Had a bitter, northern cold front move into the Ottawa, Ontario area last night. It was -1C driving home last night, but by 7pm, the wind picked up, and the temp dropped to a reported air temp between -24C and -26C, with windchills around -39C...ouch!
This is going to sound silly, but my 2002 Cavalier does have a block heater on it, but I don't know where the cable is. The car came equipped with a block heater with a very long cable, and it kept bumping and banging around the front/bottom of the car, so my wife and I 'tucked it into the front of the car' in a way I don't remember - I think its under the front engine bay trim and behind the headlights!
Anyway, with a whipping 50km wind last night and blowing snow, I couldn't be bothered trying to find it in the dark, so I left the car unplugged last night. Went to start the car this morning, and the engine cranked, very, very slowly 3-4 times, and then the engine didn't so much start as it 'shuddered' to life. It settled into a fast idle after about 20 seconds, without too much whining or clanking. Engine has Motomaster 'Formula 1' 5W-30 dino oil in it (re-labeled Formula Shell), so I guess it did okay overall.
Still, it was a very, very hard start, so I think I'm going to have to re-evaluate my defense of dino oil right down to the cranking viscosity - if possible, people should use block heaters or synthetic oil in those temps. That can't be good for an engine on an on-going basis......
This is going to sound silly, but my 2002 Cavalier does have a block heater on it, but I don't know where the cable is. The car came equipped with a block heater with a very long cable, and it kept bumping and banging around the front/bottom of the car, so my wife and I 'tucked it into the front of the car' in a way I don't remember - I think its under the front engine bay trim and behind the headlights!
Anyway, with a whipping 50km wind last night and blowing snow, I couldn't be bothered trying to find it in the dark, so I left the car unplugged last night. Went to start the car this morning, and the engine cranked, very, very slowly 3-4 times, and then the engine didn't so much start as it 'shuddered' to life. It settled into a fast idle after about 20 seconds, without too much whining or clanking. Engine has Motomaster 'Formula 1' 5W-30 dino oil in it (re-labeled Formula Shell), so I guess it did okay overall.
Still, it was a very, very hard start, so I think I'm going to have to re-evaluate my defense of dino oil right down to the cranking viscosity - if possible, people should use block heaters or synthetic oil in those temps. That can't be good for an engine on an on-going basis......
Castrol 10W-30 year-round worked fine, but on the mornings they didn't get plugged in, they did shudder to life. I specifically remember the shifters feeling like an oar in a bucket of molasses. Fun times!
