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Outdoor cars in the bitter cold?


zeitgeist57

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I don't remember a winter being this cold in the last few years...apparently our best efforts to contribute to global warming aren't paying off, gents! :lol: MORE TIRE FIRES IN 2018

 

I have 3 vehicles out in the cold: '78 Lincoln, '82 F-100, and '07 CTS-V (Lincoln and V are under a carport). Aside from the coolant/water being 50/50, should I do anything else to provide some engine/cooling/charging systems protection if they are just sitting? The F-100 I may run today or next week, but the other two aren't going to be started until the weather warms up. I only have one battery charger/maintainer as well. Looking for suggestions I may be forgetting.

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My only thought is more battery maintainers. Buy them now or buy batteries later.

 

^^ this.

 

reminds me that I may go buy a new battery for the van today. It's 11 years old and still on it's second battery that so far has lasted 6 years. Amazing as I've never had one go that long.

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^^ this.

 

reminds me that I may go buy a new battery for the van today. It's 11 years old and still on it's second battery that so far has lasted 6 years. Amazing as I've never had one go that long.

 

I'm knocking on wood too. FJ battery is from September of 2006! Shows no signs of dying, but you can tell its harder to turn over a 3 degree engine.

 

Only thing I can think of for outdoor cars might be to make sure they are in the car port and wont get wet....a winter of snow, melt, seeps into all the cracks, freezes, thaws, ect. That can be a little bad for trim and such. If it cannot get snowy or wet in the first place...better off.

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Only thing I can think of for outdoor cars might be to make sure they are in the car port and wont get wet....a winter of snow, melt, seeps into all the cracks, freezes, thaws, ect. That can be a little bad for trim and such. If it cannot get snowy or wet in the first place...better off.

 

That's why I built the carport. In UA, a carport cost me under $3k to build myself (while still within code). A detached garage would've been $40k through a contractor. 80% of the precip/sun stays off these cars? It's an economical win to keep them reasonably preserved despite being outdoors.

 

There ends up being some drifted snow on the Caddy and Lincoln, but I feel much better not having the constant precipitation on them for sure.

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That's why I built the carport. In UA, a carport cost me under $3k to build myself (while still within code). A detached garage would've been $40k through a contractor. 80% of the precip/sun stays off these cars? It's an economical win to keep them reasonably preserved despite being outdoors.

 

There ends up being some drifted snow on the Caddy and Lincoln, but I feel much better not having the constant precipitation on them for sure.

 

could you add on any type of side protection? I can't recall the final product you completed.

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Take the batteries out of the car and br8ng them in the garage. Hook them up to your one battery maintainer alternating between the two every couple of days.

 

Pump up the tires. When it gets cold the air contracts and the tires go low which makes them easier to flat spot, pumping them up to 40psi will help prevent this.

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Let other people drive them. No flat spots and the batteries will stay good.

 

Seriously though watch for critters and check tail pipes and under the hood. I just had a friend with an RV find a ground hog nested in his RV’s motor compartment. It has chewed the entire wiring harnesses to bits.

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Take the batteries out of the car and br8ng them in the garage. Hook them up to your one battery maintainer alternating between the two every couple of days.

 

Pump up the tires. When it gets cold the air contracts and the tires go low which makes them easier to flat spot, pumping them up to 40psi will help prevent this.

 

Do you mean gets more dense?

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I always heard using a slightly lower viscosity oil is good in winter if you're actually gonna drive the car, not sure if that's just an old wives tale.

 

Its not.

 

Viscosity gets significantly "worse" near freezing- in most cases double what it is at 40-50deg.

 

http://www.viscopedia.com/viscosity-tables/substances/engine-oil/

 

With tighter clearances in today motors, that will keep your shit at about a bajillion PSI oil pressure on cold start when its 0* F. One of a few reasons why a lot of manufacturers have moved to a 0-30 and 0-20

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Its not.

 

Viscosity gets significantly "worse" near freezing- in most cases double what it is at 40-50deg.

 

http://www.viscopedia.com/viscosity-tables/substances/engine-oil/

 

With tighter clearances in today motors, that will keep your shit at about a bajillion PSI oil pressure on cold start when its 0* F. One of a few reasons why a lot of manufacturers have moved to a 0-30 and 0-20

 

That's sorta the logic I followed, I'm surprised more modern engines don't mandate changes seasonally as well as miles depending on location.

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^^ this.

 

reminds me that I may go buy a new battery for the van today. It's 11 years old and still on it's second battery that so far has lasted 6 years. Amazing as I've never had one go that long.

 

Just replaced my OEM battery in my 09 Legacy this summer at ~115k miles. It was a trooper!

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Just replaced my OEM battery in my 09 Legacy this summer at ~115k miles. It was a trooper!

 

My '03 Volvo S60 had the original battery in it even when I sold it in 2013, and it still cranked strong. Bigass trunk mounted vented motherfucker, and I believe Interstate was the OEM for Volvo.

 

Next battery I buy will probably be an Interstate just because.

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My '03 Volvo S60 had the original battery in it even when I sold it in 2013, and it still cranked strong. Bigass trunk mounted vented motherfucker, and I believe Interstate was the OEM for Volvo.

 

Next battery I buy will probably be an Interstate just because.

 

Interstate pricing @ Costco is hard to beat.

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pffft. A few days in the single digits and it's "cold" outside?

 

Maybe having a remote starter has altered my perspective but I don't think it's been any colder this year.

 

It hasnt really.

 

3 single digit days and these old men lose their minds

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