Do You Winterize Your Saturn?

[Charlie]

Now that it's getting colder outside, it's important to make sure that you -- and your Saturn -- are prepared for the winter months ahead. Do you winterize your Saturn? If so, what do you do? For instance, here are some general tips (http://autorepair.about.com/cs/doityourself/a/aa091800a.htm) from About.com.

Post your feedback!

Thanks,
Charlie

[Twin_Cam]

Nope. Other than to mentally prepare myself for the ridiculous drop in fuel economy.........and the additional money that will be spent on said problem.

[silverblueL200]

Whats winter? ;)

[L200Pilot]

I remembered to put my chains in my car and I changed the washer fluid to a cold wx formula. That's about it.

[ProDarwin]

Uhh, I haven't voted yet. But this is a good time to find out what people do. I'm putting the Saturn away for the winter... anything I should do before doing so? It won't be driven/started for like 3 months.

[XtremeGrandAm]

I actually to check my car before winter...this year I put on slotted rotors on my car to help braking since ive noticed it not being optimal recently....and i dont want that in the winter....also checked fluid levels and stuff like that..but thats about it

[SW2Muck]

The scraper and the jug of washer fluid is back in the car! All I have to do is top both tanks. Also, I washed it for the last time til spring. I'll need new tires eventually, but I'm just going to be careful until I have more money, maybe after X-mas. I did that last year with the old one and I'm glad I did, considering what happened the following summer! I don't bother with snow tires, chains, and winter wipers, regular tires and wipers work fine here during the winter. Its like anything else, you just got to be careful and keep a watchful eye on things.

[FL ION BY]

I let Saturn take care of all the regular service on the scheduled times. I would like to get winter wiper blades for the ION though, does anyone know if they are available? Last January when I bought the ION they said they were not available yet.

[eljefino]

I bought anco winter blades at wally's, they $uck!! The rubber blade flexes so much the plastic structure and red tipped ends scrape the glass. They chatter wicked, too. Going back to pylons.

Have M1 0w30 ready for the January-February season, after holiday travel dies down. Snows are all ready and mounted on junkyard rims but am waiting until forecast gets vicious.

I have a cache of probably 10 jugs of windshield squirter fluid as long as it's 82 cents a gallon. Availability drops off when winter storms blow through.

[GmG]

I'm not a fanatic about winterizing, but I did:

1. snow tires (first time ever!)
2. jug of "de-icer" washer fluid (parking outside sucks :()
3. new ice scraper/brush
4. check anti-freeze freeze point (too high :dazed: adjust with straight anti-freeze)

I should throw a blanket and a bag of traction in the trunk too. Thanks for the reminder Charlie! :D

George

[matt2791]

I always seem to need a new ice scraper every year. I also get a jug of that pink stuff.

[PAGuy77]

I will probably buy new wipers and a gallon of Rain-ex DeIcer Fluid for the washer fluid container, but that is about it. I usually keep an eye on the fluid levels, and mentally prepare myself for driving in the snowy weather ahead.

[TommyH]

Most of the "winterizing" procedures are covered by my regular maintenance procedures. I change the wiper blades every spring and fall time frame. I've already put my "winter" set of tires and wheels back on the car and changed the washer fluid to the de-icer stuff. I had replaced the anti-freeze with GM's dex-cool. Next weekend I'll pull the wheels off again to either check the brake pads or replace them and the rotors as necessary.

Actually the biggest thing that I'll be doing to "winterize" my driving habits will be to remove the insurance on my Saturn, put it away in the garage and start driving my S-10 Blazer. While it is a gas hog that needs a new tranny and possibly has yet another gas leak (this time from near the gas tank it's self); it is a 4x4 with good power, ground clearance, low range gears and heavy weight. After an incident last winter when my SC2 lost all traction while traveling at 30mph on the highway and slid off and down into the wooded median; I decided that that would never happen again and would buy a "winter" car. After all of the problems that I'm having with this S-10 I'm starting to think that this will be it's first and last winter in my possession. I'm probably going to trade it in on a Subaru or, if I can find one, an inexpensive V6 AWD VUE.

:flag:

[AjaxSL2Guy]

Don't really do too much. Just keep up with regular maintenance. About the only thing I do differently from summer is throw my ice scraper and a spare wiper blade in the trunk. I already have a "goodie box" in the trunk with washer fluid, tools and a spare accessory belt.

[mr weather]

This is the first year I've put proper winter tires and wheels on my VUE. Couldn't stand to see the alloys suffer another slush-filled winter!

I also keep an extra washer fluid bottle in the hatch and a scraper/brush in the back seat.

[daver]

What's "winter"?

:cool:

[eRic 02sc2]

besides putting an snow brush in the trunk, i don't do anything unusual for winter. oh yeah i'll probably swap wheels and tires. i'm not sure if the kumho escta supra 712 can deal with snow...

[Gardenof_E]

new wipers
de-icer w/rain-x solution in washer tank
blanket in trunk
change oil
check antifreeze
check tire pressure
throw some gloves in car
winter hat

[ProDarwin]

As far as winter prerparation is concerned... I do put an ice scraper in the car for winter. But that is it. I've always used the same tires year round.

[71_307]

im surprised that no one else does this but i highly recommend getting your car rust sprayed. man i wished here we could use chains on your tires.

[piney]

Originally posted by Charlie
Now that it's getting colder outside, it's important to make sure that you -- and your Saturn -- are prepared for the winter months ahead. Do you winterize your Saturn?

Speak for yourself! I live all year for November through March. It is just perfect here this time of year. Mid 80s, sunny, water is warm :yes: :yes: and so forth.

[swoker183]

i gotta take my rims off VERY soon. like by the end of the week. donbt know how 215 45 17's will handle the snow round here. put my stock 15's back on. top off my fuilds and put my scraper/brush in the trunk

[MydnightMyst]

*lol* I voted yes before thinking about it. I do winterize my car, but it's different than with other cars. This year, I haven't completely winterized her, but she's just about done. I usually check the fluids, run her out of gas (not completely), pull the battery, and put on the car cover. This year I won't be pulling the battery until after the first week of December and I won't be covering her at all. I decided the tow dolly needed the car cover more than the garaged car did.. :D
I think it's a good idea to always get your car ready for the winter. It's a harsh time of the year. If you live in an area that gets cold, you should make sure your fluids are in good order, have new wipers (if they aren't already new), make sure the battery is good. Make sure your tires are adjusted accordingly to the weather (cold contracts- heat expands). Keep a warm blanket, flashlight, ice scraper, and emergency kit in the car. Don't let your gas tank get below 1/4 tank.. Some gas can freeze and some cars have their fuel pumps in the gas tanks.
Most important is to just be safe. Be careful. Ice is everywhere when it gets below freezing. Don't be overcautious, just be careful and most of all, to everyone who is celebrating, HAVE A WONDERFUL THANKSGIVING HOLIDAY!!!!:grnjump: :grnjump:

[reebee]

My goodness. I never really thought about "winterizing". I just figure, if it has a yearly ck up or tune up, it was fine? Gee, I guess not. I will certainly, give your ideas some thought.
This site is certainly an eye opener for me.
There are two kinds of wiper blades. Boy, I can see I have a lot to learn.

[Kender]

It doesn't snow much where I live in South Carolina, but I do scrape ice off my windshield often. I have two cars and a single car garage so now I have to figure out who gets to stay in the garage. The brand new '04 ION3 QC or my well loved '94 SC2... Of course my husband's car never gets to stay in the garage:p

[saturned]

:sleep:

Thanks to the sub-tropical climate here in South Florida there is nothing to winterize.

No tire decisions, chains? or changing coolant.

Just open the sunroof on my '03VUE and away I go.

[NLCollings]

nope I dont do anything to prepare my car for winter. I live in Florida so it doesnt get cold enough to do anything to my car.

[SilverNickelQC]

Originally posted by FL ION BY
I let Saturn take care of all the regular service on the scheduled times. I would like to get winter wiper blades for the ION though, does anyone know if they are available? Last January when I bought the ION they said they were not available yet.


I don't know about you, but i find the wiper blades at my dealer are crappy, they put a new set on a month after i purchased they were so streaky, so i went out and bought some Bosch Micro Edge Wipers, it rained today here so i got a chance to test them out and they work flawlessly. I just wish i could've kept that deflector thingy on the driver side wiper though.:dizzy:

[TommyH]

Originally posted by saturned
:sleep:

Thanks to the sub-tropical climate here in South Florida there is nothing to winterize.

No tire decisions, chains? or changing coolant.

Just open the sunroof on my '03VUE and away I go.


hahaha...jerk!:p

I'll think of you when I'm knee deep in snow with an aching back after shoveling my driveway for an hour...Thanks to all of you southerners for reminding us that winter's blizards are either on the way or here for some of us...jerks!:p

:flag:

[Mtuk_Neo]

Winter? Whats winter? LOL

[Galileo]

Originally posted by piney
Speak for yourself! I live all year for November through March. It is just perfect here this time of year. Mid 80s, sunny, water is warm :yes: :yes: and so forth.
Piney, I hate you a little bit! :D

I voted no, but I did just buy new tires for my SC2 since they were worn down to the wear bars at 33K.... which is typical tire mileage for me.

[bodie]

Wiper blades * Oil Change * Tire Rotation * Antifreeze Checked * all pretty basic but neccessary here in Ohio.

[lostwages_ls2]

Weenter.. We don't get no steenking weenter.....:cool:

[unkle bik]

Ice scraper, extra gloves, butane lighter, plenty of w/w fluid, blanket, at least a half tank of gas, new winter blades & common sense when it comes to driving.

[bravesfann23]

Originally posted by silverblueL200
Whats winter? ;)

hehe, i was wondering the same thing. :D :cool:

[L300Boy]

It doesnt really get that cold in washington, so i dont do a thing.

[SaturnSdn]

No.............I live in Arizona. No need to. If I lived in the cold country where it's below freezing most of the winter I would. I go with 0-30 or 5-30 Mobil 1, and get me a block heater. Yes I'd be checking the freeze rate of my coolent.

[Hiddenlites]

If it's going to snow, I leave the Saturn parked in the driveway, and drive the pickup. But I do remove the snow brush/ice scraper from the trunk and throw it in the back seat.

I should flush the cooling system this year.

[abbear]

While this shows members of my popup camping group, the principle is the same. So yes, we do winterize 'California Style':D

http://www.nick-neff-cough.org/nnc/id27.html

[SaturnVLN]

No, not really! Here in South Texas, some years winter may show up for five days---max. Other years we get a lot of cool, rainy weather. However, I do check the battery and clean it. I change the oil and use 5W-30 instead of the ususal 10W-30. I check all fluid levels and exterior lights. And last, but not least, I change the wiper blades. However, we have to be ready for anything in this part of Texas. Last Christmas Eve we got 4 to 8 inches of snow.

[Elsongs]

However, I do check the battery and clean it.


I guess ION owners don't have to do that anymore!