Originally Posted by m85476585

Yes, an automotive fridge will probably retain temperatures better than a mini fridge, but depending on what you need it for it might not matter?

Automotive fridges are probably designed to run on 12V. You would need an inverter or a generator for a standard mini fridge.

I think I remember reading that standard fridges need time for the refrigerant to settle down after moving them, so they might not work well on the move. I think they get bubbles in the system that make it work less efficiently or not at all. TEC fridges are solid-state, but a friend in college had one and it basically didn't work at all, so I can't recommend one.

Automotive fridges may be designed to work in a wider range of temperatures. A fridge can only maintain a certain temperature difference between the inside and outside, depending on the amount of insulation, amount of heat dissipation area, strength of the compressor, etc. If it gets too hot in the car, a standard fridge might only get down to 50-60 degrees.

It might be worth a try if you can get a mini-fridge for cheap. It probably won't work as well as an automotive fridge, but if it did, no one would be paying $500 for them. It might be better than no fridge, especially if you can run the generator a lot, have a place to plug in, or only keep stuff that doesn't matter if it gets warm, like drinks. Or you could use it like a cooler that needs less ice when it's plugged in, if there's enough insulation.