A frosty problem

[Orionaut]

Consider this story..

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/ar...ibute-incredible-doctor-30-killed-driver.html

Now, the details of the story are not in issue.

The problem is how do you ensure that your car is defrosted and safe to drive on a cold morning?

You cant warm it up by the roadside. It is a finable offense to leave the engine running on a stationary vehicle unnecessarily and I am pretty sure I have read of cases where "Warming up the engine" has not been considered legal justification and fines have been issued.

Spray de-icer may melt the ice and it can then be wiped or scraped off. But frequently the ice will rapidly reform as one drives away unless the engine is already warm

Neat screen wash will allow this ice to be washed away, but you almost literally have to have the wash/wiping running continuously since the screen will often flash freeze again within seconds untill the engine warms up enough for the blowers to work.

And none of this addresses the problems associated with ones breath freezing on the inside of the windscreen until the hot air vents are able to overwhelm the ice formation.

Now, obviously on fancy high end cars or ones that people have paid for options for. Heated windscreens are the thing. But Most people do not have these.

So how do you legally ensure that your car is safe to drive in frosty weather??

 

[vanpeebles]

Start your car up, and scrape it all off properly. It's not left unattended, and it takes minutes. If I managed using an MGB as a daily with a lame heater then so can everyone else. It's just sheer lazyness for most.

 

[grudas]

I managed with a mk1 mx5 and leaky seals etc through the winter etc so I can't see how people would struggle.

it's not rocket science, it's people rushing and not doing things properly.

 

[Conscript]

You cant warm it up by the roadside. It is a finable offense to leave the engine running on a stationary vehicle unnecessarily and I am pretty sure I have read of cases where "Warming up the engine" has not been considered legal justification and fines have been issued.

I imagine the cases you refer to are people who start their engines then disappear back inside for half-hour to have breakfast leaving an idling car unattended, so some common sense is needed. I start my engine and leave it running whilst I clear the windows, then drive off, by which time it should be generating enough warm air to keep them clear - if it isn't a few minutes of driving soon has it up to temperature. Even if a police officer drove past while that was happening, there's no way they are going to stop and fine me.

I've never experienced screens 'refreezing', as once whatever was frozen is wiped off, there's nothing to freeze, so I'm not sure if that's a legitimate concern. If you do squirt something which starts to freeze again, then surely logic dictates that you stop using it and revert to scraping the screen instead. You don't just accept that it's inevitable and keep spraying the screen.

No matter what the conditions, it's always going to be possible to ensure your screens are clear. It just might take more effort sometimes.

 

[Skully]

I warm mine up from the app whilst in bed.

 

[200sols]

You cant warm it up by the roadside. It is a finable offense to leave the engine running on a stationary vehicle unnecessarily ?

Well it isnt unnecessary if you are clearing the screen is it... as you are doing it for a reason. Its as said above, people leaving cars running while they have their breakfast etc, thats unnecessary.

 

[Threepwood]

Well it isnt unnecessary if you are clearing the screen is it... as you are doing it for a reason.

Google is saying if you are on a public road it's unnecessary, because you can do that without turning your engine on.

But if you are not on a public road you can do whatever you like, well, almost ofc.

 

[[TW]Fox]

So how do you legally ensure that your car is safe to drive in frosty weather??

You clear the ice off it and don't drive off until you can see where you are going?

 

[Haze]

Not rocket science is it? You get in car put heating on full blast, get out, scrape window, get back in, wait till its clear and warmed up and then drive...



But this case is no different to the ***** that only clear a small hole on the windscreen when it's covered in snow

You can teach people a lot of things in life, but you can not teach people common sense

 

[wedrum]

luke warm water from the kettle

 

[andicole0]

luke warm water from the kettle

I've seen someone pour boiling water on a landrover windscreen - shattered! Patience is required.
Andi.

 

[wedrum]

I've seen someone pour boiling water on a landrover windscreen - shattered! Patience is required.
Andi.

nope never boiling water, just a tad warm never had any issues and defrosted in seconds

 

[ttaskmaster]

Have you tried walking instead? Better for your fitness, better for the environment... and no screen to clear.
If I can get through Winter and 2-3' of snow with only a pair of clapped out combat boots, so can everyone else!

Seriously, just use the defroster setting that your car comes with. Get an aftermarket accessory or two, if needs be. Buy some de-icer from Halfrauds and maybe some anti-fog for the inside too. They probably have a deal on at any given moment, anyway...

 

[Temujin]

Bugger scraping it all off, I just use tepid water from the tap! Couple of large jug fulls with the motor running and heating on full bore and everything is tickety boo

 

[skookum]

I have not seen it enforced with a fine but I know several of our taxi drivers have been warned about having the engine running without actively driving.
In these cases it is down to the stop start when they pull up to pick up a passenger the engine stops. After the charge drops in the battery it starts.
A few traffic wardens have issued advice not to rely on this device
Stop start does cause a bit of havoc for us as constantly starting and stopping the engine can cause service lights to come on prematurely.

I have had the oil change light come in litterally 2000 miles after a service. Apparently the ECU calculates how many times the vehicle is started in part of its calculation when it requests an oil change.

I agree with the OP that you could potentially be in trouble leaving the vehicle running whilst scrapping. Lets hope common sense is used by enforcement when it comes to safety.

 

[Uther]

Start car, defrost setting on the heater, bit of water or deicer, and off you go.Not difficult, especially with modern cars.

 

[andy_mk3]

I use a scraper. Start the car up, heaters full blast on the screen and vents pointing to the windows and rear heated screen on. By the time I've finished scraping the windows down, the condensation inside is usually half way clear. I'll just wait a minute or two until its cleared enough to safely drive and be on my way.

I don't like the idea of using water as it can re-freeze on the ground making it dangerous.

 

[Semple]

OP needs to stop reading the daily mail.

This story is clearly one of common sense. It doesn't take long to deice a car, whether you just scrape the ice off, or spray some deicer over the windows. As someone mentioned above, it's just pure laziness for those that just jump in their cars and drive off.

 

[Mercenary Keyboard Warrior]

Bizarre, OP misses the simplest and most logical way of removing frost/ice, a scraper

Like most I start car, switch on rear and mirror demist, get out, scrape windows, get back in and drive off.

With talk of

breath freezing on the inside of the windscreen

maybe he lives in the North pole or is a serious mouth breather, cant say I have ever noticed this being a thing.

I suppose you could wind the window down as you set off if its that much of an issue for a couple of mins until the car is warming up

 

[Rroff]

I have never had ice reform after using [decent] deicer and a quick scrape in this country before the car is warmed up from driving - I've seen it happen in places like Canada but not the UK.