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lamimartin

DIY block heater for 450 CDI 2005

33 posts in this topic

It is my second winter with my Smart CDI 2005 Cabrio which only has 58,000KM. Past owner used it behind a RV in... Florida. I have been able to start it at minus 28C a few times, even last week. Such cold temperatures only occur for a few days every winter up here north of Montreal Qc, but I would rather use a block heater to prevent premature wear of engine and starter.

Last year, cold days passed before I could find a block heater power cable (OEM with Amphenol connector on the front).

This year, I connected a brand new AC power cable... NOTHING. I went to the dealer to be told that 2005 CDI Smart had the connector installed, but NOT the block heater element, which was OPTIONNAL ! Mercedes-Benz Dealer price is 275$ + tx. Considering the fact the Amphenol connector is notoriously a pain and that the dedicated block heater cord turns so stiff I'm afraid to break it at -20 or less, I checked for another solution.

Thanks to this site, I found clues that made me find this solution: Titan Engine Oil Pan Heater

Posted Image

Oil Pan Heater model TH125L-1

1.5" x 6" 1.0 amps

125 watts 120V

This narrow band can be wrapped around the transmission casing next to the oil pan which offers a smooth cylindrical surface, as opposed to the ridges on the oil pan. Warming up the transmission is not best but it is warming up the engine block as well. I'm routing the AC connector on the rear so all I need is a warm place, cleaning up the casing and a few tie wraps to perform the installation myself.

Total cost: 55$ + shipping and taxes. No labour cost, no appointment. Total savings: about 220$ CAD

I will recover the complete cost by selling my two brand new amphenol OEM power cables on Ebay.

Correction: The engine and transmission of CDI engine do not share the same oil as I previously said, but transmission casing does transmit the heat from the heatpad far more efficiently when glued on a flat or cylindrical surface.

Edited by lamimartin

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Not to "rain on your parade" but 125 watts in -28 C weather isn't going to do much warming in my opinion.You would have to put 8 or 10 of them on to gain much and really make a BIG difference especially if there was any windchill factor.A standard frost plug heater for an AGR tractor is usually 6-800 watts and they take 3 or 4 hours to heat up. I have a 1500 watt circulatory one that I use on a loader tractor which will heat up in about an hour and run it on a timer.E.B.

Edited by ETHICAL BEEF

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I have a 125 watt pad style heater, just like the one shown, for my 451 smart. I have had no problems starting with ambient temperatures of -44 degrees C.Anything colder than that I have not encountered yet.

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The tranny and engine do NOT share oil. (Just to reinforce the fact.)And any gas engine (the new 451 smart) doesn't have the starting issues a diesel does. A block heater does reduce wear, improve warm-up time and comfort on a gas engine. A diesel simply WON'T start if it is cold enough. On the smart CDI that seems to be -35 or so on a young engine with a good battery, as the engine ages the minimum temperature rises. 125 watts won't do it.Search wreckers for a heater perhaps? Or the circulating coolant heaters do a bang-up job, bit of a chore finding room to mount it though.

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I have a 125 watt pad style heater, just like the one shown, for my 451 smart. I have had no problems starting with ambient temperatures of -44 degrees C.Anything colder than that I have not encountered yet.

This is what I've been told by the manufacturer: it has been tested by a Smart owner and it works. Where did you install it exactly ? Edited by lamimartin

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The tranny and engine do NOT share oil. (Just to reinforce the fact.)And any gas engine (the new 451 smart) doesn't have the starting issues a diesel does. A block heater does reduce wear, improve warm-up time and comfort on a gas engine. A diesel simply WON'T start if it is cold enough. On the smart CDI that seems to be -35 or so on a young engine with a good battery, as the engine ages the minimum temperature rises. 125 watts won't do it.

Thanks for your comments Alex.I've been driving several diesel VW cars. Always mantained with sythetic oil, my last Jetta did start after 10 hours in a parking at -28 (engine wear at 325,000km. ). The idea is to help the CDI engine last longer. I understand cold start on a diesel engine will get tougher as compression is reduced over time. Apparently, 80% of engine wear occurs in extreme cold start, so anything I gain now will pay on the long run too.On the past 20 years or so, it has hardly been any colder than -25 up here. The whole idea is to warm it up when it is -15C or less. It is protectef from wind in a garage (not heated). If I was exposed to -40C, I would definitely need to get a more powerful unit for a diesel engine. I think 125w overnight will help maintain warmer starts at a very low cost. Whenever temperature plunges again lower than -20C, I will let you know of the results.

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Not to "rain on your parade" but 125 watts in -28 C weather isn't going to do much warming in my opinion.You would have to put 8 or 10 of them on to gain much and really make a BIG difference especially if there was any windchill factor.A standard frost plug heater for an AGR tractor is usually 6-800 watts and they take 3 or 4 hours to heat up.I have a 1500 watt circulatory one that I use on a loader tractor which will heat up in about an hour and run it on a timer.E.B.

Keeping warm overnight a 800cc CDI Smart engine loaded with 5 Liters 0-40 synthetic oil can hardly be compared to the task of warm up a cold industrial diesel engine loaded with a large volume of oil (often not synthetic, like Shell Rotella 10w40). I'm pretty sure the engine capacity and oil type difference can explain I only need a small fraction of the power you need. I already have the power to start in the coldest temperature I can encounter here. The idea is that I don't want such extreme cold start to cause premature wear on my engine and reduce compression, which will make my engine harder to start on the long run.

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I have a 125 Watt heater which I attached to the bottom of the oil pan. I think the dimensions of mine may be a bit different(2X4 or something like that). When it dips below -20 and I'm not plugged in the car struggles to start. When plugged in, I wouldn'tsay its like summer starting but the car doesn't struggle at all to start.

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Does anyone know offhand the Wattage of the OE smart block heater?

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Does anyone know offhand the Wattage of the OE smart block heater?

I measured the resistance and got about 400 watts.The silicone pads would certainly help but the ones cited are costly. Omega.ca has higher capacity ones in various sizes. I would bond it to the engine or oil tank. I thought about it but that is as far as the project will go when it is this cold.Raymond

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"Does anyone know offhand the Wattage of the OE smart block heater?"If anyone has a multimeter handy they can measure the resistance of the pad. Then follow this math: I= V/R I is current, V is Voltage, R resistanceThen: P=V*I P is power in wattsI have attached the heater to the bottom of my oil pan. FWIW I also have a 50 Watt battery blanket

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I skipped the math and plugged it into my Kill-A-Watt meter and it indeed read 416 Watts or 3.46 Amps.

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Thanks for measuring the resistance etc on the OE heater.I used to have a 500 W pan heater on my Peugeot 405, which was the bee's knees at minus 20.

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The original Defa 2818 block heater is rated at 400 Watts.

Posted Image

1 & 2 are just screw and bracket that clamp block heater in position.

This heater fits into a hole between engine and bellhousing. Heater heats the aluminium block. Obviously some heat will also flow to gearbox.

I assume fitting a stick on oil pan heater on bellhousing will work fine as long as heater is kept turned on for an extended time, perhaps the whole night. One disadvantage is that the stick on heater will have to come off whenever engine is split from gearbox.

I have a much more elegant solution to DIY cold weather starting:

Place a Primus stove (a paraffin camping stove) underneith oil pan. Keep heating until the oil nearly boils - you can tell by the sound. Engine will start no problem. Heat up time is no more than 10 minutes even when - 20 C. Ideal when away from home. This method is only recommended for attended mode preheating.

TK Posted Image

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Same problems with my 2005 CDI

Bought a magnetic oil pan heater at Canadian Tire 2 weeks ago, problems are gone since then. It's a 200W magnetic heater, just attach it under the oil pan when I'm home (takes 3 seconds) and plug it in.

2 nights ago I was reading minus 31, Smart started at second try in the morning.......

I paid $ 63.00, wasn't sure if it would work - but for that money worth a try. And - Canadian Tire always would take it back.

http://www.canadiantire.ca/browse/product_...D=1296557330771

Jan

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...

I have a much more elegant solution to DIY cold weather starting:

Place a Primus stove (a paraffin camping stove) underneith oil pan. Keep heating until the oil nearly boils - you can tell by the sound. Engine will start no problem. Heat up time is no more than 10 minutes even when - 20 C. Ideal when away from home. This method is only recommended for attended mode preheating.

TK Posted Image

A less refined technique, but tested at -55° Farenheit, is a bowl of Diesel with a rag to act as the wick. Same caveat as TK "This method is only recommended for attended mode preheating." Engine started with clutch pushed in. After running for a few minutes the throttle was pressed down and clutch released - it stalled the engine. On another note, all the tires had bad flat spots for several miles.

Raymond

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Not to "rain on your parade" but 125 watts in -28 C weather isn't going to do much warming in my opinion.You would have to put 8 or 10 of them on to gain much and really make a BIG difference especially if there was any windchill factor.E.B.

Windchill is irrelevant to a car. Unless its soaking wet.Carl

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We have heaters similar to the Titan heaters pictured. We call them Alaska pads locally, although CT calls them something else. I forget what. I have 200W pasted to my oil pan, and 100W on the tranny. They work OK 'til -35 when nothing is worth the effort, and we take the Civic.Carl

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...Thanks to this site, I found clues that made me find this solution: Titan Engine Oil Pan Heater ... This narrow band can be wrapped around the transmission casing next to the oil pan which offers a smooth cylindrical surface, as opposed to the ridges on the oil pan. Warming up the transmission is not best but it is warming up the engine block as well. I'm routing the AC connector on the rear so all I need is a warm place, cleaning up the casing and a few tie wraps to perform the installation myself.Total cost: 55$ + shipping and taxes. No labour cost, no appointment. Total savings: about 220$ CAD...

Please note: these bands require good contact with the object to be heated. I use some to heat oil in drums and there are several things that increase efficiency such as using thermal grease (as messy as it is) and keeping the pad pressed to the surface. On the drums the two ends are held in tension by silicone o-rings which join them together. This may not be possible on the engine therefore I would check on the efficiency of bonding the pad with a thin layer of high temperature silicone or to press the heating pad against the engine. An insulated pad is more efficient.Raymond

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Windchill is irrelevant to a car. Unless its soaking wet.Carl

Windchill is relevant anytime the temperature of the object is over ambient temperature. The windchill factor varies with how much warmer the object is, the listed listed in weather reports is for a typical human body, for an object just barely over ambient the windchill factor is much smaller.All to do with carrying heat away, blowing on hot coffee temporarily increases the windchill.Evaporative cooling is different (the soaking wet factor). And being in a garage even unheated will make a big difference, a small heater will be much more effective than if parked in the wind.

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Windchill is irrelevant to a car. Unless its soaking wet.Carl

You are correct that windchill has no effect on an object that is the same temperature as the ambient air temp (such as a car that has been sitting for a while). When you have something warmer than the surrounding air, its heat will be drawn away by the cooler surrounding air. Even more so, if the now warmed surrounding air is constantly being replaced by cooler air (wind). This does affect how well any pre warming setup works and that's why they work better in a garage setting.Alex beat me to it...must be the weird keypad on the iPad. Edited by gordo.bernard

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...Alex beat me to it...must be the weird keypad on the iPad.

Aaah! a subtle way to let us know about your iPad. Now what are the chances of getting a OBDII app that would turn said device into a SuperScan?Raymond

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