Essential precautions during the cold. Mechanics await your slip-ups
Early winter can be quite daunting since it demands repeated starting and stopping of our vehicles in considerably low, often subzero temperatures. These two instances, starting and stopping the vehicle, greatly impact the lifespan of the turbocharger. Hence, it's crucial to modify our usage pattern of cars fitted with a turbocharger in response to falling temperatures if we desire a longer service life from our turbochargers.
2:42 PM EST, November 22, 2023
A turbocharger, a sophisticated and fragile engine component, operates under extreme conditions despite its compact size. It contains a rotor that houses the compressor and turbine wheels, both revolving on specially designed sliding bearings. These bearings necessitate impeccable lubrication to avert any seizure. Moreover, when operational, a turbocharger rapidly heats up and cools, often reaching a few hundred degrees Celsius. As a result, the severe cold in winter poses a more significant threat to it than the summer heat.
How Do We Operate a Turbocharger-Fitted Car in Chilly Weather?
Primarily, frigid temperatures, specifically subzero, must cause us to alter our habits while igniting the engine. We should refrain from immediately revving the engine or ramping up RPM upon ignition.
The lubrication system requires time to disseminate the engine oil throughout, even if the oil possesses low viscosity and good flow capabilities. A turbocharger, a component with minuscule oil-flow cross-sections, typically accumulates deposits of carbonized oil particles.
Therefore, we must abide by the rule of allowing a few seconds to tens of seconds to pass from ignition to the point when we drive away. This delay can extend to several tens of seconds for cars with high mileage, for example, around 124,274 miles. This timespan permits us to adjust the air vents, modify the seat position, turn on the music, or fasten the seatbelt.
In the initial minutes of driving, using full performance or high RPMs is not advisable. Though the turbine heats up within a minute of engine operation, the compressor does not. For the well-being of the turbocharger and the entire engine, it's recommended to wait until the coolant reaches its working temperature.
Cooling the engine and turbocharger during winter is less challenging and shouldn't lead us to forfeit regular car usage. Only in cases of very dynamic driving should we aim to allow the turbocharger to cool down for a few stationary minutes. Even in winter, a minute of idle time with the engine running before switching it off would suffice.
The engine oil for turbo engines is highly significant. While in summer it quickly prepares for intense work, in winter, engine oil thickens and needs more time to warm up and reach every corner of the lubrication system. Moreover, due to the considerable temperature differences between mechanical car parts and the environment, oil carbonization in the turbocharger occurs more frequently.
Therefore, the optimal time to change oil in supercharged engines is late autumn or early winter. Despite inherently uncomfortable conditions, we can ensure fresh oil at this time, devoid of impurities and water residues that inevitably gather during short summer trips.
