GG Allin

How do these cars do in the cold? My BMW has been giving me unrelenting problems with the cooling system. New radiator and new heater control unit in the last two weeks. And a new water pump a few months ago. Now this morning the car started over heating again. It's loosing antifreeze from somewhere. The reality of busting out the 964 to get me through the winter is upon me. It is sub zero here in the morning. No cooling system to worry about but what else might I be in for driving it in the cold?

LouZ

Near instant heat

and

Some extra HORSEPOWER!

Dr. Ferry originally designed it as an air-cooled negine specifically for the cold winters of Germany.

DAVISRILEY

I drove mine this morning, neg 4 in indiana. It was a little reluctant to shift at first, but once warmed, it's fine. Of course I lost the heater fan yesterday, but I still get a little heat. When the fan is working, great heat. It's my only car, so it gets the call in all weather. Enjoy.

dfinnegan

I'm in New York where we are in the low teens (degrees F) and I'm having no troubles; knock on wood!

Martin Arias

Well, these things were designed by Germans living in very cold weather, which is the reason, as I was told, they are oil cooled and not water cooled. Thus, it should work just fine. However, this morning it was about 9 degrees F in Philadelphia and I could not get the passenger door to shut. I had to tie it shut and let the car warm up for a while. The heat finally fixed the stuck door latch issue. I guess the door mechanism or grease froze over night in an unheated garage.

Martin
1988 930 Turbo Cabrio

GG Allin

What about heavy oil? I believe I've got 20/50 in there right now.

dfinnegan

I'm running Mobil 1 10-30

LouZ

Watch out if you are rolling on SUMMER Ultra Hi-Perf tires. I found that in cold weather, the compound would tend to loose grip (see some write-ups in Tirerack.com).

ilko

Summer tires are a definite no-no in this weather. The rubber compound feels like plasitc. Imagine driving with Playskool wheels on...

D_Schultz

Hope you've got a healthy battery or that soup might not want to crank to happily on startup. I'm running Mobil 1 0W-40 and it was a big sluggish this morning after sitting on the driveway all weekend.

Boeing 717

I was in canton akron this morning it was -18c........... Global warming my ***!!!!

JERRY

amfp

Having a BMW with over 180K miles, you surely know how to keep them running. I seem to recall that dino 20W gets too thick at about -20F. Of course should be lighter weight in winter if driving regularly.

As mentioned, I would be more concerned about having proper tires and pressure to drive with street tires in sub freezing weather.

DWS964

Ditto on the "It's my only car," I am soooo impressed with this car - cold weather , snow, ... My main problem is - I just cleaned up the car on Friday (it was encrusted in salt), did not drive it today (because I had a case of Blue Flu and worked from home), and it is going to snow 3-6" tomorrow PM. I could drive the beater Previa van to work, but it is not as capable nor safe as the C4. But after a few miles the car will be encrusted in salt again.
+1 on the selection of oil - I put in Mobil-1 0w40 late in the fall, and it made starting easier. Glad I had it in there for the current temperatures in single degree F's

Have fun, be safe

KirkF

I have been running mine in -30 to -40 weather the last couple of weeks. I get an intermittent fault on the AWD system but thats about it.

Porsche door handles tend to stick when pulled in cold weather because they use a cable pull system instead of a rod pull system like north american cars. Condensation in the cables will freeze and bind the cable in its jacket. When the car warms up it will release. The solution is to put some WD40 or other lubricant down the cables once a year to drive out the moisture.

A similar problem can occur with the long, unheated throttle cable. It will tend to want to stick a bit whenever you floor it.

Thye lack of a block heater means you will want to run a 0 or 5 weight oil, such as 0w40, or 5w50 and have a strong battery.

Be careful with washing you car in the extreme cold. The rear spoiler has a tendency to freeze and get stuck in either the up or down position.

The fact is the cars were built for a warm climate (germany), so the engineers didnt think about alot of the stuff that would happen in the cold.

This year I didnt even bother putting my snow tires on, and I have been pleasently surprised by how well the Michelin Pilot All Seasons work in the snow. Plenty of traction.

Kirk

GG Allin

I'd like to think it just getting broken in.


The oil and/or battery may be an issue. I've had the charger on the (964) battery for about two hours now, it does not want to turn over.