Does the cold make your car frisky?

I know everyone else has had REAL cold weather, but here in Florida we've had some 30s at night and 50s during the day.

I have two questions. Is it my imagination or do the cars run better in cold weather? My car feels faster more nimble and more torquey?

Secondly, would it make since that the oil pressure would run higher when the weather is cold? Lower temps mean lower viscosity but does that mean higher pressure? Thicker oil is harder to push??

Well anyway, I'm just enjoying the drive even if it is my imagination. See Ya!

------------------
Mark Isaak
'74 Targa

mark-

i definitely notice the same thing with my car. i don't think it's your imagination. ever heard of 'cold intake' kits for cars? they seem to be pretty popular with m3's. i'm sure they operate on a simpler principle. i'll bet warren or someone else up here knows why!

------------------

Adam Nitti
ajnitti@mindspring.com
www.adamnitti.com
'85 911 Carrera Coupe

The colder the gasoline is the better it goes boom!!! Same with the cold air being sucked into the engine.. I love it here in Orlando this time of year the car comes alive!!
Pete
77'Carrera3.0

------------------
www.geocities.com/pcafaro2000/carrera30.html

If I remember my physics corectly the colder air has a higher density of its constituent gasses, including more oxygen which allows more effective combustion.

Bob Ellis
90 C4

it's not your imagination indeed. here in New York, i have noticed that my winter times going places have been better than my summer times. no matter the car that i'm in i can tell that the cars climb hills faster, and easier when it is 30 degrees versus 90 degrees. also, the best time of year to buy gasoline is winter because the gas is mroe dense as it gets colder. you get a better deal too.

if you look into some books written in the 1970s during the fuel crunch, you will see lots of info on how cars run better in cold, dense air closer to sea level, compared to hot thin air during the summer in a city like Denver Colorado.

obin

Lower humidity, too. Winter is nature's Cold Air Intake System.

[This message has been edited by JackOlsen (edited 01-02-2001).]

Your correct Robert. It think its Boyles Law? Lower temp = more molecules of gas in a given area.
If you think an naturally aspirated car performs better in the cold,
Try driving a turbocharged car in cold weather compared to hot. Mine are Saabs, the 930 is hopefully coming soon.....
WHOOOOOOHOOOOOO!

NIck.

------------------
__________
Nick Shumaker
1982 911SC Coupe

[This message has been edited by Nickshu (edited 01-02-2001).]

Im with you nick,my car is loving it......
me too...
Regards Juan
www.geocities.com/titos88911/MY911.HTML

Back in the days of carburetors, mechanics used to carry to the tracks huge boxes of jets and a dial gauge called an 'Air Density Meter,' so the jetting could be optimized for the conditions just before the race, or in the case of the bold, the night before! Woes befell many a driver whose jetting was set for the wrong conditions!

I don't know about the 'agile' business ... I suspect the steering effort is quite a bit lower because of lower friction, but it is accompanied with lower adhesion, so don't get too Frisky, yourself! Anyone remember the Indy 500 a few years ago when the temps were in the 40's, and at least a dozen stupid drivers crashed as a result of cold tires?

------------------
Warren Hall
1973 911S Targa

[This message has been edited by Early_S_Man (edited 01-02-2001).]

If it helps you guys just think what it does to turbos with intercoolers. I just moved to Idaho from Phoenix and it's amazing. Intercoolers can only do so much when it's 120f outside. Here in the cold I can run hard and the intercooler is still like a block of ice. Too bad the driveway is covered with snow and ice right now.

Chuck
83 911 turbo cab

I used to notice this with my 3 carbed Yamaha 850 triple. It actually ran best in a certain temp range. Cool, not cold. I always thought it was jetting. WRT handling - shocks, and bushings are WAY stiffer in the cold. (oil) Living here in Toronto we get the full range. In really cold places tires get so stiff they go thump thump thump on the flat spot until they have a chance to warm up. There must be subtler effects at less extreme temps.


------------------
-- Dave
Yellow '73 1.7
was a 6
now a 2.0
will be a 6

Ok, so it there a way to route the gas line through say an air conditioner condenser to get "colder" fuel in warm weather?
-----------------------
Paul
78SC Targa

I don't know if my P-car likes these -10F temps, but the dog loves it.

As Warren will no doubt testifiy, a common racers trick "back in the day" was run the fuel line in a coffee can (or the like). They would wind it around the inside wall of the can, coiling it to the other end. They would then fill the can with ice. This is called a COOL CAN. Some of us Turbo buick people still use this trick to prevent detonation.

Whoops.

[This message has been edited by JackOlsen (edited 01-02-2001).]

Just saw this image on the TireRack site, and it made me think of this thread:

not to change the subject, but just how bad is it for your p-car to be started in the freezing cold after sitting overnight, for the last week, etc.? does it wear the engine worse than when starting in the heat? just curious.

------------------

Adam Nitti
ajnitti@mindspring.com
www.adamnitti.com
'85 911 Carrera Coupe

Cold starts are hard on starters, but I do not believe they are hard on engines. In really cold temperatures, I've always let the engine run for a bit before driving, if practical.

We've had this 'cold air' discussion before. Cooler air gives more horsepower. Guys also used to inject water into the cylinders, making me wonder if humidity plays any role. All I can say is my SC loves its life here in the Pacific Northwest.

One of our regulars (RarlyL8?) uses fresh air induction. Intriguing I think, because moving the air intake to a place outside the engine compartment might make sense. There is negative air pressure in the engine compartment due to the very busy engine cooling fan (1500 liters per second at 6k rpm).

------------------
'83 SC

Any pilot can tell you about temperature affecting air density. Calculating density altitude, and corresponding engine performance, is a necessary task, especially in the summer months. Hot air = longer takeoff. Your typical Cessna uses a horizontally opposed (flat) air-cooled engine, too, so you'd be surprised how many similarities there are.

Colder air = more molecules per litre = more horsiepower. Horsiepower = kick in the pants, so, winter = happy.

How's that for math?



------------------
Mark Szabo
1986 911 Targa 3.2
1987 Escort 5-speed 1.9
The 911 Gallery

Hawaii=hot weather all year round. DOH!!!

------------------
Jeff
1976 911S