That sucks, I'm sure it's buried under there somewhere, but this isn't the weather to go digging
The last time things got super cold here a few years ago we discovered the block heater on our old CRV wasn't working. Turned out it was just unplugged on the block, but you needed to take the wheel off and dig around to find it. In the meantime the cold oil pushed past the oil filter and blew out that seal, leaving a big puddle on the garage floor
The same cold spell my Vibe wouldn't start in a parking lot after coming out of a class in the evening, discovered that gas lines can still freeze despite the ethanol in them now. Of course AMA wait times were about 5 days when it's cold like that so for a few days we had both vehicles down.
Every fall now I add a little isopropyl alcohol to the tank preemptively, get it from the drugstore as the vehicle type gas line antifreezes often say ethanol on them
Q Isn't using a gas line antifreeze these days ridiculous? All our "oxygenated" gasolines are at least 10 percent alcohol already.
What possible good would adding an additional 12 ounces of alcohol do? I think all the manufacturers and dealers of these products should be exposed for cheating motorists out of good money for a product with no value.
A Ah, don't you just love a good conspiracy? You have a point that drivers today have little need for gas-line antifreeze additives, but I don't agree that these additives have "no value."
Technically, there is a significant difference between the alcohol in gas line antifreeze/de-icer and the alcohol in our gasoline.
Most fuel line additives are based on isopropyl alcohol -- stay away from any methanol-based de-icers, they can corrode fuel system components -- while our gasoline contains ethyl alcohol.
Isopropyl alcohol will combine with water and remix any phase-separated water/ethanol to accomplish two things: First, it will prevent water from freezing anywhere in the fuel system; and second, it will carry the "mix" through the system into the engine to burn. This prevents the moisture and alcohol from sitting in the bottom of the fuel tank waiting to leave you stranded by the side of the road.
You are correct that the ethanol in our fuel will mix with water and thus function as a gas line de-icer, but any significant percentage of moisture in the gasoline can cause phase separation because the ethanol would rather bond with water than with gas. I see some benefit in adding a single small bottle of isopropyl at the beginning of the cold weather to carry any existing moisture through the system, but continuously adding these products with each tank of fuel can result in too much total alcohol in the gasoline.
http://www.startribune.com/fuel-line-antifreeze-not-all-hype/36707014/