The Fit is plugged in and it should start. But the heater will not keep up.
The windows are just sheets of ice. And this ice is on the inside of the windows.
I may take the truck as it has a much better heater.
Anyone done any heater mods?
I am going to wrap the front of the rad in carpet tomorrow after work, but is there a hotter thermostat from Honda?

 

I think my ***ass battery will give up... at the -40 -50 celcius they predict!! It's allready low on power at -20... :\

Marko!!

 

it was that cold here too for a while and mine started fine when it was plugged in but dont bother trying if u dont plug it in. lol

 

what does this plug in module look like?

 

a block heater is basically a heated coil that goes into the block to heat the coolant which heats your oil so it doesnt gell up or become thicker than the clearances in your engine so it will keep your oil the right viscosity so it flows properly upon started, thus making it easier to start

 

but then if your battery dies it does no good... i would get the block heater
and put the battery on a manager.

 

I feel for you guys. I understand this is some of the coldest weather in a number of years. It's good to be in Florida!

 

Heats the coolant? Yes, the stuff in the block anyway.
Heats the oil? No. the oil in the pan is cold and as thick a syrup. The little bit that's in the block will be warmer though, but that amount is pretty little anyway.
I am thinking of buying one of the stick-on oil pan heaters like VW uses on their diesels to heat the oil. Would be nice to have warmer oil on start up.

 

You may want a battery warmer too if you're really concerned about not starting... Personally, i prefer when my car doesn't start at home then at work so i don't plug it... I just put AMSoil in the sump... :P

Marko!!

 

I have one.
But I drove the truck today and will tomorrow as it will be -45.
But the Fit will be out again this weekend as its supposed to warm up (-18!)
I actually called the dealer and he has had more than one complaint about the heater on the Fit. Honda is not recommending a hotter thermostat. I am going to cover the rad and I am sure it will make a big diference.

 

Get two blankies, one for you and one for the Fit! F that shit man, -48 is too F-ing cold to be outside for any reason IMHO. But then this is why I don't live where the temp gets that low. We are sissies here in the DC/Nova area, the news is making a huge deal out of the fact that it will top out at 20 on Friday for chrissakes. On a serious note, I seem to remember someone, like JC Whitney sells a dipstick heater that goes (you guessed it!) down the dipstick tube into the sump, that seems like just the ticket for you arctic types.

 

Does anyone's engine make more noise at startup when it is freezing out? Mine tends to make noise for the first couple of minutes, nothing too bad, but like a slight clicking. I have only heard it when it is really cold.

The low tomorrow is 2 degrees, which is ridiculous for Missouri. I don't think we are getting above 15.

 

That would be your valves clattering away with less oil than during a warm weather start-up. As long as it subsides after a minute or two you are fine.

 

Thanks for the quick reply. I assumed that it was ok because it went away so fast. The weather is ridiculous right now.

I drove through oil or tar and it is so cold I cannot wash it off my car. It really depresses me.

 

Wow. And i thought i had it bad when I had to go out in 30 deg. weather to turn on the choke on my old mustang (the auto mechanism was rusted).

Not to rub it in, but my fit is starting up fine. I was sweating a little today. It was 82 earlier, and about 72 right now.

I wish you luck. All that i can think of is using plenty of blankets to wrap the windows.

 

I was thinking about blocking both side, the full width of the radiator when it went down to -10c during X'mas time here in Vancouver. Coz I feel like the engine & transmission barely warmed up & getting enough heat after driving it for 15km(20mins) to work. I use my autostart every morning too. I finally decide to cut a card board, pop the few clips on top of the front & put it in behind the bumper, on the passenger side. I do get good heat faster, and feels like engine & tranny fluid warm up faster by doing that.

If not, it will just get really hard to shift from 1st to 2nd. Thank god I got a bigger final gear so I can do 1st to 3rd during the first 5min of driving.

Too bad the Fit doesn't have a temperature gauge. My friend said he only gets around 75-80c oil & water temperature on his civic(using Defi water & oil temp gauge) after he drives it for 10km to work during those days.

 

You need to make sure you have the air inlet switch to the outside air position. Once the engine warms up use the defroster at full fan power and the A/C on as well. It's an old Porsche tactic - the A/C dries out the air and will let the windows clear better. It's called "All on." But I've started mine plugged in at -45 F. all day, and not plugged in at -35 F. and have never had the window frosting problems you mention.

 

In the Fit (and most current vehicles), the A/C compressor comes on when you turn the selector to "defrost" or "defrost/foot" settings. You can't turn it off, unless you have done the defrost mod described elsewhere on Fitfreak. I know the green indicator light doesn't come on, but it's still on. I personally don't like that fact, but haven't done the mod as yet.

 

You can't turn the AC on at temps this low. The compressor will not cut in. I believe its set to -5C or something like that.
And Fairbanks is very mild ( right now) compared to where I live so those tricks just don't work here. I believe its -3 right there now. I always run outside air in the winter. In Fairbanks you probably could run the AC as its not so cold.
Anyway, the windows are iced because it hasn't been above -40 for nearly a week. And we get -40 temps for months.
The truth is, the heater doesn't keep up. And I need to do something about it and I'm not the only one.

 

Damn, Ricoh, I will just be your friend from a great distance, then, Bro.