I never plugged mine in while I was living in AK. and never had a problem with it starting. I didn't even have to cycle the heaters a second time.

 

it started at -30 C,
"wait to start" stayed on for 2 seconds,
with the coolant temp at the bottom of the operating zone,

LOVE my Espar

 

19* not plugged in. It didn't like starting but it cranked, waited a minute, and then kicked in the high idle feature for about 10 minutes. I love that.

 

-30c for me... [-22f]

i want one... my temp gauge didn't move off the low end peg at all on the drive home from work

 

-17 last Saturday.

This was the first time I tried to start it in that kind of cold without it being plugged in. It didn't want to start and took a lot of cranking. It would sputter, run for a sec, then die. It took 3 or 4 times then finally stayed running. It puked white smoke for 10 min! Enough white smoke to fog the block. This was with full grid cycle times between each crank.

 

I would like to know what engine oil brands and viscosity grades were in all those engine crankcases during the cold weather starts, regardless of whether or not an engine block heater was energized. My Cummins is always plugged in or the Espar activated for a certain period of time, every time, before starting the diesel engine, no matter if it is summer or winter. Then the vehicle is slowly driven at an engine speed not over 1200 rpm until some heat shows on the coolant temperature guage. My truck is not a daily driver, but rather a working farm/highway truck. The engine oil I use in all our gasoline or diesel engine crankcases is either 0W-30 or 0W-40 ESSO or 5W-30 Amsoil.

 

Esso 0w-40, all year round, at 200hr intervals

 

I prefer the Amsoil 100% synthetic series 3000 Heavy-Duty Diesel oil 5W-30 for my Cummins in my Dodge, but I know a fellow using 100% synthetic ESSO 0W-40 year round in a Cummins N14 powering his highway tractor and he likes it fine. His engine was given an in frame overhaul last summer at a near 800k mileage and the mechanic said there was very little wear on his engine parts and it did not need an overhaul. I use ESSO 100% synthetic 10W-30 in our gasoline powered vehicles with engines having from 125K to 260k on their odometers. These vehicles do not use any oil even when driven in very hot summer temperatures in the Southern USA at 70 mph. I only change oil each late fall. Just as Hurricane Dennis hit the Gulf Coast area we were traveling in Louisianna and I put many miles on a half ton gas truck. Then with the same truck and the same oil we drove down to Arizona. Last fall when I changed the oil I had nearly 18k on the oil. No oil every needed topping up between changes and even though the old oil was quite dark it was still doing its job. I am sold on 100% synthetic oil for all components in our vehicles.