Dabrakeman
Well-Known Member
EV's only experience a reduction in range. The bad combo is actually direct injection (GDi) engines that do a lot of stop start when not fully warmed up. Changing to a lighter oil in winter is not going to help the situation because the root cause of oil dilution is gas getting into the oil sump past the rings that are not fully sealing in the bores until they are hot enough. So the single most important piece of advice I can give to northern drivers is "if the engine comes on, keep it on". To mazimize my electric mode in the winter I typically switch into electric mode just as I finish a non electric mode drive cycle. In most cases later in the day for a second trip oil temperatures are still warm enough that it allows usage in electric mode even if ambient temperatures are well below freezing. First thing in the morning if ambient temperatures are near or below freezing it typically will start the engine. This is when you just want to keep it on as long as possible. I don't mean by doing unnecessary drives because to me that is stupid (although necessary if you do indeed get into FORM) but for your normal commute whatever it is if the engine is on go ahead and put it in ESave (battery charge unless the battery is already full then it will make no difference), turn the HVAC on, and yes actually drive it in manual mode. Manual mode will fully disable stop/start. IF I have a longer first trip in the morning and I see my oil temperatures get above 160F I will switch to electric mode unless the rest of my trip is too long for the range of the battery in which case I will delay it. I never use hybrid mode. Only time I put it in hybrid is if I am on the highway and driving in M8 and want some battery usage.
This winter has been significantly colder than the last two in the Midwest and Northeast. Last winter I had a bear with FORM. This winter just by remaining a bit disciplined I have not entered a level of FORM once. Apparently all this is too complex for Jeep to put in the manual and probably would be a marketing nightmare. I like to think though that there are more "car guys" in the Jeep community than on average.
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