LOL for the comments above.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Drcoffee
I live in the midwest where it can get very cold in the depth of winter. But I use synthetic oil that does not thicken when cold. Would there even be a benefit to plugging the engine in?
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DrC --
This is a rich ground for commentary, but I will try to keep it short. A 5w oil is good down to about -30°F. A 0w is good down to -40°F.
Those are the lowest temperatures at which the oils will flow for start. But that said, those low temps will cause slow cranking as I'm sure you have noticed.
A block heater will make your cold weather starts pretty much effortless, as the oil will flow much easier. When I lived in Northern Montana we had plenty of nights down to -20 or even colder....cranking was super slow. Then I moved into a house with a heated garage kept at 40°F all winter and both vehicles started like a dream.
There is a website I frequent and one of the members is a long-haul trucker; he has used 15w40 in his trucks for 20 or 30 years, always had a oil pan heater and never had a problem… And he used to live in Alaska near Fairbanks where it gets much colder than the lower 48.
So long-winded post short, you would be fine without a pan heater, but starting will be much quicker and easier with one (and also less stress on battery/starter/etc) as well as getting heat a bit quicker.
Needed? No. Improvement? Yes.