AmericanBred_4.6

what happens to my mustang (or any car for that matter) when it sits out in the cold...lets say 27 to 32 degrees F on a daily basis, should it be started once a day atleast if not drivin and should it be let to warm up for a couple minutes before drivin , i ask because i take alot of time to keep my 04 gt in really good condition and put alot of money into it and i am very strict on oil changes and daily upkeep...so jw whats the best way to keep it running straight while in cold climate thanks


i always am working and say to myself i should put this on MF and ask the fellas but then i forget so i just remebered and figured id post it while it was in my head

Mustang_NTriangle

just don't beat on any car when it is NOT warmed up and that goes for any time of the year. It doesn't need to be started once a day.

realrider8

+1 ^^^^^^^^^^

mustangted

my cars are stored all winter

cliffyk

I spent 45 of my 62 years living in New England, here's what my father and grandfather (both mechanical engineers) taught me about cold weather engine care:

Start the engine, let it idle until it stabilises (30 to 60 seconds) and then drive the car at light loads until the engine is hot.

Do not repeatedly start a cold engine and drive a only short distance then shut it down--if you must do this then take it out after every half dozen or so short trips and run it at normal operating temps for at least 20 to 30 minutes to boil off the water and other crap that will have condensed in the crankcase during cold running.

If you are storing the vehicle, starting it "once-in-a-while" and letting it idle 'til it's warm is about the worse thing you can do--the engine will never get warm enough to boil off the crankcase nasties (water and acidic by-products of cold operation); and when you shut it off and let it sit some more that crap will go to work, corroding and eroding things.

If you feel compelled to do something then disable the fuel and ignition and crank it over several turns every now and then to get the oil circulating.

For winter storage, run the engine 'til it's hot, then change the oil and run it for a bit to distribute the new oil. Once in the storage location pull the spark plugs and squirt a bit of motor oil (an ounce or so) into each cylinder, then crank the engine a few turns (fuel and spark disabled) to coat the cylinder walls--put the plugs back in and let it hibernate.

I have stored numerous summer cars and bikes using that procedure and never had any storage related problems (they will smoke a bit when you start 'em up); except for the time the mouse chewed through the air filer on my '68 FLH and took up residence in the airbox.

When the bike stalled after firing up I pulled the airbox and saw only the mouse's back-end stuck in the carburetor (fittingly a "guillotine" carb)--the rest of it had apparently gone through, never found any of it though...

AmericanBred_4.6

thanks cliffyk thats the info i was looking for, what i usually do is about ten minutes before i go to the gym is start my car and let it reach almost normal operation tempature, drive it for about 3 miles stop and go town driving and then go into the gym, the car has bin completely warmed up by that point for about 5 min then get done and drive it home, but my car has bin running as hot as it can for the ride home so i guess that sounds like im not hurting anything based upon the information you stated

thanks again

cliffyk

That is actually rather severe duty, and letting it idle for 10 minutes isn't doing it any favours either--make sure you keep that oil changed regularly...