Cold weather

[ozsnow]

The morning start is OK as the car has been in the garage and it does not really get below freezing in there. Even so it gets a bit of an idle while the door opens, back out, seat belt on and then idle out the driveway and out of the estate where I live (40k limit). From there I get about a klm of gentle down hill where the car keeps idling. Usually by then the heater is just starting to kick in.

Leaving work in winter involves about 10 mins of idling in order to get the screen starting to clear. That is after removing snow and ice build up. Would love to have a block heater like most of the heavy vehicles we run. So much nicer to have warm coolant circulating keeping the oil warm and ready to flow + the heater operates so much quicker.

 

[JPMC]

Would love to have a block heater like most of the heavy vehicles we run. So much nicer to have warm coolant circulating keeping the oil warm and ready to flow + the heater operates so much quicker.

You can get vehicle ones for as little as $200.

 

[Connaught]

block heater is differrent than a circulation heater

if you pay more than 25 bucks for a block heater (fitted) you should be shot

and a circulation heater shoudn't be much more

on a side note it aint' -30 here where u need that crap, i have been there and it ain't necessary in Australia

however if you determine that you wear panties and squat to pee, you'd midas well get the full gear, block heater, circulation heater, battery blankets, heated seats and mirrors and interior heaters, AND a remote control starter

then plug your car in and watch the needle on your power meter bounce out of its box on the spring

 

[ozsnow]

Connaught

thank you for your considered advice. FYI I have lived and worked in Canada for a few winters and presently live and work in the NSW snowfields. Our machinery at work is parked outside where it regularly reaches -15. Having a mo warm heater lessens the wear on the motor at start up and makes it more comfortable for the operator.

I'll go and tell all the groomer drivers that they sit down to pee etc and see what the reaction is .......

In my case of an evening leaving work the car will take forever to warm up to defrost to the stage that you can even see through the windscreen. in fact it doesn't really start to warm properly till you are driving and given it is mainly downhill on the way home, it takes even longer.

Anyway glad that you have set me straight - always willing to listen to someone that knows what they are talking about.

Cheers

 

[Connaught]

apologies shouldn't drink and forum run at the same time

i do and know people who never shut the car off during extreme cold (months below -40) and that was up north, need a spare set of keys for that though,

on a side note i had a mitsubishi mirage start at -37 after i forgot to plug it in at night, - it didn't sound nice, but it started, - took about 2 minutes for oil to get up to the cam , and it had a high idle that was coolant temp regulated that really didn't help

 

[tweak'e]

out of interest, what oil do you guys run in cold weather?

 

[ozsnow]

out of interest, what oil do you guys run in cold weather?

In the old Nav i used to use Penrite 15 - 50, haven't done a change on the new one yet.

I tried the 5 weight once but thought that it rattled more on start up. the lighter visco seems to drain down and you don't have as much lubrication on start up. Very un scientific I know but sometimes seat of the pants is a good way to go

Grooming fleet at work (Cummins and Cat diesels) don't run the recommended oils but stay warm as they are plugged in or working. I'll need to check for you

Cheers

 

[ozsnow]

apologies shouldn't drink and forum run at the same time

i do and know people who never shut the car off during extreme cold (months below -40) and that was up north, need a spare set of keys for that though,

on a side note i had a mitsubishi mirage start at -37 after i forgot to plug it in at night, - it didn't sound nice, but it started, - took about 2 minutes for oil to get up to the cam , and it had a high idle that was coolant temp regulated that really didn't help

All good no problems - I had an old Dodge Aspen (slant 6) at one stage that was the same, started all right down to about -35 but then it had to be plugged in. It was so rusty that the ice in the guards held it together for the winter.

 

[tweak'e]

i tried the 15w-50 on my other 4x4. the oil pressure rose so much that it kept poping the bypass all the time. on the 5w-40 at the mo and that makes it run way better on cold startup.

 

[Connaught]

i hated winter, so much snow in the wheel arches you couldn't turn the wheel, and the chaos the 'fenderburgs' caused when they snapped off navigating the 6 inch deep ruts on the backstreets, the list goes on and on , although u-turns where easy in my front wheel drive, just yank the e brake

the old mitsubishi had was still startin at that temp at 9 years old on the ORIGINAL battery blew me away, that was a great battery in that car (owned it from new)

as far as oils go - i have seen 0w30, never used it though , thinnest i ever used was 5w30

most ppl running diesel engines where using 20w50 in summer and 15w40 in winter

but trust me 10w30 at -15 is thicker than corn syrup, takes about 15 minutes to pour a litre out