tomard

Recently moved from SE to NW and it is COLD, have 6 inches of snow on my 80 and wont have a garage for another month ......

I tried to start it the other day just to warm her up and absolutely NO WAY ..... I didn't try too hard but most people in the know around here have BLOCK HEATERS, either installed factory, in their plugs or the ones that are in the lower radiator hose and use it a few hours to warm the car before trying to use it ....

How about you C3 guys that live in the freeze???? What do you use and were ANY of the older vettes factory with heaters? What is the plug in the water pump? Maybe for a heat core of some kind?

Just wondering what direction to go if I decide to put a heater on it....

TheSkunkWorks

Tho I'm south of the M-D line, I've had an OEM freeze plug type block heater in a couple of BB duallies. Plugged them in with a ~35*F Thermocube switch (Sporty's Pilot Shop use to carry them IIRC) whenever the temp dipped to or below freezing, which made for a quick warmup and nearly instant cabin heat. Liked it so much that I am considering putting an OEM type one in the 427 BB which I'm currently in the process of building up, but looking more strongly at crankase oil pre-heaters since my shark is kept in a heated garage. That said, keep in mind the benefits of block heaters vs. oil heaters don't entirely overlap. If it's just for a month, I'd certainly weigh the work involved to install whatever type of device you consider. My $.02

Derrick Reynolds

How cold are we talkin' here?

Here in the PA/NJ area (where I have lived my whole life), temps rarely get below zero and I would guess -10 (these would be degrees F) to be about the coldest we have ever had around here. I've never had my big block out in cold like that, but my sb vette and other V8 cars never had any trouble with cold of that level, assuming I had a good strong battery that is. If you aren't talking colder than this, and can't get her to turn over, I think a new battery will probably set you right.

jdp6000

Make sure you have antifreeze in there. I know some that move from the warm to the cold forget all about that...

Bubs

Another thing to concider is your oil. Comming from the SE you were able to use heavier oil. When I lived in Colorado a young Airman from the base asked me to jump start his GTO Judge, wouldn't budge. I saw he was from Arizona, so asked him what oil he was using, 50W racing oil I told him to wait until it warmed a little and change to a lighter oil, problem solved.

...Roger...

I have a 150watt magnetic engine heater.I use it for emergency's on neighbors cars more than anything. It sticks to the bottom of the oil pan and then heats the oil which in turn heats the engine. It does a good job but is not real fast, its more of an overnight heater.
(Dipstick heaters are for dipsticks don't use one it will burn your oil.)
Clean oil definitely helps with winter starting.

edit - this is very similar to what I use.
http://www.oreillyauto.com/site/c/de...PartType=C0076

tomard

Using 30w oil..... fairly recently changed and is still clean .......Battery has been run down since I had problems starting it, and I have a hard head to boot!

It is on charger and I will keep it on trickle and on boost until I get this animal started ....

It was -10* F, yesterday, little "warmer" today, just below 0! And still have 6-8" of snow on car

If all goes well, I will try to start her up tomorrow with boosted battery, wide-open choke plate, with help of a big driver, a healthy dose of starting fluid and a prayer!

I am leaning towards a freeze plug type heater, just wonder which plug would be best to put it in ...... anybody that has put one in a SB, let me know which one you chose!

...Roger...

A hard head might be your worst enemy , mind me asking why you need to get the engine started before a warm day comes along ?

TopGunn

When I lived in Maine I had a heater that I spliced into the heater line to the block in my Camaro. It was a small cylinder and ran on 110 volts. It would circulate the water all thru the block and keep the engine warm all night. I could go out in the morning at -30 and start the car like it was 70 deg outside and get luke warm heat from the heater. We had to use them on diesel motors where I worked otherwise they wouldn't turn over until spring!

Wrencher

This sounds like the way to go! I used a freeze plug style in 440 Dodge van that worked great. 110V NAPA piece that didn't warm the coolant itself much, but the engine sure warmed up on it's own really quick! Cheap and easy to install as well.

Hans

tonak

I use a plug in dipistick? Seems to work just fine.

Derrick Reynolds

I don't like to tell people what to do, especially those that admit to having a hard head, but.......

I think using starting fluid in your classic car's engine is a really bad idea.

tomard

It is warming up some ...... still have thick snow cover over entire car but suppose to be gone in a few ..... I am moving and want to drive it across town instead of towing it.

How difficult to install the freeze plug type with engine in car on the 80??

KENS80V

Switch to synthetic oil.....it doesn't thicken as much as conventional oil in the cold. The difference is dramatic.

...Roger...

In the short term its going to be way more difficult than sliding under and sticking a magnet to the bottom of your oil pan. Seriously the $40 magnet type from Advanced or Orileys will after 24hrs have the oil nice and toasty and will most likely allow the engine to start with a good battery. They even have bigger ones that will heat in less time.
The freeze plug type are great but usually use much more electricity and sometimes create another leak issue in your cooling system.

( My old magnetic type has a 2' wood handle that I put on so I can just kneel down and stick it on the pan when needed. Otherwise it hangs on the garage wall.)