I just bought my TL about a month ago "04 65k A/T", it was purchased in FL and since then I had to move up to ND. I was just wondering is there any thing you guys would recommend I should do to my car so it will last during the winter.

 

For the finish of the car, a good wax and protectant is a good idea.

Congrats on your purchase and welcome to the neighborhood.

 

Will deff look into that. Unfortunately it's already started snowing and there ice that's built up on my hood . As far as fluids go should I do anything?

 

I'd highly recommend an engine block heater if you don't already have one ordered. Keeping the oil warm will greatly reduce start-up engine wear.

 

Everyone has recommended that to. Whenever it decides to stop snowing I'll be able to go somewhere and look into that.

 

I don't think you need a block heater, those are meant for people WAY up north like Yellowknife. When you start your engine on a cold morning, don't let it idle too long. Start driving almost immediately BUT don't drive hard (keep it under 2000 rpm) until the temp gauge is in the normal range.

Also it might be worth it to invest in some winter tires especially if you run summers.

 

I was always told it was best to let it warm up for a good 15 secs before putting it in gear. That is what I have done with all my cars whether it is cold or hot out. I just put a coat of wax on today in preparation for the winter. I keep the snow from building up in the tire wells too, because the snow off the road is full of salt.

 

Yes 15 secs is good, but it's best to not let it idle for like 5 minutes if it's very cold.

 

y is it bad to idle it more than that? I just bought the viper smart start, and was going to keep my climate control on so i get to crawl into a warm car after work :P

 

^I agree. Why is it bad to let it idle? On cold mornings I usually go down to the garage and start my car, turn the heat and seat heat on, then go back inside and pour my coffee.

 

The engine block heater is a good idea because it also makes it easier on the starter and the battery when cranking in very cold weather. It is cheap insurance that would be well worth the money spent given where you live.

 

yeah if someone could clarify this i'd appreciate it. it's starting to get cold up here in baltimore now, i go outside and start er up, smoke a fatty, let it idle for a few mins til the temp guage is good, and then go to work. i've always done this and it's what i've always been told to do.

i do like the engine block heater idea, i'll have to look into that.

 

Well its really cold up here we were in the negatives last night. But why isn't it good to let the car warm up a little?

 

Babnik may have some merit to his statement. I've heard this statement before on occasions that it is best to be a minimalist with idling after a cold-weather start. Idling has evidently been proven to be a very inefficient method of "warming up" the engine. This is due in large part to the poor circulation of cold engine oil around the crankshaft, pistons, connecting rods and other components and assemblies. What is accepted is no more than 30-60 seconds of idling. In fact most recommend just let the car idle for 30 secs then drive right away. This has proven to be a much better method of warming up your engine vs. the slow, inefficient process of idling. There are folks that have weighed in and conclude most modern cars do not need more than 30 secs of idle, irrespective of motor oil being used. I'm not so comfortable with that. I'm quite confident the full-syn 5w-20 oil I use is more than competent for the task, however, I personally I let her idle 60 secs and no more and off I go.

On the matter of engine heater. If you live in an area where it consistently dips below 32 degrees F during the winter, an engine heater may prove to be a valuable investment in mitigating excess engine wear associated with cold weather ops.

 

^pffff...listen to this guy, jeez...

jk, that actually makes sense the way you put it. nice explanation man.

 

They don't use salt on the roads up here.

well here in Minot its cold 9 months out of the year...lol...

 

Oil pressure and flow is nearly instant no matter what temperature it is as long as you have the correct oil for the temp range. This is one case where a good 0w-20 or 0w-30 would be a good choice.

Extended warmup won't hurt a thing. You have full flow and pressure in no longer than 1 second of startup at idle.

When cold, clearances are looser and the oil additives are not as effective. Most wear occurs during the warm-up cycle but not during a cold start as it was once believed. It's good to get the engine up to temp as quickly as possible but at the same time you don't want to place it under too much load or too many rpms too soon and cause the filter to go into bypass.

Running a 0w-20 oil will lessen the chances of the pump or filter going into bypass and letting unfiltered oil through the engine. I personally don't care for 0w-20 oils for normal climates but they have their place in extremely cold climates.

I let it idle for 1 minute to get some heat in the pistons and rings regardless of ambient. This is the most crucial part of the engine to get warmed up because piston to cylinder clearance changes the most from cold to hot. Get a little heat in the pistons and then drive easy. You do not want to put load on the engine until there's some heat in there.

I warm it up for a minute and then drive the 2 or so miles through my neighborhood very slowly. I manually shift it so rpms never go above 1,500rpm until the temp guage hits full temp. When leaving work, I have to immediately hit the highway (when I don't ride the vanpool) so I let it idle longer before driving. Driving steady state down the freeway at 60mph and 1,800rpm is not a bad warmup for the engine. Load is very low, rpms are pretty low. It's just trying to get up to 60mph without placing too much load or rpms that's the challenge. Personally, I think an easy freeway drive is an excellent and safe way of warming the engine up as long as you can get it up to speed slowly. You're only using around 1/10th throttle to hold it at speed compared to 1/4 or more driving around town.

In short, the engine will heat up much, much quicker if you drive the car sooner which is a very good thing. You just have to balance it out between drivng "too soon" and an overly long warm up cycle.

I won't turn the heater on until the guage is in the normal range. The engine heats up much quicker without the heater running. Keep in mind the guage is buffered so even though it shows normal, the engine can still be on the cool side and oil takes a solid 20 minutes to hit full temp.

Back to the original topic, a quality synthetic engine and trans fluid (Redline racing fluid) and an oil filter with excellent flow like Royal Purple filters (not engine oil) will be all you need to do for the engine and trans.

 

Except the fact that it's a complete waste of fuel.

 

Exactly, except on those mornings you want the heater to be at full output right away. It's not that bad on the TL since it goes into closed loop operation nearly right away. You're using the same amount of fuel when cold as you would when hot just sitting at a redlight.

 

Florida to North Dakota? That is quite the move. Welcome to icy hell. That negative dip last night was nothing, it gets colder. In January getting above zero is a treat.

This is my second winter with my TL. I haven't had any issues so far except the low ground clearance causing me to get stuck twice. Get yourself a good set of snow tires too, or all seasons.

I do not have a block heater and never had any issues starting the car down to -25 degrees. I don't have a remote start either. It doesn't take long to get it warmed up once you get rolling, imo of course.

 

Hey guys i got an 08 type-s i live up in calgary AB canada it gets super cold down here, do you guys recommend getting a block heater? also anyone know how much it would cost?

 

I live in New Hampshire. I find that the engine warms up A LOT faster if you just let it sit for a minute or so. Enough time for me to adjust my climate controls and turn my iPod on and buckle my seat belt and off I go. On another note, I find that the TL warms up much faster than my RSX did. Maybe because its a 6 cylinder maybe.

 

The TL warms up exceptionally quick. Many old iron block engines took 10 minutes or more to warm up. On a 50 degree morning if I drive right away, the guage starts registering about 30 seconds into the drive and the guage is in the normal area in just over a minute.

 

Keep in mind that the temperature gauge on the TL just measures the coolant temp, and just because the coolant is warm doesn't mean that the whole engine is fully warmed up. But yeah it does warm up much quicker than other cars, my Neon took way longer. I guess they intentionally designed it to warm up as quickly as possible to reduce wear.

 

Ha ha well I had no choice im in the Air Force. I'm stationed at Minot. Well that's good to kno that I don't have to get a block heater. I know I have to get my battery checked cuz when my car got up here it was dead and since then in the mornings its kindve hard to start but when it was FL it started fine everytime. I also have that powersteering problem which started making all that ruckus when it got up here to. But I'm gonna try to change that o-ring before taking it to a shop to see if that cures it. Have you had to change any of the fluids?

 

Well I also have to get that plastic piece that's around the license plate with the reverse lights, someone slide into my car today in the parking lot. Luckily he said he'll pay for it. How much do those usually run for?

 

i would pick up some winter tires(blizzaks) were my favorite, or maybe even a beater car could be an option. Once it gets colder and snow fall gets heavier you will love any of your buddies that has a garage to let the snow melt.

Oh yea find yourself a good snow scraper lol

 

My brother goes to school in Grand Forks and he has always wanted a block heater or a remote start, i live in WI and cant stand the frozen hell! Good luck up there, I know i would look for a place with underground heated parking.

 

A possibly cheaper alternative to the engine block heater is an oil pan heater. Not sure if the TL has a good area on the pan to stick it to or not.

Block heater usually takes the place of a freeze plug into the water jackets. They can be somewhat difficult to install. The pan heater sticks on to the oil pan and warms the oil. You won't have instant heater heat from it but it helps a lot with the typical cold start issues.

I didn't realize it was that cold in that area. Definately do a 0w-20 oil.

 

tIHC covered most of it, but I really doubt an extended idle warm-up is "bad" for the car. I'm not going to pull a number out of my ass, I'd be willing to bet the vast majority of cold weather dwellers start their car for a few minutes before they leave

 

I am not sure what you mean by changed the fluids? Change to something else then factory recommended? I use 5w-20 motor oil, i haven't touched the power steering fluids. I use Redline D4 in the tranny, they are some threads discussing the Redline D4 and Racing tranny fluids. I check the coolant every year with a gauge that tells you what temp it'll freeze at, i forget the name of it. That would be my only worry if i was you, the coolant.

Ya i think i need to check my battery out too, last winter it was fine, but so far this year i can tell the battery isn't spinning the motor as fast in the morning.

 

Yea that's what I meant, using something other then factory recommended but I'll look into the transmission fluid. As of right now the fluid that is in there is working I'm not sure what it is. It could be Acura or Honda oil since I bought the car from an Acura dealership. As for snow tires some of the guys recommend I just get ones for the front, is that good or bad? Also how can I tell if they are all-season?

 

Haha I'm in Calgary too. This morning it was a brisk -30°C (-22°F), you should probably get a block heater or start up your car every couple hours to keep things warm (if you park outside).

Try talking to silverhill acura about the block heater?

Join the Calgary thread if you're not already on there: https://acurazine.com/forums/western-canada-324/calgary-aziners-755404/

 

I highly recommend Redline "racing" and Redline "lightweight racing" fluids for the trans. It will drastically reduce clutch wear and greatly extend trans life. Stock Honda fluid (Z1) is 7cSt (the viscosity). Redline racing is 10cSt and Redline lightweight is around 4cSt. In your climate when you do the drain and refills, I recommend 2 quarts of the lightweight fluid to 1 quart of the racing fluid. This will put you slightly thinner than factory fluid which will significanly improve cold transmission performance.

 

Damn didnt kno about that thnx

 

I am amazed at the amount of BS that this thread has generated.
Bud read the Manual, it's all in there

 

I wouldn't worry about a block heater tho. I was stationed there for 4 yrs and i didnt have a prob with it. I even left my car out in the elements for 4 or 5 days at a time while i was in the missile field. If you do want to check on a block heater, just go to the honda dealership downtown Minot. It does get very cold there tho!! I worred more about my doors being frozen shut, which happened at least 2 or 3 times a year!

 

Yeah, I've been up here 5 years without a block heater and have had no problems at all. I do have a heated garage, but my TL has cold soaked plenty of times out doors and never had trouble starting.

1. I run M1 5-20 syn (not EP) oil. Engine has always cranked without bogging, even on the coldest days after cold soaking outside for 10 hours.

2. Make sure you have 100% Honda Type 2 coolant (good to -24F, I think) or get it checked for freezing point.

3. Last year, I finally got around to installing a remote start/alarm (Clifford Matrix 5.7X). The remote start is a very nice option to have up here. A remote start (minus the alarm) can be installed for about $150 up here.

4. If your battery is original, I'd replace it. The Everstart batteries at WalMart got great reviews on consumerreports.org. I have the "fair" rated DieHard Gold but it has been rock solid for the last 3 years:



5. If you want to go through the hassle of swapping tires for winter, dedicated winter/snow tires can't be beat. However, I highly recommend the Continental Extreme Contact DWS tires. They are great in the snow and can be used year round up here. You can get them through the local SEARS store with a military discount. They may be on back order right now. There is a thread on these tires in the tires section:

https://acurazine.com/forums/3g-tl-tires-wheels-suspension-97/new-continental-extreme-contact-dws-mich-pilot-s-plus-745576/

6. The service department at Fisher Honda is pretty good.

7. If you bring in your own oil and filter, TiresPlus on 20th Ave SW will do the change for $15. Hard to beat...

 

Since the TL uses a closed loop operation, does that explain why it idles higher at start up? Especially when it is really cold outside.

 

That's for several reasons. Quicker warmup of the engine, quicker warmup of emissions controls (cats and 02s), eliminate any cold drivability issues, ensure oil pressure is nearly instant.

This is going way off topic but I've always suspected a high idle for piston/cylinder lube. Since most cars have the cylinders lubed by oil flung off the crank from the rod bearings, I would think a slightly higher idle would help the thick cold oil escape the rod bearings and fling onto the cylinders. This is just pure speculation on my part.