Winter Car Care & Antifreeze

For 20 years, this writer lived, toiled and drove cars and pickup trucks smack dab in the middle of the frigid Canadian Great White North. For the uninitiated, normal low, nighttime temperatures in the driest and coldest winter months (January and February) range from -15 to -25°C (translated, that works out to 5 to -13°F), while daytime temperatures range from -5 to -15°C. Winter temperatures can be as low as -30 to -40°C (-22°F to -40°F) and, when the wind is taken into consideration, temperatures feel even colder. The further north you go, the colder it becomes (the record for cold in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan is -70.6°F — and it can get colder in other places).

Deep Freeze
At a mere 40 below, metal doesn’t like to bend or move. It sometimes breaks. Vehicles don’t like to start either. That’s why it’s critical in cold weather climate to always remember to plug the car in, using a 110-volt block heater to keep the coolant toasty while the car is parked. But when you leave your car unattended (and not plugged in), you can be sure of two things: It will refuse to start and/or the coolant might freeze — particularly if your cooling system hasn’t been properly serviced. Once the antifreeze/coolant freezes, the engine will quickly overheat, and more parts break. Almost as bad, if the coolant freezes, the vehicle’s heating system won’t work. That means you freeze.


Because of these simple facts of severe winter life, folks who reside within the deep freeze seldom forget to service the cooling systems of their cars. Most are also quick to check the potency of their coolant (determining at what point it will freeze). Almost all cooling systems are engineered to use a blend of Ethylene Glycol-based antifreeze mixed with good quality soft water. It is designed to prevent summer boil-over and, obviously, winter freeze-up. If one waits too long (in terms of years of use or miles of use) to change their antifreeze/coolant, the used coolant can harm cooling system components and compromise freezing, boiling and corrosion protection.

Choosing the Right Antifreeze/Coolant
So far so good, but today’s coolants (and motor vehicles) are far different from those used in the past. Even more perplexing is the proliferation of new products on the market. That brings up the big question: What products should you use in your cooling system?


Several companies offer specially blended coolant packages engineered so they’re universal in nature. That means you can either add a high performance coolant to existing coolant already in your engine and radiator, or flush out the system (the preferred method) and fill it with the good stuff right from the start. Now, the reasons for flushing and changing coolant are many, but the most important is the fact that coolant wears out, much like engine oil.

Does Color Matter?

Isn’t the color of coolant important? Not really. You see, color does not necessarily indicate the type of corrosion inhibitor contained within the coolant. You have to read the label. Mixing different types of antifreezes can reduce their corrosion protection and can actually lead to corrosion problems. But there’s a big caveat here: The folks from Prestone have released an Extended Life Antifreeze/Coolant that is compatible with any antifreeze/coolant, regardless of color, in any make or model passenger car or light duty truck on the market today. According to Prestone, this patented formula provides a high degree of performance durability and carefully balanced protection against temperature extremes and rust corrosion of all cooling system metals, including aluminum.