Corolla Winter Starts

I think the OEM battery has barely enough power to crank the engine in subzero weather when my 03' sat outside overnight. It always started, but my 94 olds cranked over faster. I am pretty confident it is a battery issue though.

Each of the two Corolla LE's I've owned so far -- an '01 and an '03, have never failed to start on the first attempt in the coldest Winter days. Over the Christmas 2000 holiday, I had the '01 Corolla up in the Buffalo, NY area for several days, and it was literally buried under five feet of snow and cold-soaked in single-digit temperatures. After digging it out, it started literally on the first turn of the crankshaft! The only time I've ever had to attempt to start twice were for reasons of my own fumbling of the ignition switch.

In fairness, I live in Delaware, which has quite temperate Winters and maybe one good snowstorm per year. Temperatures haven't dipped into single digits in the 10 years I've lived here. People who live in the Northern Tier states or Canada, where sub-zero temperatures are common, will certainly have a different experience than mine.

At -30 °C (that's about -20 of your degrees) it'll start but it takes several turns. However once it does start it runs very well (no hesitation, no high-pitched noises, etc) so I'd call it a good starter. Gears and steering are really stiff at that temperature though

The best starter I've ever seen was a 92 acura integra. No matter how cold, it seemed to start like it was summer. I think it was running synthetic oil though... and that helps an awful lot once you go below -20.

It's been a little slugish in sub 0 F weather. I think my '91 Tercel was a little stronger and so were previous generation Corollas...with exception to carbeurated models.

I think the starter is smaller on the new generation and the compresson is also higher. It didn;t helpo that the cluthc switch was not properly desigend andyou had ot push the pedla WELL past maximum travel to actuate the switch. With certain shoes...it was very difficult...so finally I took a crescent wrench and bent the tab closer to the switch... problem solved.

can't comment.......the coldest i have started it is -3 degrees C (about 30 degrees F)

in below freezing temps how long would you let the engine idle before driving? i, personally, would give it at least one minute, but not more than 3.

Around here if it is that cold out you usually get stuck scraping the frost off the windows in the morning if you are parked outside. I just start it, scrape it and go. If it is in the teens, I may let it run a minute before I go, and am very gentle driving it till it warms up. Todays fuel injected cars don't really need to be warmed up like the old carb. models, but if its really cold out things get stiff, and oil doesn't flow as well, so you want to go easy until it warms up.

It didn;t helpo that the cluthc switch was not properly desigend andyou had ot push the pedla WELL past maximum travel to actuate the switch. With certain shoes...it was very difficult...so finally I took a crescent wrench and bent the tab closer to the switch... problem solved.

Cherry128: Would you happen to have an aftermarket winter mat? If they're too big or too thick they can easily cause the clutch switch issue you describe... so much so that it's one of the first questions toyota mechanics around here will ask if you call them in the winter with "my car won't start". Still I'll admit the switch is a bit further than it really needs to be. It's a really annoying way to have a car not start.

Idle time for me is usually around 10 seconds. In extreme cold I'll let it idle up to a minute but no more than that. I just accelerate slowwwwwly until the temperature needle starts to move.

Cherry128: Would you happen to have an aftermarket winter mat? If they're too big or too thick they can easily cause the clutch switch issue you describe... so much so that it's one of the first questions toyota mechanics around here will ask if you call them in the winter with "my car won't start". Still I'll admit the switch is a bit further than it really needs to be. It's a really annoying way to have a car not start.

Idle time for me is usually around 10 seconds. In extreme cold I'll let it idle up to a minute but no more than that. I just accelerate slowwwwwly until the temperature needle starts to move.

in below freezing temps how long would you let the engine idle before driving? i, personally, would give it at least one minute, but not more than 3.

The best thing is to just let it idle for 10-15 seconds while the computer blances out the idle for the current conditions and your ready to go. Then just take it easy (use less than 30% throttle) and keeps the revs between 2000-3000 until the temp needle reaches the first mark.

On a small car like the Corolla it takes 5-10 minutes in cold weather while driving to reach minimal operating temp (idle slows) and 15-20 minutes to reach full operating temp when optimal fuel economy can be reached.

On a midsized car like my Accord... it only takes less than half that. On a cool 40F morning it can reach full operating temp in less than 2-3 minutes while driving.

Smaller engines have a larger surface area and more metal to warm-up in comparison to the amount of waste heat they output during combustion... along with less cramped engine bays offering better cooling. One reason your fuel economy is so low in the winter, is the eninge runs too cold and much of the energy released in combustion is lost to warming up the engine block. O nthe flip side, the engine fan on my Accord comes on more often and sooner i nthe summer.

So although a cooler engine will last longer, it will get lower fuel economy. I think a good ied for a car in cold weather is ot have a louvered vent to block the airflow to the radiator and engine compartment.

in below freezing temps how long would you let the engine idle before driving? i, personally, would give it at least one minute, but not more than 3.

My corolla usually sits outside in the winter,too many toys in the garage.lol. the coldest morning i have started the car was-36 f it was a bit slow turning over but fired right up.Iusually let the engine run while scraping frost off the windows. in my opinion 5 minutes is usually enough warm-up time,but i still take it easy(under 3,000 rpm) till up to running temp,which is 205 deg f. a real feeling of pride driving around town to see lots of cars with their hood up waiting for starting Assistance. i can truly say my Toyota has served me well for over 110,000 miles,and with a little common sense maint. will serve me another 100,000 miles.