Remote car starter
Welcome to winter in Ontario — over the last few weeks, the temperature at times has dipped to well below freezing. Getting up in the morning is hard enough, never mind having to face a cold car.
Wouldn’t it be nice to have a remote car starter? Just a few hundred dollars and voila, you can stay in your warm cozy house while your car heats up outside. Then, when you are ready, your car is toasty warm and your car windows are nice and clear.
Sounds great, doesn’t it? But wait — there are a few things to consider before rushing out to make that purchase.
First of all, if your garage is part of the house, it could be very dangerous to start your car remotely without the garage door being open. An idling car generates carbon monoxide, which can easily creep into your living quarters.
Secondly, most people believe that idling your car and warming it up is good for the engine. That’s not necessarily the case. The truth is that excessive idling can actually damage some engine parts and even reduce the life of your exhaust system.
And remember, the engine isn’t the only component of your vehicle. Other parts, such as the transmission and tires, also need to be warmed up, and the only way to do that is to get the vehicle moving. Today’s electronically controlled engines allow you to drive away after only 30 seconds of idling, even on the coldest of winter days.
Probably the most powerful argument in favor of reduced idling is an economic one. In this day and age of rising fuel costs, unnecessary idling wastes fuel and wasted fuel is wasted money. Idling your car for 10 minutes a day can use up around 100 litres of fuel a year! Not to mention all the contaminants that are being released into the air.
Don’t forget about the Toronto idling bylaw. You are not allowed to idle your vehicle for more than three minutes each hour if the temperature is between 5C and 27C. Although there are no demerit points attached, there is a hefty $130 fine.
My old car had a remote starter so I know how convenient they can be, especially since I have to be on the road by 4 a.m. My new car doesn’t have one, and surprisingly enough, I don’t miss it. Because my car is a newer model, I don’t have trouble starting it in cold weather and it seems to warm up quite quickly.
The few cold minutes I do spend in my car each morning are offset by the fact that I know I am not wasting fuel, I am not needlessly polluting the air and I am not causing unnecessary wear and tear to my car components.
February 27th, 2008 at 7:16 am
“The few cold minutes I do spend in my car each morning are offset by the fact that I know I am not wasting fuel, I am not needlessly polluting the air and I am not causing unnecessary wear and tear to my car components.”
I don’t know how you can just start up a car and go during winter in this climate. Unless of course you don’t need to see through the windshield. Takes at least 5 minutes for my car (which is parked outside, I have no garage) to warm up enough that the windshield doesn’t fog up for me to be able to see to drive. When it’s really cold like this morning, a person who is really cold is likely to be a little slower with their reflexes too….I will continue to warm up my car for 5 minutes on really cold mornings. I only have a remote starter in one of my cars (used car, came equipped with it), and I love it on mornings like this if I happen to be driving that car that day.
March 3rd, 2008 at 10:41 pm
Far more important than you having to pay a few extra pennies for the extra gas that you use idling your car, is the cost that we all have to pay for the global warming caused by the extra carbon dioxide that is produced unneccessarily.