Better to idle the tractor or turn it off?

[Soundguy]

ouch.. I'd let it idle.. what's that.. a few pennies of fuel? vs wear on the starter and ring gear and bendix.

if you didn't have to split a tractor to repalce a ring gear.. i guess it wouldn't be so bad... i don't have to split a tractor to add a few pennies of fuel to it..

 

[PapaPerk]

ouch.. I'd let it idle.. what's that.. a few pennies of fuel? vs wear on the starter and ring gear and bendix.

if you didn't have to split a tractor to repalce a ring gear.. i guess it wouldn't be so bad... i don't have to split a tractor to add a few pennies of fuel to it..

Extended idling (more than a few minutes) on newer diesels is not good. Even Cummins advises against it. They run so efficently and cool it can cause issues with cylinder washdown, etc.

 

[Soundguy]

Extended idling (more than a few minutes) on newer diesels is not good. Even Cummins advises against it. They run so efficently and cool it can cause issues with cylinder washdown, etc.

I guess you missed this part.. or decided to miss it on purpose:

It's an older tractor. Maybe the later 80s

this was in post #1, last sentence.

besides.. in city traffic.. what you are calling extended idling.. IE.. a few minnutes, can be seen at each and every stoplight. I'm not stoppoing and re-starting my (any of mine )diesel at each stop.... and they aren't a cummins either.. or new..

soundguy

 

[Johnp33]

I have been a mechanic doing class engines for 40 years and have seen very few ring gears damaged from a starter mostly it was when the starter was loose or the Bendix jammed.
I worked for a logging company in the late 60s and they had a contractor that hauled rock he had every one of his trucks shut off as they came into the pit, and coast into position. I did their engine work 4 units did one starter, in 5.5 years. 8V71 NA.
I have replaced less than a dozen ring gears on class eights, never for one that was pulled for that reason for wear yes, mostly Cats, with loose starters.

 

[PapaPerk]

I guess you missed this part.. or decided to miss it on purpose:



this was in post #1, last sentence.

besides.. in city traffic.. what you are calling extended idling.. IE.. a few minnutes, can be seen at each and every stoplight. I'm not stoppoing and re-starting my (any of mine )diesel at each stop.... and they aren't a cummins either.. or new..

soundguy

I'm talking about newer diesels. And said so.

more than a few = over 5 minutes. This is more important in very cold weather. Some diesels have a high idle program in their computer to increase idle in colder weather.

The old wise tale that it's better to idle engines than to shut them down and restart is bull when applied to modern diesels... and modern includes the late 80's.

 

[Soundguy]

I'm talking about newer diesels. And said so.
.

the creator of this thread don't have a new one.. that's my point.!!!

 

[CJONE]

I work for the oilfields and have for over 25 years, I started as a mechanic and fabricator and now I do hydraulics for class 8 trucks and just about everything else. Well guess what the trucks run the hydraulics and most everything else at idle or just above. The trucks are started in the morning and not shut off all day, most idling for hours at a time with no problems. NOW comes the problem. The new emissions BS is the problem. You name it from overheating regen sessions to full shutdowns and tow ins. That IMHO is the reason the MFG say do not idle. I have only had 1 issue with engines and it was a 4 valve Mack in the wintertime. If the winter front was not used it would never get any temp in the combustion chamber and coke the valves up. The truck has a service bed on it with no weight and never has a trailer hooked to it, so it never works and idles all the time. No problems in the summer. My self with my Diesels they get shut off if it is over 15 minutes or so but in the winter they stay running until I am done with what I am doing. CJ

 

[PapaPerk]

the creator of this thread don't have a new one.. that's my point.!!!

Understood. :thumbsup:

 

[Don87]

i've seen rigs with a small gasser or propane(whisper / honda) genny on back to power a low wattage unit as well.

The truck that I drive has the Thermo King APU climate control system on it. It has a 2 cylinder diesel engine hooked to the frame that operates a seperate air conditioner. It's design to heat the engine coolant if the engine temperature drops below 50 degrees. The engine will come on automatically if my battery voltage drops also.

Under my bunk is a small diesel fired 'furnace' also for heat when it's cold.

The problem with these systems is the price tag....12,000 to 20,000 dollars is my understanding. It's hard to recoup the cost of the unit, over the life of the truck( most companies upgrade every 5 years or so).

 

[Bladehauler]

I'll do a low idle for 2 to 3 minutes, any longer than that......i'll do a fast idle. If I'm going to be sitting for any more than 10 to 15 minutes.....I generally shut down.

I'm a firm believer in 'diesels were meant to run'..........but only to a certain degree.

To those complaining about trucks running at the trucks stops:

Any night you are ready to take the plunge........go to a truck stop, park between 2 trucks, shut your car/pickup off and roll the windows up.........at 30 degrees farenheit........then go to sleep. Call me after your required 10 hour break and let me know how it went.
On the reverse side, park between 2 trucks when the temp is 75 degrees farenheit, on that blistering pavement, in the blazing sun...........again, call me after your required 10 hour break and tell me how it went.

As an over the road driver, I spend 240 days and nights per year in my truck, away from home.

It's easy to sit there in your heated/air conitioned house and complain about us guys that delivered everything you own, but, until you been a driver............you ain't got a clue!

and now Cali has imposed 10 min idling laws ! THATS WHY I WONT TAKE ANY LOADS TO CALI !!

 

[Don87]

and now Cali has imposed 10 min idling laws ! THATS WHY I WONT TAKE ANY LOADS TO CALI !!

If only more drivers could do that............Their laws would change overnight.:thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:


EDIT: and for those that may not be aware:

Pennsylvania's anti-idle law is only is only applicable between 45 degrees and 75 degrees farenheit

 

[PaleFX]

My preference is to shut it off if what I am doing outside of it will take longer than 3-5 minutes, unless it is very cold and the tractor needs the warm up or defrosting.
Plus, with rising fuel costs you could save a surprising amount of money over the course of a year by not idling.

 

[Soundguy]

If only more drivers could do that............Their laws would change overnight.:thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:

i agree.. let them all walk to t he state line to pick up their stuff.. OR complain to the lawmakers

 

[namesray]

If only more drivers could do that............Their laws would change overnight.:thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:

:thumbsup:

i believe we the people have the most power thing our governing authorities has ever seen and could never over come, but we never use it. it is sticking together and standing firm in what we believe in,=no complacency! however we all just go on with the everyday rat race. even i am guilty of it. but think of what we could accomplish. probably why the government is slowly getting bigger and more controling.:laughing:

 

[Don87]

i agree.. let them all walk to t he state line to pick up their stuff.. OR complain to the lawmakers

You and namesray are both correct.

The problems come with the companies. I am but an employee, therefore must do as dispatch says or face getting fired.

The companies can't get together and fight this stuff as federal laws were passed years ago(after the last big truck strike), that prohibit them from doing so.

Don't get me wrong........I'm all for clean air/water and being good stewards of the planet, but, there has to be some sort of civility in the laws. Theres real live people behind the wheel of those trucks.


What most people don't realize, is that these environmentalist groups are actually pushing for one thing...........the total eradication of the human population from the earth. Their root belief is that the earth would be a better place without humans.

Personally, I think "they" should have gone with Tesla, instead of Einstein. Things would be a whole lot different today. But Tesla was labeled a 'bigger kook than Einstein', so now we suffer the consequences. And the 'powers that be' are rich, and we are poor.

 

[Soundguy]

i saw, the ones making the extreme laws should be bound by them.. not the rest of the people.

let the huggers and lawmakers walk tot he state line and pick up their own freight, and be BARRED from using a retail or wholesale store that does get shipoments. harsh punishment if violated..

 

[Don87]

i saw, the ones making the extreme laws should be bound by them.. not the rest of the people.

let the huggers and lawmakers walk tot he state line and pick up their own freight, and be BARRED from using a retail or wholesale store that does get shipoments. harsh punishment if violated..

Lord God Almighty..........you have no idea just how much I agree with your view.

 

[lilranch2001]

Actually I meant that as a daytime high, but with that said...........

These are examples of temps where most people have in their head that it is ok to shut a truck off, but in reality..........those temps can and have actually led to the deaths of children and pets left in cars while parents go into casinos and bars.

I mean...........every week we hear of another toddler or animal dying, in a car, in those 'mild conditions' yet people with no common sense whatsoever think it's ok for a trucker to try to endure the same thing that is killing others.

WTF?????

And just to clarify..........I have been driving for over 11 years. At one time or other...........I have serviced almost everyone on TBN..........whether you know it or not. I've hauled the steel that makes your cars/tractors/implements, the food that you eat, the bottled water you drink, the sodas you drink, the food you eat, the shingles, styrofoam, the lumber for your houses, fertilizer for your fields.............fishing poles, reels,tents, sleeping bags.......solo cups, coolers..............if you got it.............it may have been delivered by me!

EDIT: and if I offended anyone.........deal with it!

I am out there on the road, delivering the garbage you want to buy on a daily basis while you sit in the comfort of your home(with heat/air) telling me to go without heat or air.

If it were up to me..........I would let every one of ya go without for at least 1 solid month(or better yet 3) til ya understood what real life is all about!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am curious.....
why do some occupations think they are so high and mighty when a LOT of different occupations make this world go round.

I agree, trucking is a tough job, and there are a lot of great drivers out there (there are a LOT of A hole drivers as well) but there are tons of tough jobs as besides trucking, be a coal miner, a iron worker, a oil field worker, a farmer.......

There are many more occupations as hard, or harder than truck driving,

 

[Don87]

I'm a trucker who couldn't sleep with the truck running. I shut it off at +100 or at -40. Used a fan for cooling and lots of sleeping bags to keep warm, with a foam pad on top of the mattress to keep the cold from coming up. I carried enough extension cords to plug in the block heater when needed. Mosquitos were the worst thing I had to deal with.

I've thought all week how to 'respectfully' resond correctly to your comments.

No disrespect is intended here, but this is a 'learning experience' for those that don't know the industry.

If a person is able to sleep in the 100 degree heat, even with a fan, and the windows open, allowing bugs to come into the truck..........think of how much a person would sweat in a 10 hour time period. May need to throw the mattress out every other day.

If a trucker gets 50 gallons of fuel, he can get a shower for free.........after spending 10 hours sweating his b*lls off in his bed. If you can't get 50 gallons of fuel( company won't allow fueling there, or they have no showers at that fuel stop), ya gotta pay between 12 and 20 bucks for that shower.

I dunno of too many "normal people' that will go without a basic necessity such as a shower, after being required by law to sit in a 100 degree truck for 10 hours, yet those same people think it's the 'drivers duty' to do this.............go figure.

So many aspects of the trucking industry that so many non-truckers don't realize.............I've driven over 250 miles at a clip, without ever finding a place to pull a 50 foot rig over to go pee............ever hold your urine for 5 hours, til you can safely pull over?

 

[Dadof3]

Boy,this thread has gotten off track.