Tips for Cold Climates

Drivers in northern states where temperatures frequently go as low as 0°F or colder have special problems. This articles will help those drivers recognize and overcome the problems. Car care in cold weather is especially important. Check to see that the heater-defroster, windshield sprayer, and windshield wipers are working before cold weather starts. Put a concentrated preparation of antifreeze solution or a deicer in the windshield washer container.

Keep permanent antifreeze (ethylene glycol base) in your cooling system in sufficient concentration to protect your engine at the lowest temperature expected locally. The term “permanent antifreeze” means only that the solution will not boil away at normal engine temperatures; it will lose its usefulness eventually. 

A service station attendant can use a hydrometer to determine the level of concentration in your car. If your cooling system needs more protection, drain one or more gallons of coolant from your radiator and add antifreeze as needed. Refer to your Owner’s Manual. Some manufacturers recommend a fifty-fifty mixture of antifreeze and water for year-round operation.

Flush out the cooling system and change the antifreeze every two years. The best water to use with antifreeze for coolant is either distilled water or rainwater. Most ground water contains minerals that form scale in the engine, as does artificially softened water.

The two hoses from the engine to the radiator should be changed when they get soft, usually about every two years; do not wait until a hose bursts. Watch for any leaks in the cooling system. A milky appearance in the engine oil may indicate that antifreeze is leaking internally. 

Such a problem is serious and requires a mechanic.

Be conscious of whether the thermostat is working properly. The heater should put out heat within two miles or five minutes. If not, the thermostat is defective and should be replaced.

OIL

Refer to your Owner’s Car Maintenance Manual, and put oil in your engine that is recommended for cold weather. My Owner’s Manual lists 5W-30, 10W-30, or 10W-40 oil for temperatures down to zero, and 5W-20 or 5W-30 for temperatures below zero. My manual also states that 5W-20 oil is not recommended for sustained high-speed driving. Always use a well-known brand of oil labeled SE quality.

ELECTRIC HEATING OF THE ENGINE

In areas with extremely cold weather, you can install an electric heating element in the cooling system to warm up the engine on very cold days. This may be a tank heater, a head bolt heater, a block heating element, or something similar. When you buy a new car in a northern state, you can order the car equipped with such a heater from the factory or have the heating unit installed when you buy a car from a dealer. 

A thermostat in the heating device maintains the proper temperature. The cord from the heater extends near the front of the radiator, so the cord may be plugged into an electric source. Some parking facilities in northern states have a 115-volt outlet so you can plug in your heater cord and keep your engine warm while the car is parked.

You can raise the engine’s temperature in another way. Put the car in a garage, place an electric light bulb under the hood, and put blan¬kets or a tarpaulin over the hood. A heated garage is best, but even a garage attached to the house provides your car with a warmer temper¬ature than a garage that is not attached. If you must park outside during very cold weather, park your car with the engine facing away from the wind.

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

Cold weather puts additional strains on the electrical system, and the system should be checked carefully in the fall. Cold temperatures lower the power output from a battery by reducing the electrochemical reaction rate. At the same time, the power required to crank the engine increases, because cold oil is thicker and has more “drag” than warm oil. Extreme cold may freeze a very weak battery and crack the battery case, so keep the battery well charged. 

Usually the heater and headlights are used more during the shorter days of winter, reducing the alternator power available to recharge the battery. Replace a weak battery as cold weather approaches. The new battery should be at least as powerful (amp-hour rating) as the manufacturer’s recommendation for your car, but a more powerful battery will give an extra reserve of energy.

In extremely cold weather the voltage from the battery to the igni-tion may be reduced because of the additional amount of power re-quired by the starter. The resulting weaker spark may not ignite the colder fuel-air mixture, and your engine will not start, especially if the ignition system is weak or the engine is poorly tuned. Therefore, have your car tuned before severe weather sets in.

You will be driving more at night and in conditions of poor visibility in winter, so check the lights frequently to make sure all are in good order.

EXHAUST SYSTEM

People spend more time in closed cars in winter. Make sure the exhaust system does not leak carbon monoxide into the passenger compartment. Check the exhaust manifold, muffler, tail pipe, and other parts of the exhaust system for leaks, or have a mechanic do it. Replace any defective part at once.

It is safer to drive with your wing windows open a little, or lower the front windows slightly if you do not have wing windows in your car.

BRAKES

Check the brakes before cold weather to make sure the linings on drum brakes and the pads on disc brakes are in good condition. Re-place these components if needed. The brakes should be evenly adjusted. Steering can compensate for uneven braking on dry pavement, but on snow or ice uneven braking is hazardous. 

The safe way to stop on snow or ice is by using controlled braking, which means that the brake action is directly responsive to your foot pressure-the more you push the more brake action you have. If the brakes grab, they cannot be controlled. Brakes that grab should be overhauled so you will have smooth braking.

TIRES AND CHAINS

Make sure all tires have adequate tread. A bald tire exerts very little side force for turning or skid control. Front tires require good tread for safe steering and stopping. The front wheels transmit about 60 percent of the braking force in normal driving, and you have lost more than half your stopping capability if the tires have little or no tread.

Buy snow tires for the back wheels, or for the front wheels in the case of a front-wheel-drive car. If you buy two extra wheels from a used-parts dealer, you can keep the snow tires mounted and balanced on these wheels. You can keep a snow tire on the spare year around, and then you will only have to buy one extra wheel. You can buy snow tires with studs for use on ice in some states;, in other states they are illegal as they can cause road damage.

Two recent technological developments for winter driving are the combination snow-and-ice tire, and the cable chain. The reported ad-vantage of the new tire is that it does not need metal studs, and it is purported to give greater traction and more stopping power than an ordinary snow tire. 

The cable chain is made from round steel cable. These chains, like the old-style link chains, are designed to turn with the tire and are engineered so that even someone with very little strength can install them on the rear wheels in a few minutes. 

One big advantage is that the car does not have to be jacked up or the back wheels removed in installing the cable chains. They are designed primarily for emergency conditions-blizzards, crossing a mountain pass -in which you encounter heavy snow conditions for short periods of time. Cable chains are not designed for extended highway driving or for speeds over 30-35 mph.

Some states require that you use snow tires and carry chains in your car during snowy or icy conditions if you are driving on expressways or mountain roads. Some states require that you use chains under cer¬tain extreme conditions.

ADDITIONAL TIPS FOR COLD WEATHER

Keep the fuel tank well filled, especially if your car is stored in a warm garage. Moisture will collect in the fuel tank when you drive the car into a warm area from cold temperatures. An empty tank has more space in which moisture can form. Some experts recommend adding a can of “dry gas” to your gasoline tank every other tank or so, to remove any ice that may form in the tank or fuel line.

Put some liquid graphite in the door locks about every two weeks to prevent moisture from collecting and freezing in zero weather. You can use an electric hair drier with a fan, or a small drier that plugs into the cigarette lighter, to thaw out a frozen lock. Car locks more often freeze when the car is parked outside rather than in a garage. You can also heat your car key with matches or a cigarette lighter and gradually work the key into a frozen lock.

Put a silicone lubricant on the door lining strips every two or three weeks to prevent the strips freezing to the car during wet, cold weather. The silicone lubricant will help keep the doors from freezing shut when the car is washed during freezing weather.

PREPARATION BEFORE DRIVING

Different cars have different cold-starting procedures, primarily based on the carburetor and ignition system designs. Refer to your Owner’s Manual, then try minor variations to learn what works best for your car. Different “experts” have different recommendations on “warm-up.” 

Some say a long warm-up, some say a short warm-up, and some say no warm-up. I believe the engine should be warmed up enough to operate reliably and predictably without sputtering, coughing, or stall¬ing when you drive the car.

The heater-defroster and windshield wipers should be in good oper-ating condition and be used as necessary to keep the windshield clean. An ice chopper and scraper with a brush on the opposite end is useful to clean your windows. If the windshield wipers become iced during operation and streak the windshield, stop at the first safe opportunity and clean them; they are not likely to get better by themselves. 

A cool temperature in the driver/passenger compartment will reduce the tendency of driven snow to turn to heavy slush on the windshield. An antifreeze solution is good for cleaning. If the windows have a tendency to frost over on the inside, you can put acetate frost shields on the inside.

Have an undercoating applied to your car when you buy it to protect against rust from salt that is used on many highways and streets to melt the ice.

EQUIPMENT

Driving your car on ice or snow is different from any other kind of driving, and I advise you to acquire the following equipment. Get a fifty- or one hundred-pound bag of sand to carry in the trunk, and place it equidistant between the rear wheels. The sand will be useful to provide more traction for the rear tires if you get stuck in snow or ice, and the bag’s added weight will help the tires grip the road surface better. 

Or carry a bag of cat litter, which is also very good for providing traction on ice. Two pieces of old carpet, six feet long by one foot wide, are useful to lay on the snow or ice in front of the back wheels when the car is stuck.

Put a shovel in the trunk (it could be a folding trench shovel from an army-navy surplus store) in case you need to dig your way out of ice or a snowdrift. Obtain emergency flares and a twenty-five-foot” length of strong nylon rope or Vi-inch steel cable with hooks at each end. The rope or cable is useful for pulling a vehicle out of a snowdrift. In some states the law requires that you carry emergency flares.

DRIVING ON ICE OR SNOW

Remember the limitations of yourself, your car, and the driving surface. You cannot accelerate quickly, turn quickly, or stop quickly on snow or ice. Start gradually by using low gear and accelerating gently. Maximum traction occurs just before the wheels spin; minimum traction occurs while they are spinning. 

Many cars with automatic transmission have just enough power for the wheels to start the car moving on ice when the accelerator is depressed gently. Pretend there is an egg between your foot and the accelerator. Approach steep down¬grades in low gear and stay in low. Go slow! Speeds that are normally safe can be hazardous on ice and snow.

Reaction to a skid should be almost instantaneous, before enough skidding momentum has accumulated to make control impossible. Some drivers react correctly by instinct; others must learn, preferably by practice in safe, controlled situations. An empty parking lot is a good place to practice.

As most skids are caused by the rear of the car swinging around toward the front (rotation), your task is to prevent this. Take your foot off the accelerator and turn the steering wheel to move the front end to the right if the rear end wants to pass on the right. Steer to the left if the rear tries to pass on the left; in other words, turn the wheel in the direction of the skid. If you do not, the rotation will increase until your car spins out of control.

You may encounter the problem of getting out of a snowdrift or off an ice patch. Use the shovel from your trunk to clear a path and the sand, carpet, or cat litter to provide better traction. Put the car in low gear and depress the accelerator gently to avoid spinning the wheels. 

Drive out slowly. If the car moves forward a short distance and then the wheels begin to spin, try a rocking motion; reverse the car and then come forward, repeating this operation as necessary. Some experts suggest letting some air out of the rear tires to provide more traction. I do not recommend this unless you have a pressurized can or a small electric air pump that plugs into the cigarette lighter to restore the pressure in your tires.

Keep a small hammer under the seat of your car for emergency use. Cases have been reported of drivers on the road for several hours in subfreezing weather who discovered upon stopping that they were imprisoned. The car doors would not open and the windows would not roll down because they were frozen. Use the hammer to break the window glass in case of a severe emergency.