Time to ring in Mini Truck owners! How cold have you stated/ operated you mini truck in? This question may be more relevent to the Canadian owners but I'd like to hear from everybody who has a story to tell about "cold weather operations". What difficulties did/do you have operating the truck in the cold? What mods have you done/would you do to make the truck more suited for the cold? I'd love to hear any stories! Pics too! Geo
Picked mine up a couple weeks ago. It was -22 and it fired immediately. Drove 650 miles home with lots of wind and -20 something. Heat was adequate - good actually for 660 cc's - but more would be nice. Don't think there are adequate btu's produced from that size of engine for much more. Possibly a winterfront might help a little.?? BLES
I have a 1990 Subaur that is my personal truck and it does not get all that cold here in Missouri, but I have started this truck in the single digit temps and it started right up and has never failed me. The funny part is that my 05 Dodge diesel I had at that time last year was not plugged in and it had trouble starting. There is only about a $35,000 diff between the two trucks and the cheaper of the two did better.Go figure.
My '90 Sambar starts up no problem with it being -10 C. Only cold Issue I have had is the freezing cables (throttle and brake). Would also be nice to have the little heating wires on the back window for defrosting.
With a few pumps of the throttle mine springs to life at -17C. However it takes some gentle feathering of the throttle to get it past the initial "wake-up" phase. Once running, its happy to keep chugging along! I try not to use the truck below -10C. Oh and my Throttle cable gets a little stiff too below -10. I was thinking about putting a stronger return spring on it! Keep replying to the thread. I'd love to hear more stories as we get deeper into winter.
Starting hasn't been a problem, but the cold temps turn the drivetrain lubricants into molasses. The little 660cc motor has a struggle getting things moving for while until everything warms up. Any ideas on cold weather lubricant alternatives for the transmission/transfer case or the differentials?
Lube!!!! There is not a better choice than synthetic lubes for cold weather operations and I have used synthetic lubes for 25 years in tractors and trucks.You just have to bite the bullit on the cost! Steve www.stevesautomn.com
I agree! However, I'm not sure about the proper types for my truck. Any suggestions? (I just posted about this in the Sambar section, sorry.) BLES
I use 75-90 synthetic gear lube in my transfer case,transmission,and differentials.Any good brand will do,I use Amsoil.The weather here can dip down to-40F and in the summer may reach +95F so this weight works well. They also make a 75-140w gear lube,not a good choice for us in the deep freezer belt. Steve www.stevesautomn.com
-28 C, Honda fired right up. of course right now i am still putting off trouble shooting my over fueling issues.
if your diesel dodge is having trouble starting in that weather then there is an issue somewhere. we've seen them fire up after sitting all day in -35C with no plug in just fine.
We've already seen about -10°F (-23°C) this winter. My Sambar starts and runs great in that kind of weather. I tend to let the engine warm up for 10-20 minutes before moving the truck when the temperature dips below 10°F (-12°C.) Colin
I live in a suburb west of Minneapolis. I started my 2000 Suzuki Carry at minus 10 degrees F with no problem. When you are starting it helps to leave the transmission in gear and push in the cluch. This eliminates the transmission and transfer case gear movements and allows the engine to turn over faster. I did put Amzoil synthetic lube in the transmission; however, at below zero temperatures even that lube gets thick.
1991 suzuki carry. starts very easy at -20 C However the 4WD, locks-out. Same with the mitsu and daihatsu. If you keep in 4WD all the time then it's fine. Heating isn't a problem till -30 or so, defrosting becomes an issue. geoffrey noted Throttle sicking...My suzuki is fine but some trucks i found a lot of dried lube around the carb/throttle area. clean with methal hydrate and tooth brush to remove the residue to free it up, a shot of dry lube (to avoid dust collection) once it's dry.
Thanks Alberta Kei, Thats a great tip I'll do that. During our recent cold snap I haven't thought about taking the truck out. Just incase I have a problem I don't really have to walk for help in that kind of cold!
97 Hijet. I haven't had any trouble starting as low as -10F. It seems to flood easily if I push or accidently push the throttle when cranking. Have been wanting to change the trans and transfer to see if it eliminates the drag when cold. I just about roll to a stop shifting into 2nd when it gets close to 0. Have a bit of trouble keeping warm at 0 just idiling. No problems when driving. The engine also cools down fast also when I shut it off.
geetings oiler fan, I guess it gets a little colder there than we get out here in T.O., too bad you don't get the warm winds that flames get. My friend from South Africa pointed out to me that these trucks were made for the Japanese market and weather. Trucks and cars for other markets have different spec's for other weather conditions. Different metals expand and contract differently under extreem weather. Warm it up well first before driving it was his advise. Glenn
That is always good advice Glenn. Be sure when I drove into the work about 3 weeks ago and the outside air temp was -44.5 C, I left the mini truck in the garage. The Audi didn't seem to mind the cold though!
First post, but I couldn't help telling you guys about my little Mits u15, starts right up at -25 C. Clears wind sheild off quickly then off we go. I did install a cardboard over the rad and that helped alot. Also made the high idle come off quicker. Graet little truck!
Thanks for your first post! Welcome and great to have you on the Forum! I thought about the cardboard thing but mine gets up to temp when I get driving it. However the temps cools right off (it stays within the limits) if its just idling. Besides, I have no idea how the Suzukies get air to the rad. Its burried under the seats!b
Hi Geo, I'm not sure if the cardboard over the rad is a good idea, if you are looking for more heat inside the truck you might want to try a small electric heater that plugs into the cigarette lighter. I ran an extra plug under the stearing wheel and I also have an inverter to run 120 volt for an outside radio and christmas lights when we went into the christmas parade last year. Another thought would to be putting a block heater on but I am not sure what size would do , any one else have an idea what size would do?. Right now our little "slumpy" (our name for the truck) is in for a glass rack to carry sheets of glass, and I will get it back in time for the local home shows in Newmarket and Aurora. you can see a pic of slumpy on the photo gallery page. Glenn
Glenn, You are right about the cardboard. I think if I needed cardboard to get more heat out of the truck, I wouldn't drive it cause its too cold out side. I did put a "Inline" water heater in mine. I installed it on the lower rad hose under the driver's seat. It is a 1 inch dia heater. I would have liked to put in a block heater but I had difficulty determining what size to use because of the difficult location of the Frost Plugs when the engine is installed. Its best done if the engine is out of the truck for sure! I'd love to hear from someone who has installed a Block heater. geo
the old 'cover the rad' trick is the only way to go out in the Coooooold prairies during these winter months. i've noticed a difference for sure on my Acty. plus, the carb uses the coolant temp to 'warm up' so it helps to have the coolant warm up a bit quicker regarding the idle speed (so i was told)
why not install a bypass switch for the electric fans on models that have them... i would also suppose on the clutch fan models you could remove the fan and install an electric fan, as well as gain a little more power...
i thought about doing the lower rad hose heater (have one on my surf) but wanted to tackle the over fueling issue first. now the replacement carb is in, she's running good again, and the weather is getting nicer again so soon enough my classy cardboard front will come off.
Hi Geo, just a question, what size tires do you run? I have the original 12" rims and don't want to run the truck too much in the winter. most of the work we do is promo and we do not use it for real heavy work but I did find on tire rack a yokohama 165/70/12 that look good to try. what do you think? Glenn BTW...a couple of years ago on New Years Day my wife and I went to a friends to visit and the rad thermo got stuck open. One and a half hours away from home in my chevy full size van, the only thing that kept us from freezing was a cheap plug in heater from crappy tire and "tim's coffee"! Glenn
