Lowest Winter Temp You've Started a Vehicle?

[SubLGT]

What's the lowest winter temperature you have started a vehicle, WITHOUT assistance from a jumper battery, block heater, battery heater, or sump heater?

The lowest I have experienced with my Subaru is 2 degF. Not super cold, for sure. It cranked slowly, but did start on the first try (with an Exide AGM and Mobil 1 0W-40 in the sump).

No doubt many of you in colder areas of the world would call 2 degF warm.

Let's hear your story about unassisted cold weather starting.

 

[old1]

Well a couple years ago my friend called me and wanted to know if I could come jump his 20?? ford ranger. It was ( I think) minus15f outside, and I went out to my old 1980 gmc with a 350 c.i. and a 4 year old battery that hadn't been started for several days, turned it over a few times , slowly as it had 10/30 oil, pumped it some, turned over a few more times, and it fired up. Went to his house with my extra heavy jumper cables, but never could get his running.

 

[dlayman]

Back in the mid-80's, I had a 73 Chevelle and a 1984 Toyota Tercel that both started fine at -27F in the suburbs of St. Louis, MO. in apartment complex lot with 10W something in the crankcase. The Tercel was a stick shift and shifting was like rowing through mud. I think it had a 75W grease in the gearbox.

 

[Smoky14]

-40 In the mountains of Colo, Grand lake area after sitting all night. Slow crank and fired immediately. Driving a freshly tuned 1960 Vette with the 283/270 horse engine. Drove gingerly for the first 20 miles to get stuff working.

YMMV

Smoky

 

[kschachn]

My old BMW up until this winter was my daughter's daily driver in northern Wisconsin and regularly started at temperatures as low as -25F, with one winter at -30F.

 

[danthaman1980]

-13°F, on a ~2 year old battery in my Chevy (had to start the truck at that temp on two occasions that winter). It cranked slowly but it did turn over and run. A year later the same battery failed to crank at -5°F, so I replaced it.

 

[Bzab32]

-30 or so in one of those "Polar votex" times. I had a focus at the time and it turned over slow but started on the 3rd or 4th revolution. That was lucky bc i dont think i would get a second chance bc of the battery. I have started the superduty at -20 without plugging it in to a block heater. Just a minute on the glow plugs and it started fine.

Well Sunday we have a high of -6 so i guess i will get to test out the batteries

 

[IndyIan]

-35C with iffy lube 5W30 in my old '03 Tracker. It was only a few years old then and started pretty quickly, but made some pretty bad sounds for 10 seconds or so. Oil pump cavitating I assume. With 5W20 I've lit off the Focus with little drama in -30C unaided but usually plug it in.

 

[QuietPortage]

2008 Tacoma 4.0 -32F
Mobil 1 0w-30

2013 Forester 2.5 -28F
NAPA 0w-20

The Tacoma started up immediately. I was pleased. The Forester was a 5MT, which came with a smaller battery than the 4AT model, for whatever reason. It took 30 seconds of very slow cranking, but finally caught.

 

[Smokescreen]

2F..cute.

-48C (-54F)...counting windchill it was well into the high -50sC (-60'sF). Even if you had a car in great shape, you would start to cool at intersections with it running. Creaking and all kinds of chassis noises too. It was those times where you let the car idle a good 20 mins, then just crawled along until everything loosened up. If you didn't have to go out, you didn't for sure.

 

[Srt20]

-35*F dodge diesel. It wasn't happy!
My bud has a 12 duramax that we take out west and starts with the key fob from inside at -35 to -40* F.

 

[Rand]

-18f. A few years back. I let it idle 2-3min then off I went with low throttle.

 

[AZjeff]

-35f back in Pa in the mid 90s. 350 in a Suburban running 10w30 likely Pennzoil conventional. It wasn't happy.

 

[crazyoildude]

The coldest maybe 5f because any colder than that i stay in and wonder what im doing in NJ

 

[Danno]

-45F in Timmins Ontario, with a 70s Ford E350 cube van with the 460 engine. Made if back to the hotel too late to get a block heater plug in. It started but it wasn't happy about it.

 

[KGMtech]

-37C in Sudbury Ontario.

Sit on the seats at that temp and the foam doesn't compress much!

 

[Balrog006]

-17 F last winter with the CRV in the West MI Lakeshore snowbelt. Cranked a little slow but started and ran fine, a little creaky, but no issues.

 

[Bgallagher]

-20F in Boston a few years back with my Equinox. I had Pennzoil High Mileage 5w30 in the crankcase. No struggle. Maybe a millisecond of a crank. It was a fairly recent oil change which I feel regardless of the oil makes a huge difference. I am willing to put money that my rotella 15w40 rotella will act just the same if at the same temp.

 

[SubLGT]

Originally Posted By: Smokescreen
2F..cute.

-48C (-54F)...counting windchill it was well into the high -50sC (-60'sF)...


Now that is cold! Did your tires crack?

 

[demarpaint]

My 88 E-150 about -35F long before the days of 5W30. I had Mobil 1 10W30 in the sump, much to my surprise the van started. The sounds coming from it were not pleasant. I drove very slowly for a good 15 minutes. I was honestly afraid something was going to break. I had to shift very slowly, even a manual transmission filled with ATF was hard to shift. The steering was a little tighter too.