Cold weather effects on the suspension.

It seems like when it gets below freezing the next morning that truck feels like is driving around on blocks and this feeling goes away after the truck as been driven a few miles it goes away. I know this oil can't freeze 1 because its under pressure and 2 its oil. So here my question is the temperature so cold thats causing the oil to get super thick and thats making the oil so thick it can't travel in the shock like it should.

Shock absorber fluid congeals in sub-zero temperatures, resulting in a hard-riding vehicle or potentially, broken shock absorbers. To prevent damage to the shock absorber, the operating rod, or the mounting brackets during extreme cold, operate the vehicle slowly for the first three to five miles. This allow the oil in the shocks to warm up.

I live in SoCal...we don't have the pleasure of driving our cars in below freezing weather

MagicMtnDan said:

And you're the guy who calls people on this forum STUPID (and other names)...

Shock absorber fluid congeals in sub-zero temperatures, resulting in a hard-riding vehicle or potentially, broken shock absorbers. To prevent damage to the shock absorber, the operating rod, or the mounting brackets during extreme cold, operate the vehicle slowly for the first three to five miles. This allow the oil in the shocks to warm up.

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Motor oil doesn't change gel until stupidly freezing temps either but changes viscosity at temp hence why multi-viscosity oil. I assumed shock oil is not multi-weight oil therefore I do not know what it min and max temps are before it's adversely effected. A few more things, I know you've next experienced what I'm talking about and that you copied and pasted that line from somewhere because like all your post the only they add to is your post count. BTW I've never called anyone stupid. You really brush up on your read comprehension skills their pal.

bstoner59 said:

I live in SoCal...we don't have the pleasure of driving our cars in below freezing weather

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Truck is covered in snow right and it's not done yet.

All oil gets thicker when it gets colder... think bacon grease, butter, candle wax... (or diesel for that matter)

just do not push her to hard til she warms up...

One thing about oil viscosity and temperature that is often misunderstood. Multi-weight oils don't really "change" viscosity as much as the viscosity remains stable.

Straight 50 weight motor oil thickens considerably at freezing temperatures. Straight 20W motor oil thins considerably at high temps.

A 20W-50 motor oil simply doesn't thicken as much as it gets cold... or thin as much as it gets hot. In other words, a 20W-50 motor oil flows like a 50 weight oil at high temps and a 20W at low temps.

20W-50 still thickens and thins with temp changes, just not as dramatically as straight grade oils... the viscosity is more stable when the temperature changes.

As far as the shock oil in the Raptor... from what I understand it is a very expensive synthetic oil that is designed to work at high and low temps. But, like all oils I know about, it will still be thicker at freezing temps than it is at high temps. As advised... and as you have experienced... in a few miles the oil should warm enough that the "harshness" goes away.