As every Minnesotan knows, our winters are cold and icy. Your Ford is designed to drive in any weather conditions, but preparatory winter maintenance can make your driving experience safer and less stressful. As your Ford dealer, we’d like to give you a few tips on Ford maintenance to enable your Ford to beat the winter cold.
Battery Check
Your battery is vulnerable to low temperatures, particularly if it’s more than three years old. The average battery life is three to five years before the chemicals that enable it to store electricity naturally break down. An older battery has a lower storage capacity, and since your starter requires more power at low temperatures, the battery may not have enough power to start your engine.
We’ll test your battery by connecting it to our computerized battery tester. This machine subjects your battery to various stress tests to determine its remaining strength and storage capacity. A low storage capacity, combined with a 20% drop in performance when the thermometer drops to 32 F, can easily cause your battery to fail. If your battery strength is low, we’ll install a new one to ensure your engine will start successfully.
Coolant System Check
It may sound strange to check your coolant before winter, but despite the outside cold, your engine will still run hot. Your engine works most effectively at temperatures between 185 F and 225 F, and this heat must be removed to prevent damage to vulnerable engine components like seals and gaskets. Coolant is pumped through your engine, absorbs the radiating heat, and transports it to the radiator for removal.
The constant heat and high pressure in the cooling system cause parts to wear out over time. Worn components prevent the cooling system from working effectively, and your engine can overheat and suffer serious, even permanent, damage. Our technicians will thoroughly check the cooling system and test it to ensure your engine will run smoothly and safely.
Oil Replacement
In winter, you’ll notice your engine takes longer to start, even with a new battery. One of the reasons for this is low temperatures cause engine oil to thicken, which slows it down. Engine oil also naturally thickens as it ages due to the accumulation of dirt, minute metal fragments, and other small debris.
Replacing your oil and oil filter will allow your engine to work more effectively, as new oil is slightly more resistant to low temperatures. Fresh oil will also better protect engine components by providing more friction resistance.
Book your winter maintenance today by contacting us at Freeway Ford in Minneapolis, MN.
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