cold start?

[72chevynoob]

Is it possible to get a carbed engine to cold start easily? By cold start I mean -20*C, but it goes all the way down to -40*C here which is the same as farenheit -40.Just out of interest's sake because my dad said its not possible. My truck will probably never run in the winter except when the circulating coolant heater has warmed it up to operating temps.
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[geezer#99]

Sure it's possible. Dual or one big battery with 1000 or more cold cranking amps, zero weight oil and a carb with a manual choke. Clean connections on your cables too.
Been there, done that!!

[PanelDeland]

So the coolant heater gets it warm enough to start?That's what I would use.High output or dual batteries should help.

My only question is "Why would you ever think about getting out when it's below zero,or even consider living somewhere that cold?"

[AirSpeed]

The coldest I've started mine up in was -16, just a month ago. My trucks starts up in about three seconds. I don't know about 40 below.
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[Daner]

-20C is no problem

-40C? That's when it's gonna need to be plugged in and everything optimized for cold weather. I would recommend a oil pan heater. The block heater will help when you have to sit out there and hold the clutch in until the engine is going good lol.

I don't think it will start without being plugged in at -40. My policy is if it's colder than -25 with wind chill I stay in bed.

A good list for things to do if you want to try it...

Battery blanket/electric warmer
gasline antifreeze(basically rubbing alcohol)
block heater
oil pan heater
Engine with good compression
Fuel injection :P
Full synthetic engine oil 0w30
electronic ignition
lighter weight oil in tranny and dif sae30?

I don't think I could live anywhere WARMER than ND lol. To each his own I guess.

[mrein3]

Originally Posted by 72chevynoob

Is it possible to get a carbed engine to cold start easily? By cold start I mean -20*C, but it goes all the way down to -40*C here which is the same as farenheit -40.Just out of interest's sake because my dad said its not possible. My truck will probably never run in the winter except when the circulating coolant heater has warmed it up to operating temps.
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-20C is only -4 fahrenheit. You should be able to EASILY start a vehicle like our trucks at -4F. Just last week I had a -18F (-27.7C) start with my truck after an evening of fishing.
Here is my winter checklist (stuff you do in October so your old car starts and runs in January and February):
1. test your antifreeze to -40 (as you so eloquently put it F and C are the same at -40).
2. 10w-30 in the crank case. I used to run 10w-40 summer, 10w-30 winter. Now I just run 10w-30 year-round.
3. I've never put anything but -20 washer fluid in my washer fluid tank but if you did cheap out and use water this summer, now is the time to get it out of there. And flush the lines to the sprayers.

Thats about it. I'm usually good to -20F. Anything below that can get dicey. Oil starts getting real thick at those temps and bad things can happen. When it gets that cold you're best off with your car plugged in to a block heater or a heater hose heater - anything to get some warmth in the engine.

PanelDeland - Yes. Coolant heaters work. Before I had a garage it was the difference between starting and not on a really cold morning.

20 years ago I worked with a guy that grew up in Fairbanks, Alaska. I asked him, how do you start a car when the temps are -40 to -50 (air temp, not wind chill - wind chill has NO effect on a car). He said we just left them running.