To see if this custom-fit item will work for you please tell us what vehicle you'll use it with.
By the time you head out on a freezing morning, your engine has spent hours in the cold. This Zerostart heater warms the coolant before you turn the key, giving your engine a head start on warming up.
Your vehicle still has places to go, even after spending the night outside in freezing weather. This 600-watt Zerostart heater warms the coolant inside your engine block before you turn the key. With the engine already warmer, there's less cold-start strain, and it can reach operating temperature sooner. It's a practical way to prepare your car or truck for another winter morning without having to wait for the engine to warm up from a completely cold start.
This heater replaces a designated 1-5/8" freeze plug in your engine block. Unlike a threaded heater, it fits into a smooth core-plug opening, where an O-ring seals against the block and a locking screw secures the heater. The correct installation location and heating-element orientation vary by engine, so confirm your vehicle's fit first. The 2026 Zerostart catalog linked below (instruction link B) will help you find the right installation location, while the manufacturer's installation instructions explain the procedure in detail.
Plan on draining the coolant and removing the specified freeze plug. Once the opening is clean and free of burrs or rough spots, lubricate the O-ring and core-hole surface with an approved lubricant. Push the heater firmly into place with the heating element pointing in the specified direction, then tighten the locking screw to 2.26 to 2.82 Nm (1.67 to 2.08 ft-lbs). Refill the cooling system, check for leaks, and make sure the element is fully submerged in coolant before plugging in the heater.
The included 5.8' silicone cord can be routed toward the front grille, giving you an accessible place to plug in when you need to preheat the engine. Secure it away from hot surfaces, sharp edges, and moving parts. Phillips & Temro recommends plugging in the heater at least 3 to 4 hours before departure to give the coolant time to warm up. Unplug it before starting the engine.
The cord is removable, so you can replace it without replacing the heater. If yours becomes damaged, the Zerostart replacement power cord (ZE59SR) is available separately.
Zerostart is a Phillips & Temro brand. You might recognize Phillips & Temro from factory-installed engine-heating applications even if the Zerostart name is new to you. The company develops and tests heaters for specific engines and supplies both original-equipment and aftermarket applications. That experience matters when you're choosing something that needs to fit a particular opening in your engine block.
Use a 50/50 mixture of ethylene glycol antifreeze and water. Never use straight antifreeze or a mixture containing more than 65% antifreeze, as this can shorten the heating element's life. Avoid stop-leak additives. Lubricate the O-ring and cleaned core-plug opening with antifreeze, liquid soap, or silicone grease. Never use petroleum-based lubricants, which can damage the O-ring and cause leaks. Press the heater into place before tightening the locking screw to 2.26 to 2.82 Nm (1.67 to 2.08 ft-lbs). Overtightening can strip the screw threads, cause coolant leaks, or allow the heater to come loose.
Never plug in the heater before installation just to see if it works. Without coolant surrounding the heating element, it can quickly overheat and cause serious burns. Instead, disconnect the heater from power and use a multimeter to check resistance across its electrical pins. The manufacturer's general testing guidance specifies a reading between 5 and 100 ohms.
Always make sure the heating element is completely submerged in coolant and any trapped air has been removed before plugging it in. Unplug the heater before starting your engine. Running the engine while the heater is plugged in can create an air pocket around the element, causing it to overheat and fail prematurely.
When disconnecting the heater from your extension cord, firmly grasp each plug and pull them apart. Never yank on the cords themselves. This can damage the connections, potentially causing the heater to malfunction or creating an electrical short.
Alternate Instructions
Videos are provided as a guide only. Refer to manufacturer installation instructions and specs for complete information.
Hi, everybody, Andy here with etrailer.com. Let's take a quick look at the Zerostart Custom Fit Frost Plug Style Engine Block Heater. Now, this heater has been designed to fit your 2010 and newer Ram 1500 5.7 liter Hemi V8 engines. And then the 2014 and newer GMC Sierra 1500 5.3 liter or 6.2 liter V8, that includes the 2019 to 2022 Sierra 1500 Limited. Then your 2014 and newer Chevrolet Silverado 1500, the 5.3 liter or 6.2 liter V8 engines, and that includes the 2019 Silverado LD and the '22 Silverado LTD. Now, on custom fit parts such as this heater, it is recommended to use our vehicle fit guide here at etrailer.com.
Simply input the year, make, and model of your vehicle and answer any other questions that that might ask you, and our fit guide will confirm if this heater will work for you or if we have something comparable that will work for you. So cold mornings don't have to mean slow starts or long warmups. This custom fit block heater is going to get your engine ready before you even turn the key. By warming the coolant ahead of time, this is gonna help your engine fire up smoothly and reach operating temperatures faster, so you're gonna be able to hit the road without waiting around. As you know, when temperatures drop, engines can struggle.
Thick oil, cold metal parts, and dry starts are gonna put extra strain on your starter and reduce your engine's life. This block heater is gonna take care of that by pre-warming your coolant, so your engine turns over quickly, it's gonna run smoother right away, and avoids unnecessary wear. Now, unlike universal heaters that often need tweaking or extra parts, this one is built specifically for your truck's engine, it's going to install right in the frost plug, the spot designed for efficient heat transfer, and it's gonna give you a clean, hassle-free setup. This is going to give you 600 watts of steady heat at 120 volts, and it's gonna give you reliable warmth that's gonna keep your coolant ready to go. This cord is about 5.8 feet long, it's a silicone cord, so it's gonna stand up to tough conditions.
As you can see, this is removable. So what's good about that is if for whatever reason this cord becomes damaged, you could replace the cord and you won't have to replace the heater as well. And then I do like this on the plug section here, it does come with this cap that you can tether to the cord. And so, when you don't have that plugged in, that cap is going to protect those prongs from debris and things like that. So that's a nice added touch.
This is going to be a 1 5/8 inch NPT bore diameter. If you happen to have any questions about this heater or anything else that we carry here at etrailer.com, don't hesitate to reach back out to us, we do wanna make sure that you're getting exactly what you want and need. Well, again, my name is Andy. Thank you for joining me.
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