Re: Any Car experts/mechanics on here?
 

This is actually normal for the Markham area. Well for the cars I get stuck behind it is

Re: Any Car experts/mechanics on here?
 

im thinking maybe the wheel balance has been thrown out completely becuase the whole car shudders and it get more pronounced the faster i go...so im thawing the car out in the garage and cleaning all the ice and snow from around the wheels brake discs and pads...see what happens tomorrow..lif its still the same ill have to take it back to Audi:thumbdown:

Re: Any Car experts/mechanics on here?
 

1st comments from Mr Piff, snow in the wheels and air filter.

Re: Any Car experts/mechanics on here?
 

Things this morning are much improved..the car still vibrates but only when i get above 100km/h (before it would shudder violently once i got above 50km/h)..and now it is much less noticeable than yesterday..so im guessing clearing much of the snow and ice from the wheels etc the best i could helped a lot...wouldn't be the air filter as the air intake point on the car is right at the the top of the grille just under the bonnet...trouble is my car is parked out side all day in the office car park and its -30c:thumbdown:

Re: Any Car experts/mechanics on here?
 

So does that mean you tried the gasline antifreeze and it didn't work?

Re: Any Car experts/mechanics on here?
 

Still clean out the air intake, snow gets everywhere, a bit of freeze and melting and freezing can also cause problems.

Re: Any Car experts/mechanics on here?
 

Does the power steering still work properly? It if it does then I'd say something mechanical that has been buggered up by snow and ice. I agree with the comment about ABS. You've got weird drag going on, so the computer tries to compensate.

Someone is going to disagree with me, but I can't think of any ordinary car that would do too well if it was left in -30 for a lengthy period.

Re: Any Car experts/mechanics on here?
 

Not sure what constitutes a "lengthy period". The pastel Beetle convertible lived outside until this winter. I saw -35 on the thermometer during a cold snap which lasted several days. It worked ok. That is, it runs a bit rough in the extreme cold and, when the wheels fill up with snow, it rattles and shakes something fierce, but I'd say it's done well in the cold.

Re: Any Car experts/mechanics on here?
 

What extraordinary cars do people buy that live in those climates?

I reside at a ski resort. My neighbours run things like Jettas, an Oldsmobile somethingoranother, Ford Explorer, Ford Focus and various other humdrum cars. I've a Subaru. None are garaged. It's not exactly balmy here with a daytime high today of -18 plus windchill.

Re: Any Car experts/mechanics on here?
 

Had the same problem a while ago the wheels were caked in mud/shite

Re: Any Car experts/mechanics on here?
 

The cars are the same, it's the conditions that are different. There are a few problems and solutions you learn about after a lifetime of driving in the snow. The shuddering at higher speeds is still consistant with lack of fuel. I've had my fuel system frost up twice but the second time I was prepared and had the cure in my glove box. There's another one that occurs when it's too cold to start your car and all the oil washes off the rings from flooding. No compression then so even though you have spark and fuel it won't fire. The cure for that is plugs out, 1oz oil in each cylinder, spin it over a bit and re-install plugs. You'd never have to do that in the UK, but I've needed to here several times. That one was on the written mechanic's test in the 70's in the troubleshooting section.

Re: Any Car experts/mechanics on here?
 

I would say chances are it was the amount of snow and ice causing problems. If you have cleared all the snow out of the wheels and its still vibrating at over 100kmh you could have thrown a balance weight off. Can you drive through the vibrations so its bad at 100-110 but ok at 120kmh, if so I would get front wheels balanced. No power in gears over third is trickier to diagnose but all other posted answers are good things to look into. Coil pack troubles are likely to give you bad idling unless they are failing under load. Blocked air cleaner would give you low power issues so worth checking. Have noticed here in Red Deer that even though car is garaged its still only reaching just above freezing so unlikely all snow will have melted.

Re: Any Car experts/mechanics on here?
 

Do they make an electric blanket type thing that you put over your car or your car's bonnet to keep it warm when its outside? :confused:

Re: Any Car experts/mechanics on here?
 

No, but you can buy blankets for the battery, and install install a block heater
under the oil pan to keep the oil warm overnight.

Re: Any Car experts/mechanics on here?
 

Power issues at higher gears have gone that is ok...just the vibrations now really above 110km/h it becomes noticeable..hopefully the weather is due to warm up for a day on Monday then i can clear any residual ice in and around the wheels.