Does the RX 400h need a Block heater?

 

The question should be, do you need a block heater?

The answer that, you need to ask yourself...

1) temperatures in the winter, are they readily below 32F?

2) do you tolerate the cold?

3) is maximum fuel economy high on your priority list.

The block heater will do one thing, keep some part if not most part of the engine block warm. Hence, the oil will flow better in extreme cold, and the engine coolant will be partially warm located around the engine block and cylinder head, even though the rest of the coolant in the system will be frigid.

In a nutshell, it will allow your engine to warm up that much faster, hence requiring less fuel to run to warm up the engine coolant. What will trigger the ICE almost immediately upon start up is if you have the heater on. Therefore if you have a block heater, that period to warm up the engine and deliver hot coolant to the heater core in order to transfer that energy into the passenger compartment will occur that much quicker.

So the question really is up to you, of course, don't forget to plug it in at night.

Cheers,

MadloR

 

sweet. thanks for the info. that helps a lot

 

"3) is maximum fuel economy high on your priority list."


You certainly aren't going to save money on an electric block heater. Anything you save on gasoline will be consumed by the several hundred watts of electricity that you will pay for on your electric bill to heat up the block heater element.

The only reason to get a block heater is to help ensure that the car will start if it is sitting outside in extreme cold for an extended period of time. Of course, the car will then heat up faster but this will come at an electricity penalty. You can reduce this some by putting it on a timer to start it up an hour or so before you want to start the car.

 

Your reply is little rhetoric. One can say as well, one does not buy a 45K+ hybrid to save on fuel when one can take public transport for pocket change (one way of course).

My reply to you of course, do you even own a 400h?

MadloR

 

Don't quite understand your responce. I actually have a block heater on my Rx400h (in Wisconsin - cold climate) and I use it on the rare occasion when the car is sitting outside in extreme cold so I know it will start in the morning. That is the purpose of a block heater and that is probably a good reason for the guy from Alberta to have one if he parks the car outside.

It would be foolish though to run it all night just to try to achieve better fuel economy because most block heaters draw 500+ watts of electricity. It would be cheaper to run the ICE a little in the morning than to run a block heater all night. I stand by my comments to the original poster. You can disagree if you care about your gas bills but not your electric bill.

 

I moved from NY to SC a few months ago but drove back to NY for Thanksgiving and Christmas. With the temps in the high 20's to low 30's the heater was blowing warm air in about one mile, in about two miles hot air was comming out. I moved out of NY because I hate cold weather. But with the electric seat heat on high I was warm in a matter of minutes. Maybe an electric block heater would have produce heat faster so what would I gain, maybe getting comfortable 30 or 40 seconds sooner? Maybe it would be more useful for people living in Alaska where it can go to 30 f or 40 F below zero. A block heater is useless for most people that drive to work and leave the car parked with no place to plug in the heater. When I lived up north my car was always in a warm garage at home so when the block heater would have been most useful there were no plugs. I have been driving for a long time and remember cars from 40 years ago took a very long time to heat up but the new cars made in the past decade or so really heat up fast.

 

I don't agree with you on this point. Yes, the purpose of the block heater as you stated is true, it will definitely help cold start. If you plug the block heater on all night, the cost of electricity is at it's lowest, were talking pennies per use.

here, check out this link
http://www.cleanmpg.com/forums/ford/...test-6140.html

You make it sound like plugging the block heater for a couple of hours will be offset by the astronomical cost of the load put on by the 600Watt Block Heater vs the cost of a gallon of fuel. Come on, get some facts and figures first before using assumptions and gutt feelings.

Any heat you have in the engine will only go towards better fuel economy provided you are not greedy in your city commute with the Heater.

1. plug car, get a quality over night timer, set it to 2 - 3 hrs before your daily commute (if you must park outside).

2. unplug, start car and run only the heat seater. Once you get out of city driving (of course, use common sense, if your windows are fogged up, defrost them) and out on to 45mph plus speeds or the freeway/highway then you can go ahead and run the heater core.

You will be amazed at the fuel savings, not summer like but a vast improvement on the typical non hybrid way of driving your vehicle during the winter months. The seat heaters are very well designed and keep you toasty warm in seconds. Bundle up, keep your coat zipped/buttoned, get some gloves, drive with the seat heater and you will be good to go.

Cheers,

MadloR

 

My “gut” tells me your assumptions about running the heat and fuel economy are wrong. I got this car for it’s comfort and I won’t turn down the heater even if you are correct (which I doubt).

I turn on the electric seats to get comfortable fast but there is a very good chance the electric heater may incur a greater fuel penalty then running the heater but I don’t care because my comfort is my main concern. Have you considered that running the electric seat draws power from the battery and it requires the charging system to work harder to replace the electric energy? The chagrining system requires the engine to work harder to turn the alternator and causes the engine to burn more gas. That is why they turn off all electric accessories when they have a contest for best fuel economy, in fact in the old days they ran cars with the generator disconnected to get maximum fuel economy. Also keep in mind the gas engine produces a lot of heat which must be gotten rid of so the engine does not overheat, The radiator gets rid of the heat by transferring it to the outside air and the amount of that is removed from the engine is regulated by the thermostat that opens and closes to regulate water flow through the radiator. Keep in mind that all you are doing when you transfer excess heat to the interior is causing the engine thermostat to open less often but all that excess heat in the engine has to be gotten rid of one way or another and if you choose not to use the heater the excess heat will be dumped outside the car. If you turn on the interior heater core the heat is transferred to the air inside the car instead of the air outside the car. All the excess heat in the engine must be removed and transferred somewhere, the only thing you are doing when you turn on the heater is using the excess heat to keep yourself warm instead of dumping it into the outside air.

 

Hmm, gut feelings and shoulda, coulda, woulda, do not exactly prove anything. Of course you haven't tried it, but, yet, you know. OK, keep doing whatever it is your gut thinks.

Hmm, again, your gut or facts? The seat heaters draw electricity, in order to heat. The heater core requires hot coolant, hence the ICE HAS to be on. So, if you think about it, the seat heaters in fact do NOT require fuel but the heater core does. So what do you think now, your wrong or gut feeling right?

The alternator on our RX 400h does not run by an accessory belt, hence there is no load as such on the engine and therefore does not require extra fuel.

What's your point? Well duh, the engine burns fuel which in turn generates heat which is transferred by the coolant and expedited by either the radiator, or radiator and heater core (though very little if you think of it).

Whatever your beliefs are, I didn't say not to run the heater vents I only suggested not to turn on the heater right away until the engine is REQUIRED to propel the vehicle forward and by this the ICE will be on regardless of whether it is cold or hot outside. Just using common sense and a little factual trial and error and not "gut feelings" to make a point.

Cheers,

MadloR