so overnight the temperature is supppose to get down to 28. not too far from freezing but a big chunk of metal will get awfully cold. Due to a leak in my connecting pipe i have been using unmixed water for my cooling system since the cost of coolant adds up fast when you have to add half a quart every day and sometimes as much as 2 quarts.

Im wondering how much of a risk there is seeing as its not going to bextremely cold just slightly below freezing.

perhaps run the engine to operating tempurature right before bed? and blanket the hood and close off the air ducts in the front grille if need be.

any input?

thans

 

Maybe OK, but how often is the weather forcast exactly right? This time of year you can probably get away with 5% or 10% antifreeze.

With straight water I'd be more worried about corrosion anyway...

 

just a one night early freeze. and then back to above freezing nights. i typical go to bed around midnight so if i let it run and warm up before i go to bed it should stay warm enough to prevent freezing i would assume. it will only be a 2-3 hour window of freezing temps. i will definately have to put antifreeze in soon though because the corrosion is becoming quite noticable.

 

First off, Why not just replace the pipe? they're pretty cheap....

Secondly, the freezing temps are going to be in the early morning right before the sun comes up. Your car even, if running in the red, and shut off around midnight will still have plenty of time to freeze.

If you can't get some antifreeze in the system then i guess you are going to have to wake up early and take her for a short spin. The hoses aren't what you have to worry about freezing, the radiator core would be much worse and more probable. The hoses will thaw when the engine gets warm and sends hot water through the system. if it can't get through the radiator you are looking at stressing the water pump.

 

could always borrow your girl friends hair dryer in the morning and go heat up your core and hoses

 

Dipping down to 28 degrees for a few hours isn't going to freeze anything on your car. 28 degrees for eight hours might.

 

I would not be to concerned either with temps dropping just below freezing for a short time.