[Lee Cheek]

Hello all. I am new to the diesel world. So far no issues and loving my 2014 GK Limited.

Block heaters. I have found several pictures of where to look to see if I have one or not. I have read that all diesels come with the block heater already installed and need to order the cord.

My dealer said the part is not yet available. I went to the Mopar site and added it to a cart but didnt check out yet.....so...is the dealer correct in saying the block heater is not available? When will it be? I live in Maine and the temps can get into the minus teens in the dead of winter.

I will be taking the Jeep to the dealership on Monday to get skid plates installed. I also purchased the cross member roof racks (to mount our kayaks) and will install myself. I will ask them again about the block heater. I will bring along what I have printed out.

Anyone have any definite answers to the block heater dilemma?

Thanks.

Lee

 

[aahwrence]

Hello all. I am new to the diesel world. So far no issues and loving my 2014 GK Limited.

Block heaters. I have found several pictures of where to look to see if I have one or not. I have read that all diesels come with the block heater already installed and need to order the cord.

My dealer said the part is not yet available. I went to the Mopar site and added it to a cart but didnt check out yet.....so...is the dealer correct in saying the block heater is not available? When will it be? I live in Maine and the temps can get into the minus teens in the dead of winter.

I will be taking the Jeep to the dealership on Monday to get skid plates installed. I also purchased the cross member roof racks (to mount our kayaks) and will install myself. I will ask them again about the block heater. I will bring along what I have printed out.

Anyone have any definite answers to the block heater dilemma?

Thanks.

Lee

 

[Lee Cheek]

Update on the block heater.
Went to the dealership today to get my skid plates installed and pick up my roof racks. Asked about my block heater cord. They said I didnt have the block heater installed and the cord is not yet available. Oh really I said.
While the Jeep was up on the lift getting the skid plates installed, I asked to go out and take a look under the Jeep. The Service Manager came with me. I shined my flashlight up on the passenger side of the block to the block heater that was protruding from the block. I asked the guy installing the skid plates...what is that up there? The block heater. I gave the Service Manager the part number for the cord with the description on how to route it and he said it would be in tomorrow. Amazing. It went from...not available (or not installed) to...it will be here tomorrow.
I ll post some pictures tomorrow of the chasis. Was pretty neat to see underneath it. Beefy suspension parts for sure!
Lee

 

[aahwrence]

Lee,

I have a 2014 Overland Diesel and like you I ordered the block heater cord and roof racks when I took delivery. I was initially told by my dealer that it did not have the block heater core installed. I have a house up in the mountains where it can get to 20 below so, I kept pushing and upon further inquiry was told that it did have the core and I would only need to have the cord installed to make the block heater functional. Last week I had the cord attached and I should be good to go into the deep freeze... I think the issue was that the part (block heater cord) was not available earlier in the year but that all of the 2014 Diesels were manufactured with the block heater core installed.

Let me know what you think of the Mopar roof rack, mine was initially installed by the dealer backwards ! Which causes a lot of wind noise and was causing the rear end to lift slightly at high speeds. There is a sticker on the underside of each rail with the front edge and front or rear rail indicated. I eventually took them off for regular driving because of the wind noise, but this weekend I reinstalled them facing forward and spaced them with the front rail 5.25" from the front of the chrome rail and the rear rail 20" from the leading edge of the front rail, and now it has less wind noise but I'm still not satisfied with the noise level. I'm considering purchasing Yakima Whisperbars which are supposed to cut the wind noise significantly. I'm curious to see how you find them and to see if anyone else has had this experience with the Mopar rails. I have the full glass roof and I thought that might be contributing to the wind noise level with the rack installed.


Larry

 

[RichH]

I told the dealer in mid-May when I traded for my GC that I would need the block heater cable. He told me they weren't necessary, but he would throw one in as part of the trade. (So why have a block heater already installed?) He told me they were available but he didn't have one in stock, and he would order the cord and have it ready when I came in for an oil change. True to his word, he installed the cord last month. I didn't like the way the mechanic routed the cord through the grill, so I changed the last foot or so.

I haven't tested it yet, but will post when I do. My last vehicle was a 2011 Super Duty. The local dealer's diesel mechanic told me that the engine would start just fine with or without the heater because of the way the block was constructed. I never had any problems with or without the heater down to -20F, but used it every time I was in cold weather and there was a plug-in available. I didn't even notice any difference in the way the engine started.

 

[Lee Cheek]

Block heater and skid plates are in. No difference in ride or noise sound with the skid plates. So happy with that. Havent done any real serious off roading yet...need to see how the Jeep compares to the Tundra I had

I snapped some pictures from underneath while the Jeep was up on the lift. I read about the DEF cables getting snagged and how they are exposed and stick out. Heard they were behind the front right wheel?? I took a picture of that area too.

Going to do the roof racks this weekend and see how that goes; will follow up later.

Lee

 

[bigmaho]

anyone have the Mopar number for the block heater cable? And yes, if anyone still has a question about it, all the diesels come with the heater core. God only knows why they don't always include the cable.

 

[Marc W]

I am also interested in this. Has anyone bought the cable from mopar and installed it themselves?

anyone have the Mopar number for the block heater cable? And yes, if anyone still has a question about it, all the diesels come with the heater core. God only knows why they don't always include the cable.

 

[ExcursionDiesel]

I snapped some pictures from underneath while the Jeep was up on the lift. I read about the DEF cables getting snagged and how they are exposed and stick out. Heard they were behind the front right wheel?? I took a picture of that area too.

Your last picture shows the DEF injector ("doser") and DEF line exposed despite the installed skid plates. The DEF line is below the frame and WILL snag. Your off road 4wd vehicle will then be disabled from starting after 250 miles. The warranty repair WILL be denied most likely. The repair is $800-$1000. Reports of road debris and even hitting deep water at road speeds damaging the injector have been reported.

Jeep has a TSB out to solve this by using 3 zip ties to secure the DEF line...seriously. That is NOT adequate.

An aftermarket skid plate designed to solve this is available. I have one and now feel confident in any driving condition. I also installed the TSB with my own zip ties.

 

[Lee Cheek]

http://www.wk2jeeps.com/tsb/tsb_wk2_2500414.pdf

Here is the actual TSB. Pretty cheesy.

 

[Frank Shray]

Your last picture shows the DEF injector ("doser") and DEF line exposed despite the installed skid plates. The DEF line is below the frame and WILL snag. Your off road 4wd vehicle will then be disabled from starting after 250 miles. The warranty repair WILL be denied most likely. The repair is $800-$1000. Reports of road debris and even hitting deep water at road speeds damaging the injector have been reported.

Jeep has a TSB out to solve this by using 3 zip ties to secure the DEF line...seriously. That is NOT adequate.

An aftermarket skid plate designed to solve this is available. I have one and now feel confident in any driving condition. I also installed the TSB with my own zip ties.

 

[Frank Shray]

Thanks for this good information about the after-market DEF line skid plate. Will you please tell us how to order one (manufacturer, part number)? Thanks!

 

[t1n0m3n]

He told me they weren't necessary

The local dealer's diesel mechanic told me that the engine would start just fine with or without the heater because of the way the block was constructed. I never had any problems with or without the heater down to -20F, but used it every time I was in cold weather and there was a plug-in available. I didn't even notice any difference in the way the engine started.

I thought the reason for an engine block heater was to speed up getting to full engine operating temperature. This gives much better fuel economy for short runs.
I am unaware of any other reason to get an engine block heater in the lower 48.

If you let the glow plugs fully cycle, starting in extreme temps should be trivial.

 

[t1n0m3n]

Edit: Response to a deleted post

0 issues starting. 0 issues on any previous vehicle as well. We did have to use ether on our tractor when I was a kid, but that was very long ago.

I never expected that a block heater would heat the engine to full operating temp, of course. That would be silly. A block heater on a 2014/2015 Jeep (WK2) seems to be a silly/pointless add on if it works the way that you say it does.

Of course, a quick look at Wikipedia says some interesting stuff:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Block_heater
A block heater warms an engine to increase the chances that the engine will start as well as warm up the vehicle faster than it normally would in extremely cold weather.
(emphasis mine)

Since the chance to start is effectively 100% (for the lower 48 anyway) on these new engines, the only other reason would seem to be self evident from the wiki entry...

I think it is a consensus that:
Cold Diesel engine = Bad fuel economy
So I hope it is not too far of a leap to assume:
Less time to warm up = better fuel economy (especially for shorter "in-town" runs)

 

[RichH]

My bad. I don't know what I was thinking, but the block heater is just that. I was way off base so I deleted that post to avoid looking like a complete idiot from now until hereafter. And of course, you were right.

I don't know how close a block heater will get you to normal operating temps, but you can tell the difference in heater air temp if you've had the block heater plugged in all night.

The diesel tech at the local Ford dealer told me that with the new technology glow plugs and fuel injectors, a block heater was not needed. You could get a block heater as factory option. On my last truck, a 2011, it was less than $100. But having the dealer install one required the removal of practically the entire engine to get to the location for the heater. I had that truck for 3 years but never had the opportunity to try out the block heater, and never had a problem starting in cold weather.

I had the Jeep dealer install the cable for the block heater, and he didn't even charge me for it. I'll use it when I have to park outside.

Sorry about the confusion.

 

[t1n0m3n]

Cool, no issues, good discussion.
I also think that your Ford dealer is 100% correct. Block heaters are not "needed" now at all.

Although due to my points above and the nice warm feeling for your feet in the morning, they are more of a "nice to have" item in the lower 48.

I am sure that some people in Canada swear by them.