cold weather: is this normal?

[Captainstr8edge]

So lately it has been very cold, (low teens, and colder) when I first get in the car, I let it warm up and start driving. everything is good, but it almost feels as if there is slight brake pressure. when I'm facing up or down a slight hill I don't roll when in nuetral. I also noticed it goes away after driving for about 15 minutes or so. Is this normal or should I have it looked at? Car is an 07 GT manual with about 33,000 on the clock.

also, sorry if this isn't tech.

 

[VTXFrank]

Not tech, but a good topic.

This is why you should never, EVER, do full throttle runs in weather like that. At least not until all the gearboxes have a chance to warm up. This is completely normal. The viscosity of the oil in the trans and rear end is so thick, and when you warm up your car, the engine oil is the ONLY oil that is warm, you still need to go very easy on her until you've got at least ten miles of continuous driving above about 45 MPH to get the trans a rear diff warmed up as well. This is especially crucial for those people with Automatic transmissions.

Nice, easy accelerations and limiting your speed to around 50 until the oil gets warmed up is what my father, a 30 year mechanic with over 20 of that for GM and six of that in the Navy motor pool as a mechanic, always told me. The most easy way to remember it? If it's in the teens or below, give your car 10-15 solid minutes of steady driving to allow everything to get up to temperature. You'd think it would warm up really fast, but it doesn't when the temps are that cold outside and you're doing 40-50mph, streaming that cold ass air over those components. This is also why you see big rigs with covers over their radiators. If they didn't put those covers on, their diesels wouldn't stay in the optimum operating temperature range while going down the road at 60-70mph.

It would be interesting to see how quickly today's cars warm up the transmissions. Cars sold in the North should come with transmission oil temp gauges standard. But if someone who lives in really cold areas had a temp gauge for their transmission, it would be interesting to see how long it takes a modern day transmission to warm up to full operating temperature.

 

[droptop07]

Good info VTXFrank....

 

[VTXFrank]

Good info VTXFrank....

Yeah man. You should see us in the Army with our Blackhawk helicopters. Five of seven gearboxes and both engines have temperature read outs. You can't even advance the throttles until everything is up to operating temps. In the summer, this would happen by the time you finished your pre-flight checklist. In the winter in really cold conditions, think Korea in the winter at -10 or Fort Drum, NY at -40, and you'd end up sitting there for a long ass time waiting. And me, the crew chief, has to stand outside with a fire extinguisher the whole friggin time until ready to go just in case a fuel line breaks due to how cold it is. Froze my nads so badly the Flight Doc thought I didn't have any.

I just told him they needed to get to operating temp, then they would fall back into the normal operating position......

 

[stkjock]

are you having any issue engaging or dis-engaging the E-brake?

there is a known freezing issue with them

 

[Captainstr8edge]

Not tech, but a good topic.

This is why you should never, EVER, do full throttle runs in weather like that. At least not until all the gearboxes have a chance to warm up. This is completely normal. The viscosity of the oil in the trans and rear end is so thick, and when you warm up your car, the engine oil is the ONLY oil that is warm, you still need to go very easy on her until you've got at least ten miles of continuous driving above about 45 MPH to get the trans a rear diff warmed up as well. This is especially crucial for those people with Automatic transmissions.

Nice, easy accelerations and limiting your speed to around 50 until the oil gets warmed up is what my father, a 30 year mechanic with over 20 of that for GM and six of that in the Navy motor pool as a mechanic, always told me. The most easy way to remember it? If it's in the teens or below, give your car 10-15 solid minutes of steady driving to allow everything to get up to temperature. You'd think it would warm up really fast, but it doesn't when the temps are that cold outside and you're doing 40-50mph, streaming that cold ass air over those components. This is also why you see big rigs with covers over their radiators. If they didn't put those covers on, their diesels wouldn't stay in the optimum operating temperature range while going down the road at 60-70mph.

It would be interesting to see how quickly today's cars warm up the transmissions. Cars sold in the North should come with transmission oil temp gauges standard. But if someone who lives in really cold areas had a temp gauge for their transmission, it would be interesting to see how long it takes a modern day transmission to warm up to full operating temperature.

thanks!

1. this is exactly what I thought it would be, just wanted to be sure

2. my work truck (2002 GMC 2500) has a trans temp guage. never paid attention to it. the next cold morning I will let you know how long it takes to get warmed up!

 

[Captainstr8edge]

are you having any issue engaging or dis-engaging the E-brake?

there is a known freezing issue with them

nope, no issues with that.

 

[Bart_man]

Froze my nads so badly the Flight Doc thought I didn't have any.

I just told him they needed to get to operating temp, then they would fall back into the normal operating position......

Hoo Rah!!

on a similar note I think my E-brake was dragging again this morning even though I've had the Cables replaced at the dealer Ref the TSB on the e-brake cables freezing.
so much for the fix...Guess I'M just parking with it in gear all winter.

 

[05xgt]

True statement bout warm up. That's one reason OTR truckers don't shut their rigs down in freezing and sub zero weather. Even at that the gear boxes still need to be shifted gradually until fully warmed up or gear splitters will grind, breaks will freeze, all kinds of shyte don't operate smoothly.

 

[deputyperk]

noticed this myself, 08 with under 30k

i chaulked it up to trans oil not warmed up, i notced it more notchy when cold

 

[killr3v]

This is really good info. I had never thought of the tranny and diff having to warm up.

 

[05slvrgt]

are you having any issue engaging or dis-engaging the E-brake?

there is a known freezing issue with them

Would you care to elaborate about this issue with the e-brake ? Because it has been so cold here lately, my e-brake handle has been feeling really loose, and I've been curious as to what as caused this.

Good info too, VTXFrank, I didn't know that about the transmission and diff fluids.

 

[Vapour Trails]

I guess I take this stuff for granted, but cold weather effects everything in the car. The power locks and windows barely work, the engine won't rev, the tranmission won't shift and engine runs extremely rich.

Yesterday morning when I left for work it was -24F (-31C). A block heater really helps at getting the car going faster. I don't think they are standard equipment on any american cars. Here they are like life blood, the difference between driving and being stranded.

 

[Ken04]

Would you care to elaborate about this issue with the e-brake ? Because it has been so cold here lately, my e-brake handle has been feeling really loose, and I've been curious as to what as caused this.

Good info too, VTXFrank, I didn't know that about the transmission and diff fluids.

this is your problem, common in S197's. After you drive it the pads warm up thawing the frozen e-brake cable. The rubber grommet is junk. Once it falls apart water gets in and freezes. You'll need to replace, or have someone replaced the 2 e-brake cables that feed into the rear calipers.

The dragging feeling is exactly that, the brakes dragging. When the handle feels loose it's because it's not disengaging. If you can park it without the e-brake you'll know if it is the cables. My guess is it is.

 

[Ken04]

thanks!

1. this is exactly what I thought it would be, just wanted to be sure

2. my work truck (2002 GMC 2500) has a trans temp guage. never paid attention to it. the next cold morning I will let you know how long it takes to get warmed up!

trans fluid in the TR3650 is ATF, not too thick. Rear end gear oil is thicker.

 

[Bart_man]

Would you care to elaborate about this issue with the e-brake ? Because it has been so cold here lately, my e-brake handle has been feeling really loose, and I've been curious as to what as caused this.

http://www.s197forum.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=504&d=1177887763

 

[RRRoamer]

Yesterday morning when I left for work it was -24F (-31C).

That makes my bones ache just reading that number! It's been 20 years sense I had to deal with temps that cold (Thule, Greenland and temps in the -40 to -50F range)

 

[VTXFrank]

I guess I take this stuff for granted, but cold weather effects everything in the car. The power locks and windows barely work, the engine won't rev, the tranmission won't shift and engine runs extremely rich.

Yesterday morning when I left for work it was -24F (-31C). A block heater really helps at getting the car going faster. I don't think they are standard equipment on any American cars. Here they are like life blood, the difference between driving and being stranded.

Fixed our country's spelling.

Down here it's optional equipment. It only runs like $50-$75 to check the box when ordering your car. I know about the block heaters man! Over in Korea, I HAD to have one in my car. Where I sat in my apartment near Camp Humphrey's was on a hill with constant wind. When it was 0°F, my car wouldn't even turn over. Installed a block and battery warmer and never had another issue. If I were you, I'd install a battery warmer as well unless you have one of those super special deep freeze models.

I bet your tranny shifts like it has peanut butter for lube at first. I'm also quite sure my info was nothing new for you being up there. You really gotta take it easy at those temps till everything gets warmed up. At Fort Drum, I literally shattered my rear U-Joint on my truck by taking off too quick. I'd much rather deal with a hot climate and machines rather than a cold climate. Cold Climate operations are tough as hell on cars and typically, they don't last as long up there unless you have enough common sense to take care of them like you are.

 

[Gray Ghost GT]

...In the winter in really cold conditions, think Korea in the winter at -10 or Fort Drum, NY at -40, and you'd end up sitting there for a long ass time waiting.... Froze my nads so badly the Flight Doc thought I didn't have any......

Reminds me of my time stationed at Fort Drum, NY back in the late '80s training in those extreme cold conditions with the Infantry followed by a year in Korea on the DMZ.

 

[Anthony05GT]

I used to do electric forklift service calls in an ice cream factory and it was 40 below. If someone accidentally put 90 wt gear oil in the gear boxes that shit would freeze up like concrete. They would lock up completely even if they were being run hard. They needed ATF to survive the temps.