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Posted by David Sherman on Tuesday, January 13, 2009 at 23:53:18 :
In Reply to: Pushing in the clutch posted by Brett in AK on Tuesday, January 13, 2009 at 21:59:52 :
The opposite is more likely -- you push the clutch pedal, try to start the engine, and the truck jerks because the clutch didn't disengage. If it got water in, and then froze, it could be frozen to the flywheel, or if it's sat for years it could be rusted to the flywheel. The "field expedient" if that's a risk is jam a board between the seat and the clutch pedal when you park to hold the clutch down. Sometimes a "stuck" clutch will unstick itself in a few days if you do that.
If we're talking about starting in seriously cold temperatures, see TM9-2855 "Operation and Maintenance of Ordnance Materiel in Extreme Cold (0 to -65F)" The gist of that book is that when it gets colder than 20 below, you're going to need extra help. For example, they want you to use your "M40 Slave Kit", which is a portable generator set that generates cranking voltage so you can crank for a long time, and includes a long hose on the engine exhaust. I've never seen one myself, but it looks like a neat rig to have.
Regarding starting procedures, paragraph 34.a(1) says "Depress clutch pedal while starting engines with gear shift in neutral. After engine is running smoothly, release clutch cautiously and maintain engine at idle for at least 2 minutes or longer to warm up lubricant in transmission."
One of the rather frightening recommendations in that book is to add a quart and a half of gasoline to the crankcase for every 5 quarts of crankcase capacity, and then regularly top it off with gasoline to make up for evaporation.
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