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Moving to North Dakota, is the cold bad for my car?

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Main Forum' started by barlrol, Dec 30, 2011.

  1. barlrol

    barlrol New Member

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    ----USA----
    I'm moving to North Dakota here in a while and I just got a 2005 Prius. Should I be worried about how cold it gets there? I don't know if I can find garage parking or not. Would the cold be bad for the batteries? I know it is a crap load to replace it. I guess using a block heater or whatever it is called is common there? I don't even know how that works. Does anyone have any tips for this noob? Thanks.
     
  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    :welcome: to priuschat! it's not bad for the car, but bad for your mpg's! search grille blocking. it keeps your engine warmer while driving. you can have a block heater installed, but you need a place to plug it in.
     
  3. ETC(SS)

    ETC(SS) The OTHER One Percenter.....

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    Bisco's right (as usual).
    They sell Priuses in the frozen North. They work fine up there.
    Don't sweat the battery issue. It's inside the car. They'll be a little less efficient than those used by folks who live in warmer climes, but I don't think a few ND winters will kill them.
    You may want to consider a block heater to keep your engine warm for starting up---especially if you have to park outside. This will keep your oil (and your block---hence the name) a little warmer and maybe add a little to your engine life, but the 0W20 synthetic may make this measure a little more extra-redundant than the people who make money selling engine block heaters will lead you to believe.
    If you had a '73 GMC pickemuptruck with a cast iron block and 30W oil, then yeah, I'd say it's a "must have" item. Priuses......eh, maybe not so much.
    A lot of folks have EBH's for Priuses, and they're not really hard to find or install. Just make sure you can park in a location where you can reach your car with an extension cord where you park overnight.

    Good Luck in ND!
     
  4. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    etc, are you following me? we have to stop meeting like this!:D