any tips for winter driving

[sssstew]

With regards to slow warm up, yes the TDIs are horrendous. I usually start mine up, bung on all the lights, rear heater, heated mirrors, fan on full (in defrost setting) to give the engine a tiny bit more load, then get out and freeze my nackers off clearing everything with a scraper... it's not warm when I get back in but the full blast from the fans on the windscreen usually starts to have a small effect.

bye bye fuel economy

 

[slimjim]

bye bye fuel economy

Hello warm feet

 

[Bunglebonce]

I'm quite sure the newer vag diesel lumps by-pass the heater matrix / aircon if there is no load put on the engine to enable them (the engines) to warm up with the little heat these thermally efficient engines produce.

I could be wrong but I think that if you left our car running at tickover all day on the drive, it would not warm up the matrix more than a whisker.

The best thing to do is get in, put a fleece on and drive it hitting 2.5k through all (or as many as possible) gears until the water temp gets to the one quater position, then you can rev it as much as you like.


If you're sitting in trafic freezing your t1ts off, rev and hold it at 2k in between moves, for short periods.

Dont set the heater to manual - I'm sure it will make little diference anyway as the bypass thing will limit the heat to the heater until sufficient is built up in the engine.

Put it on say 25c on auto without aircon and try and keep hitting 2.5k

 

[NiSk]

Over here in the far north (Sweden) cold frosty mornings are part of life. So are the solutions: - most people fit their cars with a combination of electrical block heater combined with a blower fan in the passenger footwell. You connect it to a time switch so that it turns on about 1-3 hours before you need it. You go out to a cosy warm car with the engine coolant already up to about 60 deg. C. The car starts faster, the heater works almost instantly and the wear on the engine is reduced significantly.

If you don't have access to electricity, there are a number of fuel-powered on-board heaters made by the likes of Webasto and Ebersprächer - a lot more expensive, but standard fitting on the more expensive Audi diesels.

If you think a warm cosy car with a pre-heated engine is worth the cost, it isn't that difficult to find a supplier.

//NiSk

 

[Clark10]

Agreed it takes a while to get heat into the cabin but at least it doesn't have an alloy gear knob like my old 206GTI. I could shift quicker than a DSG box when it was cold!

I hated the alloy gear knob it my old 206 on cold mornings, I used to have to hold my coat over my hand when changing gear, it was bloody freezing.

 

[muddyboots]

Over here in the far north (Sweden) cold frosty mornings are part of life. So are the solutions: - most people fit their cars with a combination of electrical block heater combined with a blower fan in the passenger footwell. You connect it to a time switch so that it turns on about 1-3 hours before you need it. You go out to a cosy warm car with the engine coolant already up to about 60 deg. C. The car starts faster, the heater works almost instantly and the wear on the engine is reduced significantly.

If you don't have access to electricity, there are a number of fuel-powered on-board heaters made by the likes of Webasto and Ebersprächer - a lot more expensive, but standard fitting on the more expensive Audi diesels.

If you think a warm cosy car with a pre-heated engine is worth the cost, it isn't that difficult to find a supplier.

//NiSk

Whereabouts in Sweden are you from NiSk ?

 

[NiSk]

Currently living in the far south of the far north - if you get my meaning. Around the same latitude as Copenhagen. But I previously lived just outside the Stockholm area - another 600 Km north of here.

//NiSk

 

[sssstew]

yes, kenlowe do a range of pre heaters in the UK.

 

[cstevens]

All good advice, I thought my heater was crap, now I know better.

I am one of the lucky ones who garages our cars every night. I have a quick question. The last two cold mornings when starting and before reversing out the garage the engine seems a bit "choppy" almost like its going to stall but only slightly and it doesnt.

Soon as I reverse its fine. Is this normal, couple of diesel drivers at work say theirs are the same.

 

[muddyboots]

On frosty starts mine can splutter slightly & feel really lumpy for a few seconds after startup...

 

[cstevens]

On frosty starts mine can splutter slightly & feel really lumpy for a few seconds after startup...

Excellent, another question answered - oh how I love my new car.

 

[muddyboots]

Only when sub-zero mind

 

[Bunglebonce]

All good advice, I thought my heater was crap, now I know better.

I am one of the lucky ones who garages our cars every night. I have a quick question. The last two cold mornings when starting and before reversing out the garage the engine seems a bit "choppy" almost like its going to stall but only slightly and it doesnt.

Soon as I reverse its fine. Is this normal, couple of diesel drivers at work say theirs are the same.

All diesels - even the lastest engines, run lke shite to a degree when cold, you just get used to it and the colder the weather, the rougher they sound

 

[Kam]

Mine sounded like a tractor spluttering to life this morning at -2c

 

[devonmikeyboy]

A quick tip for winter driving is DONT ROLL YOUR CAR unless you want it to look like mine now does.

 

[cstevens]

Oh my god! What the hell happened there?

 

[NiSk]

Err . . . I hope you are in better condition than the car . . .


Guess your list of things to do now starts with "new bodyshell" . . .

Ouch ouch ouch, thats got to hurt!

//NiSk

 

[muddyboots]

Oh no!

You OK mate ?

Gutted about the car, any idea what's happening with regards to insurance ? Written off do you reckon ?

 

[devonmikeyboy]

Basically all my driving is along country roads ( never salted or cleaned ) and i start work at 5.30am.While going down a hill felt the front end lose all traction, the car started to slide sideways down the hill caught a hedge and flipped over. .I am ok but the car i hope will get reshelled if not and it is written off then i want to buy it back so that i can rob the uprated parts offf and put on another pd cupra plus i would have a spare engine and gearbox incase i blow mine up..Only thing is i know insurance companies are starting to not sell write offs back to there oners so i dont know if i would get another pd cupra or there is a bloke near me selling a 400bhp Evo 8 at a good price that would be fun to drive but it is the running costs that scare me.

 

[Triple D]

Ah mate you must be realy gutted and off with that. Luckily we haven't had any snow up here so my bike is still tucked away as i dont trust myself in the snow.
Glad to here that your ok but the car looks fooking bad , i know this is a bit selfish of me but if worse does come to the worst then give me a shout about any parts that you take off and i might take them off your hands, bit more cash towards that evo 8 fq400 for you.