Diesel Additive For Really Cold Starts

[unariciflocos 49 1 Cars]

My Focus failed to start this morning at -24 C and the next few days aren't looking and warmer, so I was thinking of adding about 2 liters of petrol to the diesel in the tank to keep liquid and to help the engine start. The tank is almost full so that will be a ratio of about 2 liters of petrol to 40 liters of diesel. Does anyone IN THE KNOW advise against this or maybe suggest a different ratio or different additive?

 

Thanks,

Andrei

[welshpug 1,666]

which engine is it?

 

It is in the handbook for many Peugeot's to add some petrol to diesel fuel for very low temperatures, whether this will cause any harm in your focus depends which engine and fuelling system it runs.

 

one problem you will have if the tank is full is that the petrol will just sit on top.

[unariciflocos 49 1 Cars]

It's the car in my signature, the most basic diesel engine that ever was in a Focus , the 1.8 TDDi 75PS.

 

I'm sure I can throw it around some bends to get it to mix. I set off from the top of a hill this morning to get it to start, but I have to do something, my car is just like those diesel locomotives on youtube now when I start it in the mornings, with poping and banging and clouds of smoke. It sounds like the pistons are crushing rocks in there. And ofcourse my Pug is out with a dead ECU.

[GLPoomobile 958]

For -24C I strongly recommend staying in bed until it warms up. f*** going outside!

[Anthony 1,003]

If it's the old indirect injection TDDi engine, are you sure all the glow plugs are working?

 

Obviously it being a bit nippy ( ) won't help as I guess the diesel will be starting to wax up at those temperatures, but indirect injection engines are a right pig when it's very cold and you've one or more glow plugs that isn't working properly - and usually when they do eventually splutter into life, it's with a rough running engine that smokes heavily for a few seconds until the missing cylinder(s) start firing properly.

 

Try cycling the glow plugs a few times before starting - that's what I used to have to do on an old XUD of mine that had a glow plug or two that wasn't working as it should. If I didn't, it took a lot of cranking before spluttering and coughing into life in a cloud of smoke and not on a full compliment of cylinders.

 

Indeed, it's nothing like that cold in the UK at the moment, but this morning it was cold enough (-6C) that my HDi wouldn't start until I'd left it a few seconds for the glow plug light to go out - normally even a when it's below freezing it will start without waiting on the glow plugs.

 

With yours being the older TDDi engine I would imagine that it will be fine with a bit of petrol mixed in - it's newer common rail diesels (ie TDCi) that tend to be a bit of a no-no with regards running anything other than straight diesel. I know that the Focus TDDi fuel pumps are prone to failure (or certainly the 90hp version we got in the UK is) but I think that's electrical rather than the mechanical part of the pump itself

[pug_ham 245 3 Cars]

You shouldn't need to add anything to modern diesel fuels imo, that was from back when diesel really was thicker than petrol.

 

If anything you would be better to add kerosene or parrafin rather than petrol, as said by Mei, they don't mix very well due to different viscosities keeping them seperate.

 

g

[oilman 7]

Hi

 

I know my grandad used to use a drop of petrol in diesel trucks in the winter and it was fine, but that was a long time ago. Fuels are supposed to be blended to take into account the ambient temps in your area now, but it can still freeze when it gets stupidly cold. There are some products that stop it though and we sold a fair bit of this one last year when it got really cold.

 

http://www.opieoils.co.uk/p-1030-redline-fuel-system-antifreeze-and-water-remover.aspx

 

You only need a fairly small drop of it per tank, so isn't too expensive.

 

Cheers

 

Tim

[welshpug 1,666]

DI means Direct injection Ant

 

These pumps are indeed quite prone to failure, have helped change a few, so I would do the heater plug checks firstly.

[Anthony 1,003]

Ah, my mistake - just checked and you're right

 

I thought it was the same engine from the Escort/Mondeo (which was indirect injection) just with electronic control on the pump, but looks like while it is the same basic engine, was fitted with direct injection and thus shouldn't be half as reliant on glow plugs as the older design. I hadn't thought they got were direct injection until they went common rail with the TDCi, but clearly I was wrong.

[unariciflocos 49 1 Cars]

Thanks for the input guys.

 

When I first got the car I took it to a small circuit race and put in 8 liters of diesel and 2 liters of petrol and it ran quite well and doesn't seem to have left any long term effects (have done 50k miles since).

 

I do cycle the glow plugs three times before cranking, but at least 2 of them are dead because it does sound like it's starting on only two cylinders when it does. The max yesterday was -15 so I have absolutely no intention of going under the bonnet until it gets warmer. Some kind of additive will do for now. I'm reluctant to put petrol in now because I fear it won't mix properly and if pure petrol gets into the cylinder that'll be the end of my engine.

 

The diesel I'm using is guaranteed down to -26, but -24 is damn close to that and may have been colder during the night. I think I'll try and add some winter diesel today which is guaranteed down to -40. Last year at -28 it started perfectly on winter diesel.

 

I don't mind the cold much and staying inside is not an option. I do have to work for a living and I was planning a snowboarding trip in the mountains this weekend.

[welshpug 1,666]

if two plugs are dead you wont have a hope of a clean start

[unariciflocos 49 1 Cars]

I will in a few weeks time when it gets warmer

 

Yesterday I set off from the top of a hill and this morning i cranked for a good 15 seconds. I'm just hoping that I won't kill the starter until springtime. The battery is also past its prime, being 9 years old.