Winter conditions put a tremendous strain on your car and on your driving. Winter also puts a strain on your fuel economy. In order to prevent a decrease in your fuel economy you need to be aware of some specific issues with regard to your car and your driving in the winter.
One of the two main characteristics of winter, cold temperatures, create conditions that lower your fuel economy. A car that is cold uses more fuel to start up than a warm car. The colder the car the more fuel it uses when it starts.
In cold weather, the engine of your car is harder to start. The oil in your car is thicker when it is cold and thus requires more energy to get it flowing. All the parts that are lubricated by this thicker oil require more energy to move them. More energy means that it will take more fuel to move the parts. Your engine will use more fuel to run until it warms up.
The engine is not the only part of your car affected by cold temperatures. The joints, transmission, bearings, brakes, and steering mechanisms all need more energy to move them in cold temperatures. They all depend upon some fluids to operate. Similar to engine oil, the fluids will be thicker in cold temperatures and will need more energy to move them. That also translates into burning more gas.
Moisture from the air, from precipitation or from the road can freeze areas of the car. These frozen parts require more energy and more fuel to move them until they warm up.
Since your engine needs to overcome some temperature issues to lubricate itself in the cold you do need to give it a little longer to idle after starting than you would in the summer. But, I have to stress this, it only needs about 30 seconds of idling, no more. That little extra idling does affect your gas mileage.
You can lessen or eliminate the effects of cold on fuel economy if you take certain actions. If you have access to a heated area to park your car, do it. If a heated area is not an option even a non heated garage is an improvement to leaving your car outside in the cold. If you can clean out your garage to make room for your car now would be the time.
Make sure you have the correct oil for your car. The correct oil will be less thick and will flow easier in cold weather. This will reduce the amount of energy necessary to start and operate a cold engine.
In extreme cold climates an engine block heater will help keep the engine and oil warm thus avoiding a complete cold start. You will need a way to plug it in and keep it plugged in until you are ready to drive.
You only need 30 seconds of idling to lubricate the engine at a cold start. Excessive idling longer than 30 seconds will rob you of fuel economy faster than anything else. Your car can complete the warm up as you are driving. This could be the most important cold weather fuel saver of all.
Although cold temperatures can greatly reduce gas mileage, you can minimize or eliminate it's affect. Just follow the simple steps outlined here and you can maintain good gas mileage.
Article Source: http://www.orbitaloc.com/
Scott Siegel is the author of a 143 page book of industry insider secrets on saving gas and money at the pump (beatthegaspump.com). Visit us to learn how you can get better gas mileage. Find out how to increase gas mileage.
Please Rate The Above Article From The Trucks Category
Article Title: Your Fuel Economy Suffers in Cold Temperatures
Not yet Rated
Syndicate Trucks Related Articles Via RSS!
Subject to Orbitaloc.com's Publisher Terms of Service, you may reprint this
article on your own website, blog, and ezine. (English only) You may also syndicate
the article via Really Simple Syndication (RSS). It is free of charge.
Free Articles on Trucks and Other FREE Content Article Topics
The preceeding is an informative article from the Trucks category.
