Engine Block Heater

13089 Views 11 Replies 9 Participants Last post by Daniel, Apr 2, 2004

Gene

Discussion Starter · Oct 17, 2002

It does get cold here in South Jersey, I'd like to add an engine block heater for those cold mornings of winter. I have the AC power on a timer which turns on my small nite lights out side the garage. If you look at the Toyota.CA (Toyota Canada) they have a very nice Prius web site and it does list and recommend the use of the engine block heater. Canadian part # C014000885. For a few watts the engine is preheated, reduces warm-up when starting off in the AM.
I have tried thru my local dealer to purchase one, they can't find the item.
Any one out there have a USA part number?
Has your USA dealer installed it for you? :idea: :?: :?:

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richard schumacher

· #11 · Apr 1, 2004

air4ce said:
I just took delivery of my '04 in Edmonton, Canada and it came from the dealer with a block heater. I will probably need it as it gets down to -40 from time to time in the winter (-40C is the same as -40F).

At those extreme temperatures everything just stops. A plug-in is a necessity to start any ICE. I seriously wonder if you can get a battery heater as in extreme cold weather it may be necessary to have one.

That may a case of the dealer thinking "we've always done it this way". Betcha a loonie that if you left the block heater unplugged on a cold night your Prius will start easily the next morning.

In addition to the reasons others have listed: the traction battery (the thing that both drives the motor and serves as a starter for the engine) is rated at a nominal 21 kW; this is approximately equivalent to an ordinary "12V" battery delivering 1600 Amps. At -40C it should still deliver roughly 17 kW (about 1300 Amps equivalent). There should be no trouble cranking and starting.

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