ptjones Posted February 25, 2015 Report Share Posted February 25, 2015 Hey, we've been down to at least -6F! Now its true that our car is usually garaged but that doesn't stop ICE starting. I wanted to pull it up a foot so I could get the snowblower out so I thought, "it will all be EV mode - no need to open garage door", but ICE starts right up and proceeds to gas me out! That's in the garage - maybe 40F. I think it starts right up before you even try to move. Yeah, I was just thinking that before I got down to your post. Blow the warm air down the inlet ducts beside the rear windows - something like this!If your HVB SOC is low the ICE will start immediately to put some charge in it. :) Paul Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louder North Posted January 21, 2016 Report Share Posted January 21, 2016 The only winter tip I can offer is to move somewhere warmer. You're going to take a hit on fuel economy whether you are driving a hybrid or a conventional vehicle. Winter gas gives worse fuel economy, longer warm up times hurt as well. Since moving to a warmer locale isn't a reality to me, I just accepted my fate. Then again, I have a remote car starter for my Highlander Hybrid and ordered my C-Max with one as well so being comfortable is more important to me than a couple of bucks worth of gasoline. Remote car starter not really needed for a fuel injected engine; block or interior heater on a timer is better. Read this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ptjones Posted January 21, 2016 Report Share Posted January 21, 2016 I have been recommending oil pan and ice block heaters for some time and they do improve MPG's on short trips as well as long ones. Grill Covers also help a lot. :) Paul Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markd Posted January 21, 2016 Report Share Posted January 21, 2016 Having a garage helps a lot, a trip to the store doesn't require heat and on the way home it's warmed up. ptjones 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steveluannj Posted February 10, 2016 Report Share Posted February 10, 2016 It is not that cold here, maybe 30 degrees or so, but I notice that the car coolant never gets up to temperature. I can get up 1/3 into the "normal range" on the dash panel gage, but then the ICE shuts off and the temperature drops out of the operating range, almost off the gage. I don't have the nice grill covers, but did block the lower 2 openings with pipe insulation. I am wondering if my thermostat stays open after the car warms up, and the engine just is not producing enough heat to support the heater plus the radiator loss, even with a grill block. Is this unusual? It seems that winter driving is a bit under engineered in this car. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ptjones Posted February 10, 2016 Report Share Posted February 10, 2016 It is not that cold here, maybe 30 degrees or so, but I notice that the car coolant never gets up to temperature. I can get up 1/3 into the "normal range" on the dash panel gage, but then the ICE shuts off and the temperature drops out of the operating range, almost off the gage. I don't have the nice grill covers, but did block the lower 2 openings with pipe insulation. I am wondering if my thermostat stays open after the car warms up, and the engine just is not producing enough heat to support the heater plus the radiator loss, even with a grill block. Is this unusual? It seems that winter driving is a bit under engineered in this car. It is not that cold here, maybe 30 degrees or so, but I notice that the car coolant never gets up to temperature. I can get up 1/3 into the "normal range" on the dash panel gage, but then the ICE shuts off and the temperature drops out of the operating range, almost off the gage. I don't have the nice grill covers, but did block the lower 2 openings with pipe insulation. I am wondering if my thermostat stays open after the car warms up, and the engine just is not producing enough heat to support the heater plus the radiator loss, even with a grill block. Is this unusual? It seems that winter driving is a bit under engineered in this car. The car is over cooled, you need to block all three openings real good. If you can plugin oil pan heater that would help too. Thermostat starts to open at 182*F and is all the way open at 202*F. If you use the heater very much at all the ICE wouldn't warm up. ;) Paul Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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