cold weather driving

Living in Sacramento where is rarely freezes and with an all time record low of +17F, I am no expert . . . but a friend of mine in Alaska did show me how they would block off the front of the radiator grill to give the car a fighting chance in extreme cold situations.
Big Rig trucks do the same thing.

Has anyone tried doing so on a Prius?

 

What?

At that temperature outside, I can melt stuff with the heater. Something isn't right. Are you driving naked?

At -18F (-28C) last winter my Prius still kept me warm without any struggle. The windows stayed clear too. And at -13F (-25C) last winter, I actually remember turning down the heater to keep from sweating. In fact, even the engine was toasty... proof was the fact that stealth was available (proof is on page #62 of my photo album).

 

Coldest I encountered was -10f and NEVER had an issue. Heck even at 2f my ICE shut off at stop lights. I'd have the car checked if I were you.

 

Well, it has not been quite THAT cold in Winnipeg - yet.

Over the weekend, I parked my Prius outside at my hobby farm, where it did dip to around -25 C. With the steering wheel control for defrost (Max hot is selected) I had to turn the heat WAY down by the time I drove the 5km to the highway.

Have never had the motor rev like that. I would bring it up with your dealer and see what is wrong. This is atypical behavior.

I am having a winter front made for my car. Usually, you don't need them in city driving. On the highway they really help keep the car at a good operating temp.

Folks may be surprised how hard it is to keep a motor at operating temp at -30 C or colder and driving at highway speeds. My 2000 GMC Sierra (5.3 Vortec V8 with aluminum heads) would not maintain operating temp at -10 C or colder unless I used a winter front.

The only thing that would bother me about using a winter front on the Prius is there is not a temp gage. So you wouldn't know if you're running too warm until the idiot light came on.

Remember to convert from litres per 100 kilometres (Canadian MFD default) to miles per imperial gallon as follows:

MPG = 282.48 / l per 100km

Therefore 6.9 litres per 100km = 41 MPG

 

My fuel economy is similar to yours, due to the temps and city driving. Compared to <10 MPG driving my 2000 GMC Sierra, I'm sure not complaining.

In city-cycle driving, it can take a good 10-15 minutes to get a hot blast of air out of the defroster. That's assuming I have to park somewhere outside and not in heated underground parking, then the heat is almost instant.

I think the Transport Canada fuel economy estimates are a lot more optimistic than U.S. DOT. I have come very close to those estimates in temps of 12 C, no winds, A/C off, and cruise at 90 km/h.

Consumer Reports tested a 2004 Prius and reported around 35 MPG (U.S. gallon) in their "real" city-cycle test. By comparison, a 4cyl Dodge Stratus got 12. CR got around 51 MPG highway. I think Motor Trend - they picked the Prius as a Car Of The Year - also reported similar results.

 

this part of the statement leads me to believe that the A/C was used with the defrost position. In very low humidity situations it should only take a few minutes to defrost the windows with out A/C after you turn off the A/C. If it won't warm up I'd suspect something like the flow control valve for the thermous not switching back to the heater at the proper time. Just some thoughts from someone who lived in the Peace River block.

 

Yesterday I drove from Palmdale on the Angeles National Forest road
where three JPL employees died in a van pool accident this morning.
Parts of the road were slick when I drove, and there was snow on the
side of the road for parts of the route. For a while there was a
yellow dashboard light, the icon featured something that looked like
a snow flake. I haven't checked the manual yet, has anyone
had this warning light come on. What triggers it? I'll have to
check the manual next chance I get.

 

The snowflake comes on at 3c (37f?) to let you know that you're approaching a temperature where ice can form on the road. It's basically just a visual reminder that you may encounter black ice or other winter dangers, so to drive cautiously.

Dave.

 

It's also a sign that shows your mileage is about to take a hit!

 

It may be a good idea to take a couple of hours and read it cover to cover.

 

Despite having the snowflake the entire time (temperatures in the 30's), my current tank has been absolutely delightful... after 110 miles, it says 50.1 MPG

So once you get familiar with what to do and what not to do, your efficiency will improve.

 

does anybody think that winter blend fuel has as big or bigger impact on mileage as the temp.? I few days it was warm here(over 50) and my numbers seemed to stay about the same. When does the winter blend fuel dissapear?

 

It's suppose to get pretty cold this weekend, we are having the employee
Christmas party this Saturday. If I get up early enough maybe I'll be able to see the yellow snow.

 

So... it is cold enough now that we have to warn people not to lick their Prius? :mrgreen:

 

Oh no tongue stuck to the Prius!!! Oh my ( shades of Christmas Story) I think I went to that grade school in the movie or one identical to it in Northern Ohio as to make no difference and I was at that Department store at Christmas. And no I did not shoot my eye out! I know nothing about those small animals and birds found dead. I stand by that.

 

Nope, don't lick anything metal. As a kid in a cold climate, you sort of learn that early on. If you're "lucky" enough to be raised a farmboy, you also learn not to pee on an electric fence.

But you have to try at least once. Especially if your friends are encouraging you to. Some friends ...

I would say the impact of cold weather is more than just the winter-blend fuel. Some places, such as the Twin Cities area (Minneapolis / St. Paul) run oxygenated fuel year round.

In colder weather, the grease in the wheel bearings is much more viscous (Stiffer) than at room temp. The oil in the CVT or transaxle is also stiffer and takes a LONG time to warm up. Motor oil can turn solid at -30 C, etc etc.

Combine the much higher friction from all that higher cold viscosity, with the more volitile winter-blend fuel, and you take a big hit in fuel economy.

We notice it a lot more in a car that gets higher MPG to begin with. A truck that gets 15 MPG summer might get 12-13 MPG winter under the same highway conditions.