Tips for my new Cummins diesel

Well, I would recommend that you DON'T put gasoline in the tank!

Bad use of words... I should have said "deisel fuel" instead of gasoline. As I said, this is my first diesel and I've got to pay attention to my use of words. Thanks for the feedback.

JB wrote:

Give it a day or two, there are a few guys, Tom L. and Max, to name a few that I am sure will be able to give you an advice you might need.

There are a few you will find in your best interests not to listen to, Snoman being at the top of the list.

If you don't do your own maint. the best thing is to take it to the dealer, not one of the quick change places.

[insert requisite ribbing re: gasoline vs. diesel]

The biggest enemy of any diesel fuel system is water in the fuel. Find a station that does a high volume of diesel sales - this ensures that the tanks get turned over quickly. Every week or so, at first, drain a little fuel from the fuel filter drain (clear plastic tube coming off the fuel filter canister, low on the driver's side of the engine, open the yellow valve and drain a little fuel into a clear container) and check for water. Diesel is lighter than water, so any water will sit on the bottom. If you're getting water, find a different station, and/or drain the water out frequently.

No matter where you take it/who does it, make sure to use only Fleetguard filters (Mopar filters are also fine, as they're just re-labeled Fleetguard). No Fram, no Wix, no "house brand" filters - no matter how much they tell you, "hey, they're all the same". Make sure a quality diesel-rated oil is used - Shell Rotella, Mobil Delvac 1300, Chevron Delo

400, or Valvoline Premium Blue - all in 15W40 weight. (Again, Mopar-branded oil is OK, too). Ditto on the fuel filters (every 10K-15K miles, depending on fuel quality). You really should learn to do this kind of stuff yourself, as a typical dealer will charge over $100 to change a fuel filter. The things cost $12 and takes about 10 minutes to change. Do the math...

When starting up, especially in cold weather, let the grid heaters do their thing (wait for the light to go out before starting). Don't worry about idling to "warm it up"... just drive it easy until the coolant is up to operating temp. ('bout 195°F or so - middle of the water temp gauge). Some of the worst abuse you can give a diesel is to run it hard right after start-up.

After towing, give it a few minutes of idling before shutting down (the manual talks about this). This allows the turbo to cool down, so that it doesn't burn up the oil in it's bearings. This will wear out the turbo over time.

Ok I gotta ask. I can understand your warning about Fram but I have been using Wix filters for over 20 years and AFAIK, they make a high quality filter so what is so dam special about Fleetguard that puts them at such a high level where nothing else can be used or is this some warranty thing?

Mainly a warranty thing. It's pretty hard for a dealership to squawk about your choice of oil filter when you use the one recommended by the people that build the engine. And with cost between the two about equal ($10.09 for a WIX filter from NAPA, $10.50 for a Fleetguard Stratapore filter from Geno's), there's no reason not to use what's recommended.

Thanks Tom