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what are some cold weather tips now that winter is here. I'm looking for extreme condition stuff. this car needs to get ready for winter, i live in colorado at 10,500 feet and it gets real cold at night already. what type of oil is best? coolant mixture? right now i am running about a 60/40 mixture. what other tips and tricks do you guys have, i know lots of you see temps of -20 or more, my car stays in the garage during the winter, but its still cold in there. i need to make sure she's always ready to go to work in the morning, no matter what the weather
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I use Ams/Oil, but I've heard others are pretty good, too.
Whatever brand you use, use it throughout the car:
engine oil, of course.
automatic transmission fluid
your differential, too!
In the arctic, they also use synthetic greases at all lube points (in severe cold, ordinary lube becomes solid -- then parts (hinges, latches, even your hood release) can get stuck and/or actually break (if you apply enough force).
I have done the first three (engine oil through differential) -- never got around to changing lock and cable grease, though -- and drive through New England in coldest weather (winter sports, etc.) in that region. Never, even on coldest mornings, had problems starting (engine cranks fast), transmission engages promptly, etc. Have to give credit too for using "dry gas" periodically, and keeping my battery "up to snuff", but these lubricants sure help by flowing easily even at ungodly temperatures!
I change my brake fluid yearly each fall (when I put on my snow tires) -- I've never heard of frozen brake fluid, but who knows? It does absorb moisture (even though I use Castrol GT LMA -- LMA stands for 'low moisture absorption') and anything with moisture can freeze, I suppose .... anyway, it's a good precaution.
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thanks for the advice everyone, now i need to sift through it all and decide the best way to go, brickboard is great
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I didn't see it in the below posts, so --
Can you get a battery heater pad? Some of our guys in S. Dak winters had them. One guy who didn't had his battery freeze, and the whole side broke out - made a frozen waterfall of the acid! Temp was 14 below that night.
Good Luck,
Bob
:>)
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An aunt of mine who lived in the States in the 50s said it was standard to drain the engine oil while it was still hot, and keep the can on the stove overnight. Then pour it back in just before starting in the morning. If they didn't do that the oil was frozen, and the only course was to light a fire under the sump pan.
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This will repeat some of the good advice below: I live in western Canada, so we see some truly cold winter temps too. I use a block heater, 50/50 coolant concentration (checked annually via block drain), Mobil-1 5W30 synthetic oil, a shot of gas line antifreeze in the tank about every 4th or 5th fillup. I use Redline's synthetic MTL in the M46's, synthetic ATF in the 940. I buy a new battery as soon as an old one shows any signs of failing. I carry long, heavy gauge booster cables and tire chains. I have Dunlop Graspic DS-1 snow tires on son's 81, and Vredestein's on the 940. Spark plugs are kept pretty fresh.
I'm probably spending more than I absolutely need to, but you only need one no-start or skid-off-the-road at 30-below to make it all look pretty cheap.
--
Bob (son's 81-244GL B21F/M46, dtr's 83-244DL B23F/M46, 94-944 B230FD; hobbycar 77 MGB, and a few old motorcycles)
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If you are having your seals replaced, consider using a 0w30 or 5w30 viscosity full synthetic oil after the work is done. If you do not want to use a full syn for economic or other reasons, go for a quality brand ( Castrol, Pennzoil, Havoline etc) 5w30 conventional or blend that has the latest SM rating on the back. They stay in grade, and shouldn't break down to a 20 weight at operating temps like some of the older rated 5w30 conventional oils.
--
Gary Gilliam Sumerduck VA, '94 940 na Regina 160k '86 240 190k, 93 Camry 4cyl 5spd 245k
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posted by
someone claiming to be SL8Brick
on
Wed Oct 26 06:31 CST 2005 [ RELATED]
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Sounds like an excellent canidate for Castrol Syntec 0W30(German-made) or Mobil 1 0W40.
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forgot to add that the temp probably won't get much lower than -20 or -30f but may rise to about 30 or 40F during the day, and the car, 300,000 miles, is getting its engine pulled and i'm replacing many misc gaskets and seals (rear main, valve cover, crank, ect.) to fix leaks while i'm putting some new life in the engine, got to try to get another 300k out of it.
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While the engine is out -
I think that would be a good time to install a good block heater.
I would guess that shops in your area would know about good block heaters.
I didn't put a lot of attention on that in 1st post - but I didn't know your temp could go to -30F (!), or that you're pulling the motor.
I also thought about those oil-pan heaters, as an alternative to the block heater. I don't like it, because the warm oil then hits the frigid block, changing temperatures only in specific locations. The whole idea is to have temperatures shift gradually, and to keep the different parts of the block and head pretty much at the same temp. At least that's my take on it. So a block heater that heats the water jacket seems smart to me.
With those temperatures, I'd definitely put in the biggest, best battery you can, and keep the old (present) one charged up in the garage as a booster for cold mornings. Nothing wrong with one more in the garage too. But I'd find a decent BIG used one, not spend $$ on brand new if it's not going to be in the car always. Junkyard, if there is one.
Then there are dual-battery setups, aka a 2nd battery in the cargo space.
Dual-battery setups have their own drawbacks, including battery acid fumes in the passenger compartment, voltage losses due to cable runs, the need to pass cables in + out of the passenger space via holes w/grommets, and the need to protect the cables from grounding and from water damage with waterproof conduit. No small project. Just in case the thought might cross your mind.
Oh yes. Definitely get 4 snow tires. And some extra weight in the rear. Studs if you like. The only time I had studs - on a rear-drive '76 Corolla - I hit the brakes hard one time on dry pavement, the rear broke loosse and I was all over the road with an oncoming car. Fortunately he and the other driver in my lane were able to stay away from me.
--
Sven: '89 245, IPD sways, electric rad. fan conversion, 28+ mpg - auto tranny. 850 mi/week commute.
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had a block heater already ordered, already have the studs, they are a necessity up here for about 8 months of the year. thanks for your help, 50/50 coolant is as effective at extremes as a higher mixture? seems strange but plausible. why would a wagon need more weight, it already weighs about two tons? just kidding, i keep the sand bags for weight and traction. what about tranny fluid? 4sp+o.d. Whill the regular atf be fine? haven't had any problems yet but this car does at least 800-1000 miles a week during the winter when i store the sedan because it doesn't have enough room for the winter gear. gotta love the wagon, hauls four people and all the ski gear up the mountain quite comfortably.
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Hey, I don't know everything. Some say I know a LOT less than that!
Re. the antifreeze, read the charts on the backs of the products. They show the protection at different concentrations.
Pay attention to actual concentration in the block. Even the best draining that I know seems to leave about a quart in there. And it looks like the stuff in the reservoir only goes down if coolant is removed. So if I really cared about the concentration, I'd look up the exact capacity (about 10 qt) then put in 5 or 6 qt of antifreeze depending on the concentration wanted, then add water to fill.
A friend of mine put in a gallon, added 4 qt. water, found it was full, and he's done! My guess is that he has 4 qt antifreeze and 6 qt water in there, since it holds 10 qt., and we'd been flushing the motor with water from a hose.
There's a nice brass block drain low on cyl. 3 + 4, exhaust side. A good place to get a sample of the stuff that's inside. Make your motor rebuilder clean the drain assembly of any old crud, not just screw it back on. When using the drain, a 3/8" pvc hose will slip on and carry the stuff to a nice jug. Use a 2.5 gal. water jug, turned on its side with a hole in a top corner. Works great even if the car is on the ground.
Tranny -
Standard tranny?? They take ATF?? I never had a Volvo stick. Anyway, lots of guys swear by synthetics. Probably a good idea. I never explored that area.
If auto tranny, while the motor is out, check the tranny rear tailhousing bushing and rubber seal. That's where they usually leak, when the bushing wears. About $200 if you have to tear stuff apart to get there, but you're substantially disassembled already.
--
Sven: '89 245, IPD sways, electric rad. fan conversion, 28+ mpg - auto tranny. 850 mi/week commute.
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You didn't say how cold it gets where you are.
A few main areas: oil weight, battery strength, anti-freeze, block heaters, and jumping techniques.
Look in owners manual for oil weight ranges.
The designers do know what's acceptable to the motor they built.
Local conditions will determine your choice.
Remember that the lower # in the oil rating is only in effect for a few minutes when it's cold. Once warmed up, the higher number is in effect regardless of outside temperature. A top # that is too thick or too thin for good engine maintenance would be a bad thing.
If you don't have the manual then go to volvousa.com, then to Owners' Info.
"Search" for your manual. They hide the "search" results in the bottom half of the page, you have to scroll down.
Thinner oil may leak faster. My rear main seal leak was tolerable with 15-40, became nasty with 10-30.
A wider range of viscosities (such as 10-40 being wider than 10-30) sacrifices a lot in that the oil deteriorates faster. The additives don't hold up, and they create the viscosity range. On this and other oil info, I found this writeup re. oil very enlightening:
http://www.lincolnsonline.com/article105.html
You might consider a block heater depending on your local temperatures.
I'm in New England, had temps as low as 5 or 10 below last year. Used no block heater, had 15-40 oil. Had a spare "jumper" battery that I would take to whatever car needed it. On one coldest morning, had to spend a bit of time to get all (3) 240s started. Otherwise, it was OK.
Consider a spare battery in the garage; keep a charge on it and top it up when a deep cold snap is forecast. Carry to whichever car may need it - for jumping. That's how I got the difficult ones going on that coldest morning last winter.
Maybe consider a bigger battery in the car. A bigger one will fit. On one 240 I put in a generic battery tray for a somewhat bigger battery; my current brick daily driver came with a bigger battery perched atop the stock tray. I added holddowns to keep it in place.
When jump-starting from a car, the "good" car should be OFF.
(Shut off after charging up the lame one for a while.)
I know this is not common practice.
Reason:
When car is running, alternator is in-circuit, providing current as needed.
Frozen-motor dead car may need 200-400 amps to get going.
An alternator will kill itself trying to deliver that much current.
But a battery can do it.
So shut down the donor car before cranking the non-running one.
Anti-freeze:
I think you don't get any real gain after 60/40 (40 being the water).
In fact some say not to go stronger than 50-50, I believe.
Good luck!
--
Sven: '89 245, IPD sways, electric rad. fan conversion, 28+ mpg - auto tranny. 850 mi/week commute.
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