Cold weather starts

[gtchamp7]

Hello. I have a '97 Camry with the 5SFE and I live in Kentucky, so the weather is already starting to drop. I was wondering, what are some things I can do to help ease the wear & tear on the engine caused by cold weather starts?

I'll be keeping the car in the garage as much as possible, but times where it is sitting out in the elements is unavoidable. Even when it is ~50 degrees out, I can already feel it starting up rough. I want to keep this engine in tip-top shape and winter sure doesn't

I have seen (Heet I believe is the brand) gas-line anti-freeze additive that also removes water from the gasoline. Is this at-all helpful, or it a waste of my money?

tl;dr: What are somethings I can do to make the cold-weather starts less painful?

Thank you very much in advance for any help!

[BMR]

The Heet won't help with cold starts unless the gas tank has water in it. Being in KY, I'd say don't worry about it. How cold does it get?... 30 degrees F?

If you have access to a 110 Volt outlet, you could install a block heater, and keep it plugged in. That'll help. But again, I wouldn't bother with that unless it gets below zero.

[kingnba6]

winters can get bad in NY at times. in my cars i always make sure after i turn the car on i put the heat/ac setting on the cold so that way the unit is not taking hot air away from the engine.

as far as i know for starting it, i just start it lol

[carsrus]

These engines (upper end in particular) can take ALOT of abuse. I woudlent worry about it especially in Kentucky. Maybe run 5w30 but thats all you need do.

The roughness is normal, new cars do it and so do old beasts. Its a combo of stiffer rubber components and unexpanded materials.

[gtchamp7]

Thanks for the responses everyone! If nothing else, its eased my mind

That 5SFE is a great engine (and the Camry is a fantastic car all together) and I want to do everything I can to keep it in great shape.

Originally Posted by BMR

The Heet won't help with cold starts unless the gas tank has water in it. Being in KY, I'd say don't worry about it. How cold does it get?... 30 degrees F?

If you have access to a 110 Volt outlet, you could install a block heater, and keep it plugged in. That'll help. But again, I wouldn't bother with that unless it gets below zero.

You'd be suprised at how cold it can get here in KY, but I don't think cold enough to justify the engine block heater. However, could the Heet be beneficial none-the-less? I mean, I'm not buying shitty gas that would have loads of water in it, but doesn't all gas have at least some water in it?

winters can get bad in NY at times. in my cars i always make sure after i turn the car on i put the heat/ac setting on the cold so that way the unit is not taking hot air away from the engine.

as far as i know for starting it, i just start it lol

Your idea about the A/C on cold (or just not on at all) is actually pretty good and something that never crossed my mind. I'll give it a try. It'll be extra cold in there, but I'll make that sacrifice for the sake of my good ol' Camry

[ghettosled]

man, up in cleveland ohio i turn on the car in near zero temperatures with it sitting on the driveway and immediately turn on the heat. i dont think that causes a harder start in any way. heck, if i remember to set the fan and temperature controls ahead of time, i will use my remote start to get things warming a couple minutes before i get out there.

i have a 1996 with 198k miles.

[fenixus]

I keep both cars in open parking lots all year round and that includes NJ winter that sometimes get as low here as -15F (while in Summer we can get 100F+ LOL!).
in Winter I also start the heating on at full blast immediately, especially in V6 (leather seats), don't want to freeze my ass off by caring about engine's warm up time more than my body temperature LOL!

just use 5W-30 (HM formula if you like), clean the Throttle Body and spray some cleaner into IAC opening for starters and go from there.

How to: Cleaning Throttle Body -4 Cylinder Engines- With Pictures

other than that you could dump a bottle of excellent Chevron Techron concentrated fuel system cleaner into the tank or do a minor tune up (new spark plugs, new spark plug wireset, new fuel filter, new air filter, new drive belts), but I doubt it's the case.

most likely your IAC valve is getting dirty or your Coolant Temp sensor is misreporting temps to the computer at cold starts.

[kingnba6]

well when i was talking about the heat, i was saying once you start up the car and put it to the cold setting the engine will warm up faster. but to each their own. i only do this when i start the car from it sitting out overnight.

[anti-seize]

Originally Posted by gtchamp7

I have seen (Heet I believe is the brand) gas-line anti-freeze additive that also removes water from the gasoline. Is this at-all helpful, or it a waste of my money?

I would argue that the gas line antifreeze is now a total waste of money except in certain circumstances. The reason? We've got this crappy 10% ethanol gasoline coast to coast.

(rant skipped, let's just say I don't feel green when we starve 3rd worlders by turning food into fuel at a net energy loss)

[anti-seize]

if it won't start down to 32 degrees by just turning the key, something is wrong.

[gtchamp7]

Originally Posted by anti-seize

if it won't start down to 32 degrees by just turning the key, something is wrong.

Trust me, it'll start . This engine is strong enough to where it will start no matter how cold it is. That is the thing though: I intend on keeping this car until it breaks so bad that repairing it would be unfeasible. And cold starts are will bring that day upon faster than if it starts up at least semi-warm.

[pmesfun]

Yeah, I don't turn on the heat until the temperature at least 1/4 between C and H since the air is freezing cold anyway.