2 things.....battery and rear heater

[evilsanta2]

Ok guys. There's been a recent cold snap here in northern/central BC and my 20 year old 4Runner doesn't seem to like -35 all that much.
Ok first thing - Are there special "cold climate" batteries? My battery this morning sounded not happy to be having to do anything in this temp. I'm also going to look @ buying one of those battery "blankets". Maybe that will help?
Second thing - I usually start my car and let it run for a couple minutes before getting in. During this time I turn on the front heater as well as the rear heater. When I turned on the rear heater this morning, it sounded like a mouse was trapped in there :awais: Obviously there wasn't..... I'm assuming it was some sort of belt that was causing the sound? Any suggestions? EDIT: It seems that this was only due to the cold this morning. I just went and started the truck up and let it run for 5 mintues (students at our school don't get plug-ins for some reason) and when I turned the fan on, it purred like a kitten this time.
Ok I have 3 things - Does anyone know where you can get a grill "cover" or "quilt"? You know the things that you put on the grille to stop the cold from cooling the rad. and engine down so quickly?

Sorry for the short story above. Thanks for reading

 

[Genesis98]

Get a block heater installed, should resolve most of your issues.

 

[evilsanta2]

Get a block heater installed, should resolve most of your issues.

I have a lower rad heater.
As stated in my original post, the university I go to doesn't have plug-ins for any spaces other than the admin/faculty spaces.

 

[n8buddy]

The reason your heater blower made noise is probably just due to its age. The internal lubricants in the blower motor are old, and in cold temps they do not perform as well.

I also agree that you need to get an actual BLOCK heater, not just a rad heater. They replace the frost plug on the engine block itself and warms the coolant and oil a lot better. This would make it easier to start you truck in the morning, and will increase the life of your whole starting system. A new battery would help it turn over easier also, I have an Optima yellow top and it hasnt let me down, even with a failing fuel pump.

 

[evilsanta2]

The reason your heater blower made noise is probably just due to its age. The internal lubricants in the blower motor are old, and in cold temps they do not perform as well.

I also agree that you need to get an actual BLOCK heater, not just a rad heater. They replace the frost plug on the engine block itself and warms the coolant and oil a lot better. This would make it easier to start you truck in the morning, and will increase the life of your whole starting system. A new battery would help it turn over easier also, I have an Optima yellow top and it hasnt let me down, even with a failing fuel pump.

I looked into getting an actual block heater when I got the rad heater installed. The problem with getting a block heater is the Frost plugs in a 20 year old engine don't co-operate all that well and quite often don't come out without problems. It also would have cost a large sum of money more.
I also got a new battery at the beginning of last year. One thing I'm looking for now is an electric battery blanket, does anyone know where one can be purchased from (preferably in Canada)?

 

[zombie]

I would assume that you could get a battery blanket at Canadian Tire. If not there then start calling the local part suppliers. As far as a cover for the rad, you can make your own. In the past I have used a piece of cardboard of even a piece of thin plywood. Don't cover the whole rad though and make sure that you remove it when it gets warmer... wet cardboard makes a mess.