Lowest Winter Temp You've Started a Vehicle?
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Nick1994
$100 site donor 2024
Around +30
Got 0w30 in the Camry, it's ready!
Got 0w30 in the Camry, it's ready!
I lived in Wisconsin along the Mississippi river in the late 70's. My 75 Ford ¾ ton with the 460 cid turned over slow a couple times and then fired and ran. It was-34F that Sunday morning.
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-40 down to -45F a few times.
When I was commuting with the F350 I would often use the block heater. Didn't matter too much with that as the manual transmission is cold blooded. Would have to let it idle in 3rd gear with the transfer case in neutral otherwise it wouldn't go into any gear but 3rd.
Power steering pumps are never happy when its' that cold.
When I was commuting with the F350 I would often use the block heater. Didn't matter too much with that as the manual transmission is cold blooded. Would have to let it idle in 3rd gear with the transfer case in neutral otherwise it wouldn't go into any gear but 3rd.
Power steering pumps are never happy when its' that cold.
-22F on January 19, 1994 I started my 1979 Buick Regal 5 liter V8 with Mobil 5w30 in the sump. It cranked slow but it started. It probably helped that I always buy the highest CCA and largest battery that will fit in my vehicles.
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-40 in Searchmont Ont., late winter of '09 I had my '07 6.0 along with friends '08 6.4 Powerstroke and another Chevy gas. They all started fine, I had 10w30 in the sump.
Originally Posted By: 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.
To be fair, engines don't care about windchill.
We may think they are living beings with feelings though.
*Holy moly I read that wrong. That is very cold.
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.
To be fair, engines don't care about windchill.
We may think they are living beings with feelings though.
*Holy moly I read that wrong. That is very cold.
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Originally Posted By: 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.
Windchill doesn't affect inanimate objects like it does warmblooded organisms. Wind will cool off a car faster than if there were no wind, but only to the ambient temperature.
The coldest I've personally started a vehicle with no assistance from a block heater, battery charger, jump start, etc. was my 4Runner, at -38° F after sitting for two days in temperatures which consistently were -20° F or colder. It had Mobil 1 10w30 in the sump, and an Optima Yellow Top battery. It cranked a little slow, but fired up fairly easily.
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.
Windchill doesn't affect inanimate objects like it does warmblooded organisms. Wind will cool off a car faster than if there were no wind, but only to the ambient temperature.
The coldest I've personally started a vehicle with no assistance from a block heater, battery charger, jump start, etc. was my 4Runner, at -38° F after sitting for two days in temperatures which consistently were -20° F or colder. It had Mobil 1 10w30 in the sump, and an Optima Yellow Top battery. It cranked a little slow, but fired up fairly easily.
My old '67 Suburban, 4 barrel Rochester and points ignition on a stock 350. Down to -10 overnight in Kentucky's "snowpocalypse" of early 2015. 10W40 in the crankcase and it never faltered. (Too bad the brand new NH Workmaster 75 horse diesel tractor I was plowing snow with for 4 days straight didn't do as well - left it sitting at a friend's house in town overnight and the next morning all it did was click. Had to run a tank-top propane heater under it for several hours to get it warm!) I'm not sure what the coldest I've ever started my '85 C3500 (454, Q-jet) was, but certainly around zero plenty of times - one winter with 20w50.
-30 Celsius Toyota sienna with 5w30 full synthetic.
-28f and my 88 Jetta gli 16v had its winter oil 15w40. It stalled when I let clutch out in neutral.
In my old 97 Ranger with the 2.3 it was -9*F. It started slowly but had no issues with MaxLife 5W30. It didn't warm up after 20 minutes which is likely due to the fan which was mechanical.
The Camry was started in -2*F one morning with Valvoline MaxLife 5w30 and a bit of Lucas oil additive that my mechanic added after doing the oil seals. That car sounded like it was gonna explode.
The Camry was started in -2*F one morning with Valvoline MaxLife 5w30 and a bit of Lucas oil additive that my mechanic added after doing the oil seals. That car sounded like it was gonna explode.
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-4F with Valvoline 20w50 conventional. Started instantly and was purring like a happy kitty.
Unassisted (no block heater in particular) is -34F. conventional 5w30 oil...
Assisted was -44F. Fun times on the range...
Modern fuel injection can make up for a lot of starting problems, so long as the battery is decent...
Assisted was -44F. Fun times on the range...
Modern fuel injection can make up for a lot of starting problems, so long as the battery is decent...
Lowest unassisted would be below -40 in my old F-150 and in a Duster I had years ago, not more than once with each vehicle. The Duster certainly didn't have a 5w-XX or 0w-XX in it, and I started it when I probably really shouldn't have.
I do tend to plug in. Having driven LPG cars for a number of years, you get used to plugging things in if you want to use them.
I do tend to plug in. Having driven LPG cars for a number of years, you get used to plugging things in if you want to use them.
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