2016 glider 12.7 96 engine

Low compression pistons.

And you said 30 below. Did you mean below 30*, or -30*?

Is engine coming up to over 150* after warming up?

 

It's called winter with a diesel engine.
Normal.

 

How old are the engines in the other trucks?
Every one of the 90s era Detroits we got in our shop in the winter smoked like a freight train and sounded like it was coming apart on startup.

 

Mine is the same - 12.7 1995.

I shut it off overnight, and run the generator and block heater all night below 25f.

If not, it looks like a dumpster fire.

 

Yup - like a bunch of elves with hammers under the hood for 5 minutes.

 

Well, even below 30*, the smoke should ease up once the engine gets to operating temp.

You can set it to half mode with a Pro Link or lap top. That'll cut fuel down till it gets warm. It'll start and smoke for a second, then you can hear it kinda miss, and the majority of the smoke goes away.

It'll then hit 125* and you'll hear the engine tone change. It's getting a little more fuel. Then at 150*, the engine will sound normal.

That’s just a fix to cut down on the smoke during cold starts.

The only real fix is installing the higher compression pistons.