Is anyone still driving their S? After work this evening, the car barely started. Heard the engine crank over, then a POP! I had the heater/fan on a setting of two + the radio, when trying to start the car. Turned them off, then second try was okay, but slow to start. JEEZ, it's only 20 degrees F. What happens when it's even colder?

Is this common?

 

I don't know if this helps, but I tried starting my car up in November or December in cold weather and it took a few seconds longer than it normally did to turn over. I don't drive it much so the engine wasn't at all warm.

 

Common to the S, yes! Common to all cars, YES!

Is your S your daily drive? If so, are you putting the same amount of miles on it now a day as you do when it's warmer? Probably not.

As for all cars, including the S,the battery must charge. Charging occurs while driving your car. You MUST drive at least 30 minutes 2-3 times a day to keep the battery fully charged. The colder it is while the battery is idle, the faster it looses it's charge. This week alone we had 3-4 days in the thirties, where at night it got below 10. My daily driver during this time of year is NOT the S. I put at least 80/day on it, and it has it's hard time starting, but it starts. So...if your S sits more than usual and its cold, Yep... this is normal.

Word of caution for all!. If your S sits, don't start it just to start it. It's the worst thing you can do. Prep it for winter and leave it alone. Here is a Snippet I sent to one of our other members:

[QUOTE]An old wives-tales always said that starting your car and get the fluids moving is a 'maintenance must'. However, this is very far from the truth. The most wear on any engine is caused by starting it, especially after it sat for a few days. The oil has all drained into the pan and your other fluids have found their way into their respective resovoirs. Your engine has to work 10 times as hard to get those fluids back to their needed areas which usually takes 5 minutes or until your car engine temp reaches 3 bars. Then you just shut it down, let it sit for a couple of days, and then put it back through that rough start again. NOT A GOOD IDEA!

Ever been at a truck stop or loading dock (even when it's warm) and ask yourself why truckers leave their engines running while they have their lunch, unload, load

 

Mine starts fine, in the nice warm garage. I've been lucky enough to get to drive it every week or two. I need new tires. The rears are about gone and in this cold weather, it has traction problems.

Mike, what's the number for that wheel and tire place again?

 

[QUOTE=S2K_Shawn,Jan 21 2005, 10:43 PM] Mine starts fine, in the nice warm garage.

 

I am a great believer in synthetic oils and in using 0w-20( and now that I have a engine that calls for 30 viscosity oil)and 0w-30 in the winter. Our Accord 4 cyl sits out a lot when my wife is @ work and it cranks like it is 70 Deg. when she leaves @11:30 pm ,it is using Mobil 1 0w-20.
Anyone who is interested in learning more about oils or is just suffering from cabin fever should check out this site Oil Site .
There is a wealth of knowledge here and the forums are well moderated.

 

[QUOTE=Hondassport,Jan 22 2005, 09:53 AM]Anyone who is interested in learning more about oils or is just suffering from cabin fever should check out this site