OT: Which car to drive on the coldest day of the year?
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gadgetgirlIL
Posts: 1,381 Member
My vehicles are kept in a garage. But they are outside when I'm at work. Tomorrow the temperature is predicted to be -20 (before considering windchill) when I have to go to work. The high is predicted to be -15. Whatever vehicle I take will be outdoors completely unprotected from the elements from 6am to approximately 4pm.
So which vehicle would you drive?
2013 Ford C-Max Energi (a plug-in hybrid with both an electric and gas engine) - has remote start via the cloud and heated seats. ~70,000 miles
2016 Ford Escape - traditional gas engine. Bare bones trim level so no heated seats, no remote start. ~5,000 miles (yes, you read that correctly, I got it used last summer as it was turned in early from a lease).
No additional snow is expected tomorrow. The 2013 sucks on slick roads, btw.
ETA: the reason for my anxiety is that I still remember living in Des Plaines in the early 1980s and couldn't get my car to start when it was minus 25. It was parked outside because I was renting a condo at that time.
So which vehicle would you drive?
2013 Ford C-Max Energi (a plug-in hybrid with both an electric and gas engine) - has remote start via the cloud and heated seats. ~70,000 miles
2016 Ford Escape - traditional gas engine. Bare bones trim level so no heated seats, no remote start. ~5,000 miles (yes, you read that correctly, I got it used last summer as it was turned in early from a lease).
No additional snow is expected tomorrow. The 2013 sucks on slick roads, btw.
ETA: the reason for my anxiety is that I still remember living in Des Plaines in the early 1980s and couldn't get my car to start when it was minus 25. It was parked outside because I was renting a condo at that time.
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Hybrids don't like bitter cold.
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I might not go to work. What if whichever car you take doesn't start after being left in the "extreme" cold for that amount of time? Safety is job #1, right, Regina?0
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The Escape. I had a 2015, and now have a 2017. Heat up quickly, and can handle just about any road condition.0
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@minimyzeme - it it doesn’t start then DH comes and gets me. I work 2 miles from our house.
Thanks, all, I’ll keep driving the Escape. I swapped vehicles when we got snow Sunday night.0 -
Uber.
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@misterhub I just said that on another thread LOL. I love the door to door service, and no worry about it starting. Plus it'll be warm when you get in!1
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Ig you do take the 2013, be sure to start it at lunch time to warm up the engine fluids (A common problem with hybrids) You will probably have to drive it for a mile or 2 to make sure the engine gets completly warmed up.
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However you got there, Regina, I hope you're safe and warm all day long!0
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I drove the 2016. It sat outside from 6:15am (-20) until 4:00pm (-15). High temperature was minus 11 today. Car started with just a little hesitation this afternoon. I live 2 miles from work. I let it warm up about 5 minutes before I drove home. It is happy to be back in the garage now. I’m happy to be home.
We had a great turnout for our health screening (morning) and health talks (afternoon). I’m glad we were able to pull this off! The residents really appreciated all that the students did for them.
Campus is closed again tomorrow. I’m not getting up early. We won’t get to zero degrees until 7pm. But we will be in the 40s for the weekend. Heat wave!0 -
Glad it went well, @gadgetgirlIL ! Hope you can enjoy your day off from the comfort of your own home!0
