Hello.

I have a 98 F-150 with the 4.6 V8. This morning it was -19 degrees cecius. I had plugged my trucks block heater in not knowing that the receptacle I plugged it into had no power. When I started the truck, it made some weird growling noises, was extremely rough running, and the instrument panel lights that come on when the key is turned to the "ON" position (such as the check engine light, 4x4 light, etc) were flickering on and off. This weird behavior lasted for about 4 seconds, after which time the fan seemed to kick in (I'm assuming this by the sudden fan sound that began and progressively grew louder), and the engine went to running completely normally and smoothly. Is this typical behaviour when starting a 4.6 in the extreme cold? If so, how hard is this on the engine? I will be sure to plug the BH into a live outlet next time!

Thank you

 

I have a feeling some of the water in your battery was partially frozen (or at least cold enough to not be moving molecules around freely) throwing your computer for a loop (guages acting wierd and stuff). Your oil was probably very thick accounting for some of the strange noises. Possible also to have (if yours is...) fluid in fan clutch frozen as well. Just some random thoughts.....

 

Low temps really tax a battery's capacity along with thick oil.
Is the battery old? did you clean the battery teminal connections? are you using 5w20 oil?
Noises, howls and ticking will eventually be heard in older vehichles due to wear and other factors for short times after starting. Alternators are prime for squeels.

 

You gotta expect the wierd noises in extreme cold. Everything in my truck whirrs and buzzes in sub zero weather. Even the suspension is very stiff.
But it sounds like your battery may be getting ready to dump. Get it checked for free at Autozone, or the "celsius equivilant" of Autozone.

 

can you say -19°c.
You need to take advantage of everything you can at those temps.
Light weight oils are a high consideration.
Making sure the antifreeze is set to below the lowest expected temp and dosn't turn to slush.
Had that happen to me once along time ago. Slush dosn't flow very well thru a radiator. Ever see an engine overheat in -15°f temps?
Bottom line is everything has to be top notch for starting.

 

This morning it was even colder, but I had plugged the truck in last night. What a difference!! The engine started perfectly, and the lights, guages etc were all normal. Having said that, I will still go and have the battery checked out.

Thanks all.

 

mbruno, from the lights and gauges going on and off, id have to say....you have a poltergeist in your truck! but seriously i dunno, ignition taking more power to run that engine at that cold?

 

starter my truck last night a 7pm to go home
was -29c most of the day here
I start it close your ears come back in 2 mins to make sure nothing big fell off
between the p/s squealing like a stuck hog and the piston slap
trans growling it's was frightening
mitch

 

Good to know it's not just my truck that behaves that way!

Thanks

 

I had small leaks from both top and bottom radiator hoses when it got down to -23c or so this week in BC, although my coolant was changed in may and I was told it was good to -45 my own home coolant tester after topup said it was only good to -15. I too noticed everything including the clutch was stiff (hydraulic I guess) - temps are now 'up' to -7 or so, but I now have block heater plugged in full time but on a timer, 15 mins on, 45 off. I figure that's a reasonable compromise.

Coolant in rad's not slushy although what leaked onto the ground looked somewhat slushy, I'm not going to take any chances til I can get the bad hoses replaced and better anti-freeze in.

Since original poster was talking in Celcius I'll guess he/she is in Canada, you should go to Canadian tire (or any other car parts place) and pick up a battery heater, they're not super expensive and really only needed at the extreme lows, but will give your battery more cranking power.

Just to indicate stuff that happens at these extreme low temperatures, I have compact fluorescent lights in my outside fittings, and when it's this cold, when I turn them on they are as dim as anything - they have to run for a few minutes before they come up to temperature and start putting out any light....now that's cold!