[@JLCmike4014]

@@cook4015, the glow plug system is 100% operational. Once i had it plugged in for about an hour it fired up. Cranky but still fired up.

[@cook4015]

@@JLCmike4014 Good deal then. Glad she started. Mine fired up yesterday at 3 degrees fahrenheit without being plugged in. She wasn't happy though lol

[@christopherleveck6835]

I have a 2000 Excursion 7.3.….. had an ice storm too. I plugged it in for 20 minutes and it fired right up after sitting for about 6 months....

[@LivingOnWheels]

Sounds like a healthy rig!

[@christopherleveck6835]

@@LivingOnWheels I bought it brand new. Has 175k miles on it. Just broken in.

[@christopherleveck6835]

@@LivingOnWheels what part of the country are you in? I'm in Oregon.

[@LivingOnWheels]

@@christopherleveck6835 I’m in the willamette valley

[@christopherleveck6835]

@@LivingOnWheels hey, I'm in South Salem... Maybe we are neighbors? I'm going to be doing a TON of work on my Excursion in the spring or sooner if I can find some place warm or at least indoors to work on it. First thing is all the brakes. Then going to replace the entire grey interior with a black one. Going to update to newer seats and replace the bench in the back with captains chairs to match the front... You are welcome to video it if you want.

[@1993Minor]

same on mine have to plug it in when its under 30

[@Likeabletexas]

Dude I never noticed squadron patches in any of your vehicles. Is that a VT-3 patch on your far right?

[@LivingOnWheels]

Good eye! It is indeed. They are patches from my brother who’s in right now.

[@Likeabletexas]

Same job, different service. I’ll message you via another channel

[@AlphaZuluPhotography]

I live in Arizona. I can’t relate to any of this. 😂

[@furioustrucking]

Doing all this in a hoody 🥶

[@LivingOnWheels]

Haha any longer and I might’ve had to break out the carhartt

[@michaellangdonful]

Whereabouts in Oregon are you located?

[@LivingOnWheels]

Willamette valley

[@michaellangdonful]

@@LivingOnWheels are you in Lebanon somewhere or in Brownsville? I’m in Lebanon.

[@LivingOnWheels]

​@@michaellangdonful Not going to get too detailed. As I am sure you understand.

[@michaellangdonful]

@@LivingOnWheels yep I understand.

[@alcatraz501]

I wanna see the tractor start 😂

[@LivingOnWheels]

I legit almost put that in the video! It honestly probably would’ve started better than my truck 😂

[@kalebsnook1320]

Heard your gonna t4 swap it

[@LivingOnWheels]

That would be pretty sweet!

[@jonsaircond8520]

My 99 isn't plugged in and I wouldn't even try to start it right now. I have atleast 2 glow plugs out and it lopes at 45

[@LivingOnWheels]

Sounds about right haha.

[@Chop919]

When its cold mine cranks immediately but lope starts for a couple seconds. Cant figure out why.

[@LivingOnWheels]

Thats not out of the ordinary. The Cylinders need to warm up before they are all firing fully. Might have a few glow plugs that aren't heating quite as much.

[@tomoudekerk5346]

Plug the poor thing in next time, is my advice, I wouldn't start a diesel like that unless my life depended on it , Anyway appreciate the videos

[@tomoconnor7528]

Dude I thought you got rid of your 7.3

[@LivingOnWheels]

I did. This is a new one 👌🏻

[@vangilanteryan713]

Cool deal, ger er dun'.

[@efresh5694]

Heyy I thought you sold your Ford?

[@LivingOnWheels]

I did, aaaand bought another one haha

[@silvergrizzly316]

He's just not a dodge kinda guy 😂😂👍👍

[@LivingOnWheels]

@@silvergrizzly316 I got respect for all the main platforms 👌🏻

[@silvergrizzly316]

@LivingOnWheels EXACTLY brother, I do to. 👍👍

[@KINDIRBUDS]

Plugged in and a no start need new batts.(old starter can fuck ya too)

[@LivingOnWheels]

Batteries were definitely the issue

[@AlphaZuluPhotography]

I was hoping to see you ice drift your wheelchair.

[@LivingOnWheels]

lol I thought about it

[@chuckparson6712]

You definitely need a garage or carport 😂

[@LivingOnWheels]

That would be a dream haha. Maybe one day

[@dannysavagedraftguru]

Thought u got rid of 7.3 and got a Cummins ? I stopped watching I’ll start again

[@fordx4n]

I hate ice storms!

[@LivingOnWheels]

but they're so fun haha