ive let my truck idle for hours and hours at times. In cold and hot weather. Ive never even seen a catalyst message on mine nor does she run bad after idling. I even got the high idle feature but i dont really use it unless warm up sometimes.

 

I like to let mine idle for a few minutes on cold starts, but I am nervous about clogging my DPF.

I usually idle mine for about 5 minutes on a cold start; no issues thus far but I also hit the highway (~75mph and 900+ EGTs) within a few minutes of leaving the driveway.

 

I idle mine all the time, especially when cold outside(30 mins or more), but I always have my exhaust brake on and if its around 40 or colder I high idle with the brake on, never had the first problem.

 

I have idled mine for a half hour usually at a time with jake and high idle on. no problems. However we were watching ice races the other day, so had it running on and off for about 3 hours to stay warm int the cab and plugged the catalyst. had to drive for about 30 minutes for it to clear out.

'08 2500 4x4 6.7 auto

 

run mine for over 6hrs at low idle no probs

 

I have had about 25 deg weather since I got my truck and I let it low idle until it kicks itself to 1000 rpm with the EB on. After about 3-5 mins I push it up to about 1400 rpm for a good 10-15 mins and then drive it. I get on the highway in about 2 mins and the water temp is rising from 140 toward normal operating temp and I get on her hard as usual. I have never had any cat messages but I don't have very many miles yet(1260 miles).

 

I let mine high idle about 1100 RPM's with the EB on each morning for 10 to 15 minutes before taking off and haven't seen the cat full message yet.

 

I've had the cat full message a couple of times this year while idleing for, well, all day on low idle. But it get's annoying. I had the high idle enabled and just let it idle at around 13-1400 rpms all day now. Temp never drops below 190, even at 5 degrees F outside. The H&S 5" delete kit is on my list of things to do this winter. DPF SUCKS!!!!

 

not to be stupid but what do you mean engage high idle, mine will go to 1000 rpm with the jake on but, i read people are goin up to 1500 rpm and i was wondering how to do that

 

Turn cruise on, then push set, then accel to raise rpms! If it was activated from the factory or you can have it done!

 

its a dealer enabled option that allows you to adjust your idle rpm from 1100-1500.

 

I let mine idle for about 5 hours once, no problems after that.

 

thanks i'll check into that tomorow

 

I dunno, but maybe the serious warning regarding long idling is another dealer myth?
Seems like a bit more education to the techs etc. is needed. Maybe all dealers saw the same video regarding warnings. All the above posts and we find 1 clogged dpf.

 

AFIK the warning is not a DFP thing.. all cummins have the warning, even back in 90. Its because the cylinder temps/combustion temps drop and the fuel isn't completely burned. So you get fuel in your oil and the fuel on the cylinder walls eats the oil and the rigs loose lube... its called cylinder washing.

 

The manual says to let it idle for 3 minutes when cold until the grid heaters go through their cycle.

 

Ive never understood this though becuase you shouldnt be geting oil past the rings anyways and if you were then youd be burning it.

I still follow this and highidle but I dont quite get it.

 

I have always heard, in my long life, that it's harder on a diesel to start it and shut it of all day, than it is to let it run. The compression on these engines is extremely high, which in turn wears on the starter motor, and your always cranking a cold engine. It just isn't good for these motors. I don't know about the cylinder wash at low idle, and it doesn't really make sense to me either, but I'm not a diesel tech either. I used to idle my 04 5.9 all day long, through the winter months and the engine temp sat at around 120-140, and when I traded it off with 175,000 miles, never had a single engine related issue with it.

So now the only issue I've had with this new truck is the DPF plugging a couple times when trying to do the same thing, once this summer when it was 105 degrees and had to have the A/C on, and when it started getting colder I had the warning come on. So I had the high idle enabled, and have been setting it at about 13-1400 rpms, the engine temp sits at 190 all day, and haven't seen a warning since. Rolled over the 30,000 mile mark on the way to Kansas last night, and the DPF has been my only complaint about this truck.

I only suggest you do it as you need to, though, because the few days I've idled at that rpm, it's used about a 1/4 tank of fuel each time, and that is gonna get expensive. I would highly recommend an Espar Aux. Heater if you need to keep your truck warm in the winter months. They are about 1500 bucks installed at the dealer, and it will pay for itself in the fuel you will save.

That's about all I have to say. Take it for what you want.

 

My service rep told me not to worry about extended idling of the 6.7. When I asked about the DPF plugging up and having no where to drive it at highway speeds he told me you did not have to drive it at highway speeds. The more things that he told me the more I thought that he did not know what he was talking about though. You could tell that he has had a lot of conversations with upset owners of this new design. By the end of our conversation I did not believe a single word he told me. It seems there is better information here at CF!

I will ask him the same questions next time I go there and see what his answers are then. Maybe he has learned a few facts this time about the DPF system. I am hoping that with enough pressure we can get Dodge to take these things off. If for nothing else but safety reasons. I have already heard rumours that some of these new trucks with a super hot exhaust system have been banned from some oil field related sites. This is yet another reason I want to remove the DPF...so I can work.

 

I can reassure you - for certain - you do not have to be going highway speed for regen (g30 recall). I have a computer (dashhawk) that displays the dpf temperature at all times - regens are very obvious and they will happen anytime you are moving (as required). As soon as you stop and idle, they quit. Does a regen happen with fast idle engaged? Haven't tried that yet. I bet it does??? Perhaps not though, for fire safety.

 

That sounds like about every conversation I've had with a service "rep" or "writer". they don't know a flipping thing about your truck. The only thing they know, is when you can bring it in for service, for the recall that comes up on his screen when he types in your name or VIN number. You'll have a hard time with most of the mechanics knowing anything as well. If it doesn't come up on their STARSCAN.....well.

 

I agree its probably blown out of proportion... and cylinder washing probably only happens in REAL cold weather. Getting fuel past the rings is easier than oil, which is why it can happen. I saw it happen on 4cycle outboards when the owners would pull the thermostat, they would run for a while and make oil.... I would imagine its the same thing...

 

Idiling And Fuel -in -oil Report

Just had my first oil change on 2008 Mega and the only thing that didn't look right on the Blackstone oil report was 31/2 percent
fuel in oil. The only time I idle is to cool turbo below 325 on shutdown and on the
A.M. startup. Milage was 3300 miles and
the message came on at 3100 miles. Is this
"cylinder wash"....or just "blowby" from
lack of rings seating on a new engine?????

 

Did you ask the tech? I've never seen anyone do that test on my oil, and I've always had the dealer change it.

 

blackstone labs is independent testing.

under $30 for the complete test.

 

I have pulled wrenches on diesels for over 12 years, and whether you call it cylinder wash, cylinder glace, or wet stacking, the result of LOW idling a diesel engine is the same. What happens to the cylinder walls is the "honing marks" on your cylinder walls become glaced over and your piston rings do not seal as well as they should, so your compression drops a little. The reason diesel will get into the crank case is because the compression drops and the fuel is no longer combusting properly, and the rings are not sealing against the cylinder walls properly.
On severe cases, the engine will lose power, or even get a dead cylinder because of the glaced cylinder wall, or clogged injector.
I have seen last resort (desperate) repairs that I don't even care to mention in order to scuff up the cylinder wall without rebuilding the engine.
Most of these problems occurred in the older engines that did not have computers to control injection, or cold weather idle circuits (1000 rpm). Using the high idle (cruise control+set=11-1500 rpm)will definetely prevent this from happening (I use it all the time) and is "probably" better than shutting down and starting your engine all the time, especially on your turbo.

 

well i've got a 16year old diesel, letting it idle 10 minutes at a time each morning in cold weather(0*), 5 min longer than recomended time, adds no fuel to oil, cant even smell diesel fuel in oil so i dont believe in this stuff some people are saying, i guess each engine is different but thats just my .02

 

I'm glad to hear that you have not had any problems, this proves that on forums like this we can all learn something from each other's experiences. I personally prefer to run mine at faster than ilde for extended periods, probably because of habit and because at idle, the charging system on all Dodge/Chrysler vehicles doesn't charge worth a $hit.

I'd also like to add that idling for 10-20 minutes at a time is not considered extended idling. Extended idling is what oil patch, logging trucks, and military vehicles do. They run for days, weeks sometimes only shutting down for oil changes. The reason they run them so long at idle, or fast idle is because of the extreme cold, or to keep the batteries charging while they operate radio/surveilance/trade specific equipent.

Cheers:beer

 

I've always figured "extended idling" as more than 15 minutes at a time. I wouldn't say 10 minutes each day is anything............