Engine Block Heater Install on 3.6 Pentastar

Jsouder53

Hooked
Living in Montana and not having a garage can be tough on my Jeep in the winters. There have been a couple times it was cold enough that it didn’t want to start. I’ve been wanting to install a block heater since last summer, but I could never find instruction to do so. I had it in the shop for a couple days and asked how much they would charge to install it and they said $260 because they have to install it behind the ac compressor. So that gave me a start on where to install it.

THIS IS WHERE THE HEATER GOES
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WHAT YOU WILL NEED:

-Napa engine block heater
-Synthetic grease that is thermally conductive
(I used brake lubricant advised by NAPA)
-1/2 breaker bar
-1/2 or 3/8 ratchet
-13mm socket
-13mm ratchet wrench
-21mm socket
-vise grips

-The screw I used to tack the heater to the block was a 1/4inch Phillips head (I don’t know the thread size)
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INSTRUCTIONS:

1) To make things easier to reach, remove the track bar bolt at the frame. Then just move the track bar down and out of the way.

2) With the 1/2 breaker bar, loosen the serpentine belt tensioner and remove the belt from the ac compressor pulley.
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3) Using a 13mm socket and 13mm ratchet wrench, take off the 4 ac compressor bolts. The ac compressor will not fall, it will just hang there.

Note: I had a second set of hands to pull the ac compressor up while I installed the heater.

4) Find the hole for the heater and make sure it’s clean of debris.
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5) Smear grease on the heater.
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6) Tighten the screw down that mounts the heater in place.
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7) Reinstall the ac compressor and serpentine belt.

8) Route the cord to your preferred location. I chose to route the cord to my winch, so I can tuck the plug under the winch cover.
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Nice work on that. I don't think I've ever seen one that sits in a bore like that. Every one I've seen his attached to a freeze plug and goes in the cooling jacket. So that hole on the block is just there and empty (if you don't have a block heater)?
 
Nice Wright up


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Thanks!

Nice work on that. I don't think I've ever seen one that sits in a bore like that. Every one I've seen his attached to a freeze plug and goes in the cooling jacket. So that hole on the block is just there and empty (if you don't have a block heater)?

Thanks! Yup, that hole is just empty if your Jeep doesn’t come with a block heater. One of the guys at NAPA was shocked at how it’s installed.

That will help you out a ton in the months to come. Nice write up!


2015 JKUR AEV JK350
1985 CJ8 Scrambler

It sure will! Thank you!

Nice write up


Sent from my iPad using WAYALIFE

I appreciate it!
 
Nice job on the write up! Looks pretty easy, but I’m glad Oscar lives in a warmish garage.
 
Nice work on that. I don't think I've ever seen one that sits in a bore like that. Every one I've seen his attached to a freeze plug and goes in the cooling jacket. So that hole on the block is just there and empty (if you don't have a block heater)?

It’s called a dry socket or dry block heater. I had one installed when I lived in Alaska and I did some research trying to figure out what in hell. I was used to the type you stated that replaced the freeze plug as well. I was going to install it myself but I found a shop that did a whole winterization package and went to them instead. They did the block heater, oil and trans pan heater, battery blanket, coolant flush and refill to a 70/30 mix and oil conditioner.


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Last edited:
It’s called a dry socket or dry block heater. I had one installed when I lived in Alaska and I did some research trying to figure out what in hell. I was used to the type you stated that replaced the freeze plug as well. I was going to install it myself but I found a shop that did a whole winterization package and went to them instead. They did the block heater, oil and trans pan heater, battery blanket, coolant flush and refill to a 70/30 mix and oil conditioner.


Sent from my iPhone using WAYALIFE mobile app

I’ll bet all of that was necessary in Alaska.
 
I’ll bet all of that was necessary in Alaska.

That it was. Jeep barely ever went in the garage unless I was trying to melt the ice off of it because the wife’s car stayed in there. But even with all that heating power there were some days it seemed to not want to start very easily. Surprisingly I still haven’t had to change my starter. Jeep is about 6 1/2 years old and was in Alaska for 5 of those years.


“Sleipnir”
2014 JKU

“Snoopy”
1974 CJ5
 
That it was. Jeep barely ever went in the garage unless I was trying to melt the ice off of it because the wife’s car stayed in there. But even with all that heating power there were some days it seemed to not want to start very easily. Surprisingly I still haven’t had to change my starter. Jeep is about 6 1/2 years old and was in Alaska for 5 of those years.


“Sleipnir”
2014 JKU

“Snoopy”
1974 CJ5

That’s crazy, what were the average temperatures in the winter for you? The couple times my Jeep didn’t want to start it was -20ish outside. I ended up getting a new battery after that... the battery got tested at Napa and it wasn’t so good.
 
That’s crazy, what were the average temperatures in the winter for you? The couple times my Jeep didn’t want to start it was -20ish outside. I ended up getting a new battery after that... the battery got tested at Napa and it wasn’t so good.

Kindve late reply to this but, I was up in Fairbanks so it got -60 a few times but I was say the low average was around -30 to -40 but it didn’t stay like that for long. A week at most. The entire average for winter was usually around -25 to -30. I hated starting it in the winter. That cold starter whine made me cringe every time.


“Sleipnir”
2014 JKU

“Snoopy”
1974 CJ5
 
Kindve late reply to this but, I was up in Fairbanks so it got -60 a few times but I was say the low average was around -30 to -40 but it didn’t stay like that for long. A week at most. The entire average for winter was usually around -25 to -30. I hated starting it in the winter. That cold starter whine made me cringe every time.


“Sleipnir”
2014 JKU

“Snoopy”
1974 CJ5

That’s crazy cold!
 
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