How cold is it?

[yendi]

I was going to drive Elayna to school today, given the low temperatures. I'd expected the car locks to give me trouble, but I'd never actually had both car doors freeze on me.

Yes, really. I couldn't get either car door to open, even after unlocking them. Pulling any harder would have torn the handles off.

It was that motherfucking cold.

Comments

[ellyssian.livejournal.com]

It's the northeastern simulation of the southern stock car: doors welded shut! If you leave the windows open, you can just climb in and out ala the Dukes.

Yeah, I remember doors freezing pretty regularly. Down here, I seem to be plagued by wiper motors freezing, which is something I never ran into up there.

[xiphias.livejournal.com]

Pretty normal up here, actually. You learn things about where to whack on the frame of different cars to help loosen up the ice.

Also, you can sometimes put the ice scraper in the jam of the door and pry.

[songwind.livejournal.com]

That has happened to me several times, but usually due to a thick covering of ice rather than extreme cold.

[littlebuhnee.livejournal.com]

I've had this happen, as well. Nothing makes you sadder than realizing too late that you parked next to a puddle, and your car has become a giant ice cube overnight from people speeding through it.

[songwind.livejournal.com]

ick. Where I lived before now (Arkansas) we would get 1 or 2 bad ice storms every year. Waking up to find that your car has a near-uniform quarter- to half-inch layer of ice on it is interesting, too.

[aiela.livejournal.com]

I had to yank on mine quite a bit today.

I'm about done with winter now. We can move on to spring.

[unquietsoul5.livejournal.com]

This is what a real Boston Area New England Winter is like.... periods of snow followed by steep arctic freezes and occasional weird mid-winter thaws that lead back into snow.

Just wait for Arisia : Blizzard (70%) or Deep Freeze (20%) or Thaw (10%). Possibly all three over the period of the convention.

:-)

[unquietsoul5.livejournal.com]

THis is also why you want a car with power windows and a remote control for them (so you can climb in) and a remote starter.

Or always live near the T and have a valid Charlie Card. Since I'm not rich, that's my solution, never owning a car and always having a pass handy. Even in Blizzards the Red line runs.

[litch.livejournal.com]

This is why remote starters rule

[zevhonith.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I had to pour boiling water over my car the other day to open it up. On the bright side, it defrosts the windows in a jiffy!

[auryn29a.livejournal.com]

I've done that, myself, but I've also heard that you shouldn't do that because it could crack the windows.

[zevhonith.livejournal.com]

That did occur to me! I'm glad you confirmed it, I'll avoid the windows next time. (Luckily, nothing cracked this time, and it worked lickety-split to open the door.)

[litch.livejournal.com]

it could crack the windows

someone ought to submit that to mythbusters (I hate registering for sites)

[auryn29a.livejournal.com]

That's a great idea!

[jerel.livejournal.com]

My mother had two suggestions (lived in Boston most of her life). The cheapest is hot water, but this can be tricky, because it's hard to get the water where it needs to go. She also said there's a product you can buy that will do the job. She couldn't remember the name of it, but she says it's in a container like a refill for a butane lighter. I'm sure if you went into a store and asked for "the thing to unfreeze your car door" they could help you.

Elayna's back in school already? I don't go back until Monday.

[yendi]

They actually started on Jan 2. Unbelievable.

[silme.livejournal.com]

Several times, back in Colorado, the driver's and passenger's doors would freeze, but I could get in through the hatch in the back. (I had a Civic hatchback.) I would crawl through the back to get to the front and drive. :)

[jcfiala.livejournal.com]

I live in colorado, and as part of my holiday had my door handle replaced because I had broken it off while trying to get into my car on a cold day.

[pbristow.livejournal.com]

Ah yes! February 1998-style weather. =:o}