Sometimes the mercury can dip below zero during the coldest winter days for those who live in the northern part of the continent. Those mornings when you have to go out and start a vehicle that has been sitting in sub-zero temperatures are sure to make you wish you could be as warm as you are in the house. Even taking a cup of hot coffee with you on your commute to work does not make your seat warm. A cold seat that is against your back and legs will make the rest of you colder much faster.
The inside of your vehicle will be approximately the same temperature as the air outside when you go to start your engine. Most new vehicles no longer require you to warm up your car before driving off into sub-zero degree temperatures. The old adage of warming up a vehicle to get the fluids flowing no longer applies to those cars that have the newer computers. These computers can gauge the outside temperature and automatically adjust for the cold. Since most vehicles no longer have carburetors, there is no spring to deliver a richer mixture of gas needed to start a cold engine. This is all done electronically through fuel injection. Additionally, the ignition system is no longer reliant upon hard settings, and it is completely controlled by electronic self-controlled sensors.
The original concern about starting a cold engine had to do with the fluids running through the engine. This was because those lubricants did not flow well when they were cold. They were like thick honey that had been put in the freezer. Today’s lubricants have greater viscosity that allows them to flow through the engine regardless of the outside temperature. This is not to say that you should not give the car a couple minutes to warm up before dashing off to work. It is still a good idea to take a few minutes before driving away. When the heater starts to run a bit warm is a good time to go.
Most people warm their cars up because they do not want to go and sit in a cold car. This can be eliminated by adding a heater to the seat. You can find aftermarket car seat heaters that will fit your vehicle, so that both you and your car are warm when you head out to work on those frigid winter mornings.
