Get it Ready For Winter

[Liger1956]

8 hours ago, VWD said:

I based my recommendations on 50 + years on the road, with my first cars having radial tyres / RWD and non treated roads. I now drive a car with only ABS. I seldom get problems in snow. But I do keep a pair of old bits of car mat in the boot in case I get stuck in a car park.

When I first started driving 46 years ago all of the cars I drove were on crossply tyres not radials. They were fun in the snow with RWD. What was more fun was driving a Reliant Supervan II (think Delboy) and trying to keep the front wheel on the hard packed snow in the middle of the road.

[VWD]

OH -I remember the fun with RWD, using the front end grip to steer the rear end. I also remember the first set of T & C radials I fitted to an A40 Farina. Great in snow. FIL used to have a reliant van and I remember the fun in snow.

One of the benefits of RWD was the  ability to use something like an old sack in front of the rear wheels ( tied to rear bumper) to get moving to somewhere you could safely stop and retrieve the sacks tied to rear bumper. These days I keep a pair of old car mats in boot for this purpose. But it's not ideal to tie them on as they'd flap and possibly snag on he underside, so it's stop as soon as and walk back to retrieve them . On mine I've found that changing from 185x65x14 to 185x60x14 makes a great deal of difference.

[punyXpress]

All those young bloods will be scratching their heads wondering how us old farts had so much fun with less than 40bhp and  3.5 inch somewhat bald tyres ?

Happy Daze !

[Ootohere]

Car Plan Demon Freeze, 2.5 litres, -20*oC.  £5 @ Asda today.

[Ootohere]

That time again.

Lots of mornings with condensation inside or freezing inside even in dry cars time is near.

 

Time for carpets out and rubber mats in.

Door seal holes cleared at the bottom of Skoda Models.

Treat the Rubbers / Seals, hinges, locks.

Winter Screen Wash.

Coolant / Anti freeze strength checked.  

Oil checked,

Check and fit Clean / dry Pollen Filter.

Clean Air Filter.

Fuel Filter maybe.

Battery Condition.

Spark Plugs.

 

Basically a pre winter Service / Check.

 

Wheels / Tyres, pressures, condition, do the wheels actually come off if there are rear drums on? 

 

Get in the De-icer or Pre-ice if you use that.

 

Extra stuff not needed out of car and winter essentials in. 

Demist Pads, cloths etc (remove when wet and dry)

Torch, shovel if you need.

 

Damp Traps bought & maybe one in the car & one in the boot ,

while supplies are good and price low.

 

 

Edited 10 October, 2021 by e-Roottoot

[@Lee]

It didn't pop above 12C here today but I'll be keeping an eye on things. Winter tyres ready in the shed to go on. -30C screenwash bought already in March at 50% off.
All my winter gears was ready since the winters came off in March. 

[DieselMonte]

Nights are getting to 2°c here and daytime is rarely breaking 10°c. I have a set of winters ready to go, daft question but should I be putting them on now or am I being too premature?

Car sees a fair bit of driving day or night, and our local council only ever seems to salt the roads once or twice in April when its not needed. Maybe i'm answering my own question...

[Ootohere]

All Weathers or full Winter Tyres can be 'Simply Clever' anytime when torrential rain is likely as many are having now and might have anytime and when cold temps are likely to occur without much notice if moving about.

In the British Isles it is hardly likely there will be a downside of having taken off Summer / All Season- all year'  tyres that are not really suitable 'Autumn, Winter or Spring tyres' 

as heat waves between November and April are rare.   (Not unheard of but then easy to change back the wheels / tyres if that happens.)

[@Lee]

I've mentioned before on here (in another topic?) that in Germany they use a lot of Lada Riva's and Suzuki Jimney's for winter service on side streets etc but this is a first!

No idea what a Smart Fortwo will be like ploughing  

[Ootohere]

An Electric Smart. 

2019

 

 

2017

 

 

 

[@Lee]

2 minutes ago, roottoot said:

An Electric Smart. 

2019

 

 

2017

 

 

 

Thanks, George. It was de-badged so no idea if it was electric and I never checked for a tail pipe
It did have winter tryres on and if electric then many torques more than and ICE. 

[Ootohere]

Cars all prepped again before some freezing weather hits.  Tyres checked for pressures, screen wash, anti freeze and oil, brake fluid and autobox level  Clean dry rubber mats in. No carpet ones.  Windows cleaned and prepped inside and out. Door and hatch seals prepped and a damp trap in the car and boot. Hats, gloves, de-icer ect in cars.      Ps. Mirrors set not to auto fold / freeze closed.   Fuel filler flap prepped.  

[EnterName]

9 minutes ago, toot said:

Fuel filler flap prepped.  

How do you prep a fuel filler cap, @toot?

[Ootohere]

Clean the area.  Polish / wax the paintwork, body edge and flap edge.

Silicone spray the catch if there is one, the hinge if you can and if any available cable then that.

Make sure if any electronic catch it is cleaned.   Then repeat as the winter goes on.

If at any point you need warm water to get the flap open then remember to dry that off before it freezes again.

Edited 5 December, 2022 by toot

[Ootohere]

The temperature is dropping now but no sign of salt being put down before it gets to zero C.

 

My trusty greenhouse heater is in my van and set just above freezing to keep snow or ice off the glass and it is dry inside.

Brimmed with Winter Spec Diesel.

 

My EV is almost fully charged but not plugged into the charger.

It can just get turned on by phone app to start heater and clear glass if needed, but not going anyplace other than a play tomorrow if there is snow on the ground. 

 

 

[Ootohere]

Much dampness this winter with freezing days / nights and then thaws and warm weather.

 

The damp traps are well worth the cost even though now £4 for 4 in ASDA.  Singles are £1.25.

I think i am stocked for the rest of the winter as the first ones put in cars this winter and not ready for a environmentally friendly disposal. 

[Ootohere]

That time again for stocking up pre condensation season.

£4 for 4 packs in Asda. Other retailers are available.  But this is in Household.  The car / travel section has loads of discount ticket stuff including oil to VW 504 00 / 507 00.

 

 

[Ootohere]

This winter the Blue stuff will be my answer to lazy exterior car care. 'Much cheapness', i will see how it does.

Usually i use the Pink stuff which is just the same as Carplan Demon Shine as far as i can tell, it usually goes in a bucket of water or in a sprayer & does the job without any effort.

[VWD]

I've always found that using the hand spray bottles of de icer is better than aerosol cans( I use Demon first thing). No arguements from SWMBO for leaving de icing stuff in house, after one year when we got iced out of car. And for the older Fabia owners, it might be a good time to treat seat belts to some Mr Sheen, before they suffer from damp . And again for those with aged MK1 Fabias and other makes of a geriatric nature, time to spray the front doorlocks with WD40 . I know its tempting to use hot water first thing, but a dollop of WD40 ( OTHER BRANDS ARE AVAILABLE) keeps water in the barrel etc at bay.

[Ootohere]

@VWD

really a silicone spray is better than WD40,  but then there is a WD40 Silicone rather than the original. 

Edited 21 September, 2023 by toot

[VWD]

I'd refer the poster ( with tongue in cheek) to my bit in brackets " OTHER BRANDS ARE AVAILABLE" . TBH, in over 50 years, I've found WD40 adequate. Even to a frozen lock.

[Warrior193]

6 minutes ago, VWD said:

I'd refer the poster ( with tongue in cheek) to my bit in brackets " OTHER BRANDS ARE AVAILABLE" . TBH, in over 50 years, I've found WD40 adequate. Even to a frozen lock.

Really cannot recommend putting normal WD40 into any lock - the residue tends to go sticky and eventually makes the problem worse. Graphite powder in dry lock, warmed up key in frozen one.

[VWD]

Unfortunately, locks in different parts of UK get colder/hotter depending on where you are/ live. I've lived in many parts of UK, over 50+ years of motoring, but the major factor is water vapour in locks. A hot key gets you in, but repelling moisture in lock works better. Graphite might work wonders, BUT after a few years water will get in and then its only a case of displacement.

[@Lee]

WD-40 is a water displacement product made of various chemicals including light oils and paraffin. 

As we all know, oils and fats congeal over time. More so in colder climes.

That's why it's far better to use the other products mentioned above when dealing with a frozen door lock. 

That said, we had -18°C here a couple of years ago and my Rapid opened first push of the remote fob. No products necessary.

With all that said, what can you even do with WD-40 other than squirt a bit in the keyhole which isn't even where the actual locking mechanism is? Even using the straw through the gap in the door would be almost pointless IMO. 

[J.R.]

VWD was referring to the lock cylinders in the door handles which with central locking many are never ever used.

 

I have not experienced it but could see a scenario when the physical door lock you speak off becomes stiff or sticky so that the motor will not release it but using the door handle would, same deal for a motor failure or flat battery.

 

If the key has never been used and/or the lock cylinder never lubricated then the day its needed it will no serve you.