Currently in a state of emergency. No pedestrians are supposed to drive on any major roads. Tomorrow is supposed to be -16 with a windchill of -48. I'm no marine biologist, but I am pretty sure if I go outside my blood will instantly freeze.

 

If a pedestrian is driving anywhere, they are confused

If a pedestrian is driving anywhere, they are confused

 

lol, I dont know why but this made me think of a GTA glitch video where a guy is driving around with an invisible car

Is there any advantage to going out and starting my car periodically today? I honestly can't seem to find anything about that on the great interwebs, so I assume it's rubbish.

 

Then I found this:

 

If the car starts in the morning after cold-soaking all night, it certainly should start after 8 hours parked in the office parking lot. If you've got a garage baby that won't start after a day out-of-doors and needs to be started every 4 hours, maybe it's time to change the plugs and get it running right. If you start a cold engine and idle it for 10 minutes every day, you stand the chance of diluting the oil with unburned fuel that never gets a chance to burn off. That could cause premature engine wear--not to mention needlessly burning up some expensive gasoline.

Its all about the battery. Most are not able to work in extreme cold temps.

A lot of electronics aren't rated to extremely cold temperatures, but I'd imagine that automotive ones, at least the important bits, are rated to -35 or so.

The school district I work for just cancelled school for tomorrow and is telling us to stay home with a free paid day off.

I was supposed to head home yesterday from Champaign but im stuck. I57 is closed until at least Kankakee. Not sure ill be able to make it back today either.

Sigh, my car won't start. Gas gauge is just a bit lower than half a tank. Single car house, ghetto neighborhood where I don't know anyone around so I can't really jump it. Will the problem fix itself as it gets "warmer" or will it no doubt need to be jumped at some point? Add a gallon of gas??? Any other tips?

Sigh, my car won't start. Gas gauge is just a bit lower than half a tank. Single car house, ghetto neighborhood where I don't know anyone around so I can't really jump it. Will the problem fix itself as it gets "warmer" or will it no doubt need to be jumped at some point? Add a gallon of gas??? Any other tips?

What happens when you turn the key?

What happens when you turn the key?

 

It tries to start, doesn't click.

 

It's kind of a slow drawn out attempt at starting

Edited January 6, 201412 yr by scs787

It tries to start, doesn't click.

 

Does your insurance have roadside? People seem to forget they have it...

It tries to start, doesn't click.

 

It's kind of a slow drawn out attempt at starting

 

How old is your battery?

Your battery probably isn't rated to be this cold.

Sigh, my car won't start. Gas gauge is just a bit lower than half a tank. Single car house, ghetto neighborhood where I don't know anyone around so I can't really jump it. Will the problem fix itself as it gets "warmer" or will it no doubt need to be jumped at some point? Add a gallon of gas??? Any other tips?

 

Fwiw, it might be worthwhile to get one of those jump starter booster packs. That way you don’t have to rely on someone else to jump your car.

So in other words, it's more than likely the battery....Will it "revive" itself when it gets warmer (don't really NEED it till Wednesday) or will it need a jump regardless.

So in other words, it's more than likely the battery....Will it "revive" itself when it gets warmer (don't really NEED it till Wednesday) or will it need a jump regardless.

If it's the battery yes it should revive itself on wednesday, but you should not try to start it before it warms up some, and if you do get it started give it a few minutes to idle.

 

If the battery is several years old this could be a sign that it's approaching time for a new one.

 

Fwiw, it might be worthwhile to get one of those jump starter booster packs. That way you don’t have to rely on someone else to jump your car.

Amazon sells them at an affordable cost and it's saved me a few times.

It tries to start, doesn't click.

 

It's kind of a slow drawn out attempt at starting

I used to build my own race cars and was an owner operator (truck driver) based on that experience along with cold Chicago weather your either not getting enough juice to the starter from the battery or the starter is is just worn out. When I first bought my own rig 10 years ago one of the first things I was told by other owner operators was that if the rig had any problems they would show when it got very cold over the winter.

 

See if you can find some way of trying to get a jump start, if that doesn't work you most likely need to replace the starter. Is there a guage for the battery juice on the dash?

I used to build my own race cars and was an owner operator (truck driver) based on that experience along with cold Chicago weather your either not getting enough juice to the starter from the battery or the starter is is just worn out. When I first bought my own rig 10 years ago one of the first things I was told by other owner operators was that if the rig had any problems they would show when it got very cold over the winter.

 

Lead-acid batteries start re-rating once it gets too cold. That's while you'll see Cold Cranking Amps or "CCA" on a battery. That's the rating at 0F, and it'll only get worse from there. So your battery is pushing out substantially less amperage, and now you're trying to turn over an engine that's full of really think oil on top of it (anyone who's driven a manual transmission in this type of weather will know how 'thick' the fluid feels).

 

See if you can find some way of trying to get a jump start, if that doesn't work you most likely need to replace the starter. Is there a guage for the battery juice on the dash?

 

If there isn't a gauge, you could always use a multimeter to read the Voltage (VDC) of the battery as well.

 

If the battery is drained of charge and you can get someone to give you a lift, you could try bringing it into any auto parts store to have it tested, and they might even be able to charge it for you. A local mechanic's shop would probably help out too.

Lead-acid batteries start re-rating once it gets too cold. That's while you'll see Cold Cranking Amps or "CCA" on a battery. That's the rating at 0F, and it'll only get worse from there. So your battery is pushing out substantially less amperage, and now you're trying to turn over an engine that's full of really think oil on top of it (anyone who's driven a manual transmission in this type of weather will know how 'thick' the fluid feels).

 

 

 

If there isn't a gauge, you could always use a multimeter to read the Voltage (VDC) of the battery as well.

 

If the battery is drained of charge and you can get someone to give you a lift, you could try bringing it into any auto parts store to have it tested, and they might even be able to charge it for you. A local mechanic's shop would probably help out too.

Sound advice here. I know what you mean on the manual trans too.

I used to build my own race cars and was an owner operator (truck driver) based on that experience along with cold Chicago weather your either not getting enough juice to the starter from the battery or the starter is is just worn out. When I first bought my own rig 10 years ago one of the first things I was told by other owner operators was that if the rig had any problems they would show when it got very cold over the winter.

 

See if you can find some way of trying to get a jump start, if that doesn't work you most likely need to replace the starter. Is there a guage for the battery juice on the dash?

 

 

Just the battery light that showed up when I tried starting it....Should be pretty telling as to what the problem is. Main question I had was will it revive itself in the "warmer" weather, and balta answered that. I've got road side assisstence so if hasn't started by ~3p tomorrow I'll go ahead and get in contact with my insurance.

 

 

Would waiting do more harm?

Edited January 6, 201412 yr by scs787

Just the battery light that showed up when I tried starting it....Should be pretty telling as to what the problem is. Main question I had was will it revive itself in the "warmer" weather, and balta answered that. I've got road side assisstence so if hasn't started by ~3p tomorrow I'll go ahead and get in contact with my insurance.

OK cool, sounds like you have it under control. Could always pull the battery out and warm it up indoors for a while and try again later.

OK cool, sounds like you have it under control. Could always pull the battery out and warm it up indoors for a while and try again later.

That's what we used to do in michigan when our cars sat outside for days.

Just the battery light that showed up when I tried starting it....Should be pretty telling as to what the problem is. Main question I had was will it revive itself in the "warmer" weather, and balta answered that. I've got road side assisstence so if hasn't started by ~3p tomorrow I'll go ahead and get in contact with my insurance.

 

 

Would waiting do more harm?

The only way waiting would do harm is if somehow the battery itself has burst open. If you see battery acid leaking from the car, you have a problem.

I'm co-owner of a courier service, but still bike. We were out there today, but I just shut down our loop service. My toughest bikers were starting to break and a couple of those guys are bad motherf***ers. I've been a messenger for a while and I don't ever remember it being this cold. That wind is just brutal.

That's what we used to do in michigan when our cars sat outside for days.

Hell yeah Rock, ya do what you must especially with the winters Michigan gets.