bushtit wrote:
OK, I get it. It is pre starting warm up. Now since this is that heater main objective I would like to find out in what way is this any different than old school block heater? One thing that comes to mind is that it can be utilized in the outback far away from power. Is there more to it?
Also, since I really might consider installing that Webasto heater before next winter I would like to ask additional questions? What is the running price for it? I see one on eBay for under $800, is this price reasonable enough? Any leads on better source? Is that heater hard/difficult to install? Would a guy like myself, without much experience with this kind of installs, but with enough common sense to follow instructions, be able to install it, or it would be for the best to seek professional installers help? If so, who would be specializing in this specific installation? Any diesel shop?
Installing a Webasto TSL17 in your Liberty CRD will absolutely eliminate cold weather starting problems forever. No more glow plug issues!! Heck, you can replace your fragile ceramic plugs that work O.K. with the durable steel ones that work terribly, but that would not matter anyway because the engine's computer will never have to turn them on if you use the Webasto heater first.
To give you an idea of the power of the TSL17, it was designed to be used in 3,500 to 4,000 lb commercial diesel engines, and will warm up one of those from stone cold in under 2 hours in the coldest weather. I used a TSL17 when I was hauling 80,000 lb loads of pipeline pipe up to Northern Alberta, and it never failed me. I would set it to start 2 hours before I got up, parked at a roadside rest stop for truckers with no electrical outlets. It didn't matter that it was -40 degrees outside; the engine warmed up and started immediately as if it had already been running for a while. If it can do this for a large commercial diesel engine, it will have absolutely no problems for passenger vehicle diesel engines. Your Liberty CRD engine is roughly 600 lbs; getting up to the 170 degree limit a Webasto TSL17 is designed to heat to will be a matter of under 40 minutes in -40 degree weather.
The TSL17 is called that because it is designed to put out 17,000 BTU of heat at full blast, and that is equivalent to 5.0 KW of power. This is fully 12.5 times the power of your block heater, so it is little wonder why the Liberty CRD engine heats up so fast using a TSL17. Comparing a TSL17 to your block heater is like comparing a .44 Magnum cartridge to a .22 Long Rifle cartridge.