cold temps in midwest (merged thread)
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I believe those are wind chill temps in Minnesota, not actual air temp., but still, right? It's supposed to be -55 wind chills here in N. Dakota this weekend. A car will start in those temps if it has a strong battery, but a block heater is a huge help. I remember starting my 1990 Justy once when the wind chill was -91. The block heater was plugged in, but it still sounded like it took a few minutes for oil to reach the top end of the motor. The manual tranny felt like it was full of frozen molasses. The one funny thing about that day was that when I started the car, a knob backlight that had never been lit, lit up, the only time it ever did. Extreme cold does extremely weird things to machines sometimes...
In Indiana, We are expecting temps to drop for 35 degrees to -14. Plus 8-10 inches of snow. I think my battery will hold up( if not, good luck to me since people are rushing out to get batteries like its going out of style.)
We have had very cold temps recently. On the 3rd I recorded -32 F actual temp just north of Duluth, MN. the other night while out for a drive checking for plowed roads on local lakes. It was in a low lying area. That day I had brought my battery in for replacement at Interstate Battery, it was frozen solid and dead as road kill. Further north the low nightly temps have been down to -45 F and much colder with the wind chill. In these kind of temps. you'd better start the car and let it warm up for a good 20 mins. or so with the heat on high to warm the interior. To best prepare the engine for a load, it needs to be warm. Oil doesn't have much lubricity/film strength until it fully warms up. Your best off stocking up for a few days and waiting it out. Stay warm everyone!
Extreme northern MN, like Baudette are expected to see -35F for a overnight low and -25 to -30F for the next couple of nights with daytime highs in the -20 to -10F.
Weather in Baudette - AccuWeather Forecast for MN 56623
Central MN around the Twin Cities are -20 tonight and -25F the next couple of nights with daytime highs between -18 to -6F.
Just another winter here. Nothing as bad as what the Canadians just to the north of us get.
Weather in Baudette - AccuWeather Forecast for MN 56623
Central MN around the Twin Cities are -20 tonight and -25F the next couple of nights with daytime highs between -18 to -6F.
Just another winter here. Nothing as bad as what the Canadians just to the north of us get.
Cars will start. They aren't going to fire right up, but let it crank for a few seconds and it will.... assuming you have a good battery that is!
I'd grab a video for you of what it is like, but at college my vehicle is parked 10 minutes (running) away, and I don't want to go that far in windchills of -60 to -70 that we are going to see here (we were also just ranked the 4th coldest college in the nation! Woo!).
I'd grab a video for you of what it is like, but at college my vehicle is parked 10 minutes (running) away, and I don't want to go that far in windchills of -60 to -70 that we are going to see here (we were also just ranked the 4th coldest college in the nation! Woo!).
Extreme cold can lead to various trouble I gather. Diesel fuel can clog up in places like the fuel filter etc - this depends a lot on the particular quality of the diesel and the design of the car. In Finland you can buy diesel qualities that work down to about -40 or -48 F.
We are still above the dismally cold it was predicted. We were supposed to be around -14 by midnight, with -17 at 8am.
Still at 10 and doubt it will drop another 20...and now(earlier today) was supposed to be around 0.
Still at 10 and doubt it will drop another 20...and now(earlier today) was supposed to be around 0.
synthetic oils
Several full synthetic oils advertise their pour points at -35F and even as low as -65F. However, the problem is a battery that can survive these temperatures and turn the engine over.
When you hate snow...
So I waited till after football to decide to go down to the other house...
We've been pummeled by snow and the "county is closed"(my cousin who is a doctor was called and told his surgeries for Monday were all cancelled...any staff at the hospitals couldn't leave...all other staff told to stay home. Yeah, that bad.)
I go out in the F250 off-road 4x4(handled worse than this before)...
Go west, car behind me tried to follow...I reach where I can't go further because of cars sitting dead in the road(a woman and child were in one, the other abandoned). The guy behind me gets stuck. Got myself turned around cause I'm the only one smart enough to not be in a car. Had the woman and her child in the truck(there is a state police post right by my house and we were barely a mile from it) and pushed the car that was behind me...3/4 mile down the road(yeah, tough truck).
Then went down my road trying to go the other way. Another stuck vehicle. Man can't catch a break. This is a guy, yanked his AWD GM(whatever it was...Traverse?) about 1/3 mile till he could move back to the truck stops on his own.
Went back that way. Get to where the pavement ends and the gravel road takes over and one of the people down there parked a tractor in the road with a sign "major snow drifts"...
Back home...try tomorrow.
So I waited till after football to decide to go down to the other house...
We've been pummeled by snow and the "county is closed"(my cousin who is a doctor was called and told his surgeries for Monday were all cancelled...any staff at the hospitals couldn't leave...all other staff told to stay home. Yeah, that bad.)
I go out in the F250 off-road 4x4(handled worse than this before)...
Go west, car behind me tried to follow...I reach where I can't go further because of cars sitting dead in the road(a woman and child were in one, the other abandoned). The guy behind me gets stuck. Got myself turned around cause I'm the only one smart enough to not be in a car. Had the woman and her child in the truck(there is a state police post right by my house and we were barely a mile from it) and pushed the car that was behind me...3/4 mile down the road(yeah, tough truck).
Then went down my road trying to go the other way. Another stuck vehicle. Man can't catch a break. This is a guy, yanked his AWD GM(whatever it was...Traverse?) about 1/3 mile till he could move back to the truck stops on his own.
Went back that way. Get to where the pavement ends and the gravel road takes over and one of the people down there parked a tractor in the road with a sign "major snow drifts"...
Back home...try tomorrow.
It was -30.6 F when I went back to bed this morning, now at 10:46 AM it's still -23.4 F with windy conditions. Just like the good old days in the 60's, 70's, and 80's. The Earth's natural cyclical climate change is back in the cold cycle again for the foreseeable future. Last night at -21 F I started the Sub. and the radio was on. When I tried to turn it up a bit only the tweeters were working. The surounds on the speaker cones were frozen stiff and didn't excursion at all. I remember that happening during my high school years in the late 70's.
So...cold temps...
My cousin tried to take the '10 out in -15 on 3yo Yok AVID ENVigor with 45,000 on them and slid into the intersection at the main highway...with, luckily...nobody coming.
Limps it back home for the '06 riding on POS Westlake SP06 that are at least new. Didn't originally drive it cause the 6yo battery was dead.
Anyway, jumped the '06 with the '10...I go out now that the road is plowed and the defrost doesn't work. Clicks but doesn't light up...normal? Would make sense but he jumped the '06 without supervision...
The most mechanically disinclined person I've ever seen.
My cousin tried to take the '10 out in -15 on 3yo Yok AVID ENVigor with 45,000 on them and slid into the intersection at the main highway...with, luckily...nobody coming.
Limps it back home for the '06 riding on POS Westlake SP06 that are at least new. Didn't originally drive it cause the 6yo battery was dead.
Anyway, jumped the '06 with the '10...I go out now that the road is plowed and the defrost doesn't work. Clicks but doesn't light up...normal? Would make sense but he jumped the '06 without supervision...
The most mechanically disinclined person I've ever seen.
It is a little warmer here in Iowa (moved down south from Minnesota a couple of years ago). It is supposed to get up to -5 today. My '14 had no problem remote starting this morning, but was in a non-heated garage. It is sitting outside during the day, but I am figuring there should be no issues this afternoon.
One thing to note - when determining whether a car will start, antifreeze is enough, etc, the wind chill really doesn't matter. While the wind will make a car cool off faster, it will not actually make it any colder.
One thing to note - when determining whether a car will start, antifreeze is enough, etc, the wind chill really doesn't matter. While the wind will make a car cool off faster, it will not actually make it any colder.
Pretty much, except that it seems to be a few weeks early this time around - I'm used to it happening in late Jan / early Feb, instead.
FWIW, the car said -22 up in Duluth (I was working up there over the weekend) Sunday morning. No wind at the time, so it wasn't horrible. Wind picked up today and it was not at all fun putting gas in the car for the drive home. And the Outback, if it had a middle finger, would have flipped me the bird. Wife said the Forester here at home started up no problem. Ditto the Legacy. Maybe it's time for a new battery.
Had -22F on the way into work. The car was nice and warm however, even with out the heat on in the garage it was still 43F when I went out there this morning. Should have insulated it years ago, R19+ garage doors walls and ceiling.
-12 on the way home from work. Every subie in the lot had a whining power steering pump:icon_redface:
Our residential roads are packed into solid ice at the moment. I just put down about 180lbs of sand on the curve I live on. Should help some people out.
-12 on the way home from work. Every subie in the lot had a whining power steering pump:icon_redface:
Our residential roads are packed into solid ice at the moment. I just put down about 180lbs of sand on the curve I live on. Should help some people out.
It was -60 wind chill here in Fargo, ND. Had my Forester sitting out over night and it started up right away. But it obviously included lots of noises with fans. You just have to make sure it runs for at least a half hour. :icon_biggrin:
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