Posted by David Sherman on Wednesday, December 31, 2003 at 2:01PM :
In Reply to: Re: How Cold Can It Go??? posted by David Sherman on Wednesday, December 31, 2003 at 11:50AM :
That TM mentioned other interesting things I hadn't thought of like when the coolant starts to freeze it becomes a slush and the ice crystals can't circulate through the radiator core. When that happens, even when the engine warms up and the thermostat opens, the water pump can't push water through the slush-clogged radiator, which never thaws out and the engine overheats while the radiator freezes. Another thing it mentioned is that cold motor oil can get as thick as grease and it won't flow into the oil pump. Thus, if the oil pressure doesn't come up right away, shut down the engine and heat up the oil pan. The method of bringing the oil and coolant inside at night and heating them up on the stove is an old one and it works, but I'd definitely rather go with an electric heater if electricity was available.
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