New Diesel Owner - Advice Appreciated

[tchur1]

Hey Everyone,

Apologies if this is an ignorant post but wanted the insights of everyone here thats more knowledgable that me.

I recently ordered a new 3500 HO and this will be my first diesel truck after always having HD gassers. Super general question but what are the major do's and dont's of owning a cummins?

From what I can tell, warmup and cool down are super important. Making sure it regens frequently enough is key. What else do I need to keep in mind to make sure this beaut runs forever?

Appreciate any input

 

[cmr287]

Auto start the truck in the morning with your remote. You will hear the horn honk or the lights light up. When you do no one understand that your diesel is going through it’s pre-checks and heating the fluids on the inside prior to start. This is some thing that was new to me since being brought up in the military and Humvees and other vehicles we had glow plugs to worry about. These newer diesels Have what’s called a heater coil. These heater coil’s do all the work instead of glow plugs.

Absolutely stay up-to-date on routine maintenance. Make sure that is a thing. Also make sure you stay up to date with tire rotations and they are done properly.

Other than that, happy driving. I love my 3500 high output!


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[tchur1]

Auto start the truck in the morning with your remote. You will hear the horn honk or the lights light up. When you do no one understand that your diesel is going through it’s pre-checks and heating the fluids on the inside prior to start. This is some thing that was new to me since being brought up in the military and Humvees and other vehicles we had glow plugs to worry about. These newer diesels Have what’s called a heater coil. These heater coil’s do all the work instead of glow plugs.

Absolutely stay up-to-date on routine maintenance. Make sure that is a thing. Also make sure you stay up to date with tire rotations and they are done properly.

Other than that, happy driving. I love my 3500 high output!


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Appreciate it! Im super diligent about warming up all of our cars currently so that shouldn't be too much of a change for me! I live in Lake Tahoe so its relatively cold 6 months a year. How long do I need to warm up/cool down before and after driving?

 

[cmr287]

Appreciate it! Im super diligent about warming up all of our cars currently so that shouldn't be too much of a change for me! I live in Lake Tahoe so its relatively cold 6 months a year. How long do I need to warm up/cool down before and after driving?

After my truck kicks over in the morning time starting out with a remote, I’ll go out there and kick the truck on via push button. I’ll let it warm up for a couple of minutes. And then when I Parkette and I’m gonna turn it off I’ll sit for a couple of minutes and just let it sit there if I’ve been running it for a long period of time.

If I’m coming off the highway or run into the store or whatever I typically leave my truck running, take the keys and lock it up.


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[H3LZSN1P3R]

just change the oil and filters at the intervals indicated on the dash dont fill up at scechy stations and you have nothing to worry about

 

[scrambler1000]

Leave room/ time when pulling out into traffic.
Diesels can tend to have a little lag if you stomped the pedal. Especially compared to gas. But I will say my 2022 HO
is 1000% better than my 2014 HO was.

 

[jeffjcalweb]

You don't need to worry about regens, the truck will do what it needs to do w/out you being aware...if it does need your help, it will tell you on the console (i'm not being snarky, it will tell you if you need to drive longer so it can clear dpf filter). You might want to pick up some Hot Shots or Diesel Kleen, they are helpful fuel treatments - especially given our CA diesel is Ultra Low Sulfur. Beyond that, as others have said its just making sure you are consistent with regular scheduled maintenance.

 

[resoverlord]

Keep DEF fluid away from your diesel tank. The filler caps are right next to one another, so it can be a pain. I buy a cap for the diesel side since it doesn't come with one.

 

[Darmichar]

Keep DEF fluid away from your diesel tank. The filler caps are right next to one another, so it can be a pain. I buy a cap for the diesel side since it doesn't come with one.

This. Make absolutely sure neither come into contact with the other system. (DEF in fuel or fuel in DEF). Part of my job is unfortunately telling customers they are going to have to replace the entire fuel system or DEF system in their machine because someone made this mistake.

 

[tchur1]

Appreciate all of the input from everyone. Sounds like I just need to do what I would normally do with any other vehicle with scheduled maintenance and what not. Would not have thought to buy a cap for the diesel side to keep the DEF 100% separate so ill be sure to do that. Cant wait for the truck to get here. Hopefully show up in 6 weeks or so.

 

[Riddick]

Avoid short trips, if your going to drive it make sure the truck gets to operating temperatures. If you do a lot of short trips around town you are more prone to issues with your emissions systems.

 

[tchur1]

Avoid short trips, if your going to drive it make sure the truck gets to operating temperatures. If you do a lot of short trips around town you are more prone to issues with your emissions systems.

Ya Ive heard this before. This is my daily so there will be some short trips so curious what proper operating temps are so I can make sure to be aware.

 

[John Jensen]

How long do I need to cool down after driving?

Surprised that no one spoke to this part of your question.
IMO this is not necessary. Nothing wrong with it, some do, most don't.

 

[Riddick]

Some short trips are fine, you only have to be concerned when you are only short tripping it continously. As long as you are getting on the highway for a good 15-20 minutes a couple times a week you will be fine. This helps burn off any soot that is building in your DPF and it allows your oil to burn off all the excess moisture and fuel.

 

[tchur1]

Surprised that no one spoke to this part of your question.
IMO this is not necessary. Nothing wrong with it, some do, most don't.

Appreciate that. I have heard both ways so figured I would ask. Im pretty OCD with everything I own so I just want to make sure Im not doing anything detrimental to the turbo by not letting it cool. Is there a way to set a timer where it automatically shuts off after 5 mins of idle or something like that?

Some short trips are fine, you only have to be concerned when you are only short tripping it continously. As long as you are getting on the highway for a good 15-20 minutes a couple times a week you will be fine. This helps burn off any soot that is building in your DPF and it allows your oil to burn off all the excess moisture and fuel.

OK good to know, thats not an issue then as I live 15 mins from town and am going 45-55 on the way in and am on the highway at 55+ a few times a week as well. Thanks

 

[H3LZSN1P3R]

Surprised that no one spoke to this part of your question.
IMO this is not necessary. Nothing wrong with it, some do, most don't.

It is absolutely necessary it even mentions it in the manual… it has to do with cooling the bearings in the turbo also cooling the exhaust to prevent it from cracking (used to be a bigger issue on the older truck manifolds still is a thing to consider)

 

[H3LZSN1P3R]

Appreciate that. I have heard both ways so figured I would ask. Im pretty OCD with everything I own so I just want to make sure Im not doing anything detrimental to the turbo by not letting it cool. Is there a way to set a timer where it automatically shuts off after 5 mins of idle or something like that?

OK good to know, thats not an issue then as I live 15 mins from town and am going 45-55 on the way in and am on the highway at 55+ a few times a week as well. Thanks

BD diesel has a cool down timer, its gotta be wired in other than that you are the cooldown timer, the manual mentions the timeframes for cooldown for normal driving just 30seconds is all you need

 

[John Jensen]

Is there a way to set a timer where it automatically shuts off after 5 mins of idle or something like that?

Yes. The manual says:
IDLE SHUTDOWN This feature can be enabled so that the truck will automatically shutdown when the truck has been idling for a set period of time when the engine is at operating temperature. Idle time can be set in 5 minute increments between 5 and 60 minutes. See an authorized dealer to enable this feature

 

[tchur1]

BD diesel has a cool down timer, its gotta be wired in other than that you are the cooldown timer, the manual mentions the timeframes for cooldown for normal driving just 30seconds is all you need

Got it, so after driving with the truck at operating temp. just let it idle for a minute for so and then Im good?

 

[H3LZSN1P3R]

Yes. The manual says:
IDLE SHUTDOWN This feature can be enabled so that the truck will automatically shutdown when the truck has been idling for a set period of time when the engine is at operating temperature. Idle time can be set in 5 minute increments between 5 and 60 minutes. See an authorized dealer to enable this feature

Yes but that will only shut the engine off if your idling to long it leaved the ignition in the run position its a commercial setting for company's that have an idling policy basically