Terrible design. I'm not pleased that at -17 my block heater won't have ran at all.

Says so on the wire.

Any easy way to change this?

 

well i must admit that this is the first time i have seen a block heater thread on this site.

 

well it's going to be -11F with a windchill of -31F tonight...so i care very much

 

be thankful you have one
the ss/sc doesnt have one at all.

 

what does a block heater doo? and do u really need one?

 

you do in cold climates.
you plug it into a power outlet and it circulates and heats the coolant, keeping your engine warm for when you need to start it.

 

your bloody right you do in canada, you'd be a retard not to have one.

it heats your oil so its not a SOLID when you start the engine. oil is not terribly viscous at -35F

although i've read coolant is heated too, not sure what the cobalt does

 

I didn't know the block heater won't kick on. Is there a temperature controlled relay in the wire or what? Also, a picture of the wire and it's tag would be helpful.

And yes, you need the electric car option in the north.

 

i dont feel like going out there right now. just trust me its right beside the plugin itself for the block heater and it says

'operates when temperature below -18 celsius'

or something like that

 

You guys do know that wind chill does not effect machines right? The Cobalt is a machine, no effect no matter how much the wind chill is.

That said you could always get one of those aftermarket ones and use it in conjunction with the stock part. I've seen the ones where it attaches to the oil pan to warm the oil but the best I think I've seen is the kind that goes in line with the heater hoes and warms and circulates the coolant to keep eveything nice and warm. But being from Canada land I'm SURE you knwo all about them.

 

yeah i'm aware of that. i just wanted to make people shiver how cold it is

 

woot for NOT living in the great north

 

x2

 

geez, im still a n00b. i have a engine block heater? where is it? what does that do? (besides, the obvious heating the engine). I probably don't have to worry about it ever getting that cold here in MD

 

A block heater heats the coolant with an electrical element that takes place of one of the frost, expansion plugs in the block, you plug it in and it heats the coolant. When you go to start your car the next morning or whenever, the vehicle turns over and starts right away because the engine is warm already. Greatly reduces wear on parts.
And WOOT WOOT to living in the great Canadian north!!!!!

 

I have yet to need one.... it's only gotten to 2*F is the coldest it's gotten in the last 2 years here!

 

its a factory option not every cobalt has it...

 

I've read somewhere that most car shipped to Canada come standard with a block heater!! LOL I think its called the "cold weather package" on GM cars. I didn't know my Cavalier had one until I sold it!! Haha

 

I first heard it when talking to a GM salesmen on a different car. But Its all in the plug. You should be able to go to Canadian Tire (since we are Canadian!) and get a standard plug. Cut the plug off the block heater cord and put the new plug on. The mechanism for the stupid system is in the plug (that awful looking piece of art actually does something!

I haven't done it yet but after one winter of cold until -18, i just might do it today. The heater part of it is the same as all, so its gotta be the plug.

 

soo how do i know if i got it? is it something that i could look for?

 

Garage with insulated door and heat, when needed - ftw

 

I've never head of the Block Heater not kicking in until a certain temperature before...

I use mine every night. I plug it in as soon as I put my car away for the evening. It doesn't have to work as hard that way and keeps the engine warm all night. When I start the car in the morning the coolant temp is always 20 + degrees celcius. I park in a garage BTW.

 

again, how do i kno if i have one????

 

If there is a plug under your hood beside your intake then you have one. If not, you don't. Around $150 or so from the dealer istalled.

 

Can someone provide a pic of where it is located?