1. Attachments are working again! Check out this thread for more details and to report any other bugs.

Special maintenance for northern Alberta winter?

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by dr_d12, Jun 16, 2008.

  1. dr_d12

    dr_d12 Member

    Joined:
    May 26, 2008
    154
    13
    1
    Location:
    Canada
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    I'm looking for some early advice for the coming winter.

    I'm going to be in Grande Prairie, Alberta for the winter. I expect 3 months of temperatures averaging -10oC highs to -20oC lows (average low of -4oF), with a few weeks of -40oC/-40oF mixed in. Sadly, the Prius is going to stay outside and I'm probably only going to use it once a week in town and once a month for a 900km round-trip to Edmonton. ((I'll post mileage numbers, I'm really curious about this car in cold weather)).

    As far as I know, the only thing I should be worried about is the charge on the 12V battery (since I'm not using the car often). Should I plan on manually charging it with my 1A trickle charger? Is there anything else I should know?

    Thanks,
    Dave
     
    #1 dr_d12, Jun 16, 2008
  2. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

    Joined:
    Mar 8, 2008
    18,200
    6,472
    0
    Location:
    Green Valley, AZ
    Vehicle:
    2015 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    Hi Dave,

    Sounds like your car's engine would be a good candidate for 0W-20 synthetic motor oil during the winter.

    I suggest that you install new winter tires.

    Given your low planned usage, I agree that it would be a good idea to either devise a means to keep the 12V battery charged; or else disconnect the battery when the car is not in use.

    If you charge the battery, you are supposed to disconnect the negative cable from the battery at minimum (and ideally, remove the battery from the car) so that the Prius electronics are not exposed to the charging current.

    An easy way to disconnect the battery is to remove the nut adjacent to the dedicated jump start terminal, then remove the cable, replace the nut, close the red plastic cover and place the cable on top of the cover.
     
    #2 Patrick Wong, Jun 16, 2008
  3. hiremichaelreid

    hiremichaelreid New Member

    Joined:
    May 8, 2008
    451
    6
    0
    Location:
    Ottawa/Aylmer, Canada
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    Model:
    I
    Synthetic oil, absolutely.

    A block heater, or any other way to heat the engine or car (like parking where some sun can reach it), would be good, IMO.

    We always go as low as -30 C here in Ottawa, sometimes as low as -35 C. With windchill as low as -40 to -42.

    I have a garage that is insulated and that I will lightly heat this winter. I'm planning to point a heater at the car to help with winter MPG.

    IMO, anyway that you can do to preheat the car is good. Just so long as it's not concentrated in any area; don't want to burn anything...
     
    #3 hiremichaelreid, Jun 16, 2008
  4. jayman

    jayman Senior Member

    Joined:
    Oct 21, 2004
    13,439
    640
    0
    Location:
    Winnipeg Manitoba
    Vehicle:
    2004 Prius
    Winnipeg and southern Manitoba is almost as cold as Grand Prairie, AB. Sucks you have to leave it parked outside, I happily pay extra for a condo with heated parking, or now my house with a heated garage

    Block heaters are "mandatory" Toyota options here. I'm guessing the block heater really is an option for Ontario. Your choice to have it put in where you live, or once you get to Grand Prairie. There is a Toyota dealer in Grand Prairie.

    I strongly recommend a synthetic oil for those temps, one less hassle to worry about. Either a 0W-30 or 0W-20, I personally run Mobil 1 0W-20 year round in my Prius, Mobil 1 0W-40 in my FJ Cruiser

    Your 12 vdc battery will probably run down, especially if you have to use the electric rear defrost in town driving. I use a VDC Battery Minder all the time on my equipment

     12 Volt-1 Amp  Charger and Maintainer

    Note the unit itself isn't weatherproof. I have the harness hooked directly to the battery. There may be weatherproof tenders out there. Do NOT use a trickle charger, that can destroy a battery

    I test drove a 2008 Prius when we still had some snow on the ground. I found the Trac behavior far better behaved than on my 2004. I'd still suggest winter tires though.

    I run studded Goodyear Nordic from Canadian Tire. They're very reasonable to buy, and offer outstanding snow/ice traction. This tire is identical to the Goodyear Ultra Grip 500 sold in Europe

    Goodyear Eur-Winter Tire-UltraGrip 500

    If you click on "Profile" a Flash movie will load that explains how the tire works
     
    #4 jayman, Jun 16, 2008
(You must log in or sign up to post here.)