How to Help a Vehicle Start in the Cold

Cold weather makes the engine hard to start for two main reasons. First, oil thickens when it's cold, which increases friction and makes it harder for the starter motor to spin the engine. A decrease in temperature also slows down the chemical reaction in your car's battery, giving it a slower start. When the weather gets bitter cold, you can still get your car started and ready for the road. You can make your car safer to drive and protect it from cold weather damage.

Things You'll Need

• Engine quick start
• Jumper cables or automatic battery charger

Instructions

1. Pour liquid quick start into your engine's air intake.

2. Turn your ignition on several times.

3. Press the gas pedal two times while turning the ignition with your car in park. The added injected fuel may give your car the boost it needs to start up. Pressing the gas pedal more than this can flood your engine.

4. Jump-start your battery. This can be done with an automatic battery starter or jumper cables if you have a friend nearby whose car is working.

5. Connect your jumper cables to a car that is running on one end and to your dead battery on the other. Turn on your ignition and wait for the second car's battery's power to arrive to yours. Once your car has started leave it running for at least 10 minutes to sufficiently revive your battery.

Tips & Warnings

• Keep an eye on the weather. If it looks like its going to be a cold night and you can't bring your car indoors, consider keeping your battery warm by removing it from your car at least storing it inside until morning. Use a battery blanket to keep you car battery warm when the weather gets cold. A warm battery naturally has more juice in it than a cold one, and will improve your chances of getting your car started when it is cold outside.

• If your gas line freezes your car will not be able to start up until it thaws out. Avoid this from happening by adding gas line antifreeze before filling up at the gas station. Also known as dry gas, this chemical also helps your car to run more efficiently while using less fuel.

References

• WikiHow - How to start a car in freezing weather

Resources

• Liquid Quick Start