I live in Edmonton and park outside while at work - in a lot WITHOUT plugins. I used to drive a 2010 Altima with the 4 cylinder engine and at any temperature below minus 20, it would not heat up the interior in the 25 minutes it took to drive home even though part of the route is at 80 km/hr. About a year ago, I replaced the Altima with a 2012 BWM 328 station wagon - the last of the 3L straight sixes. I love it! The BMW will start producing a small amount of heat within 2 or 3 minutes and significant heat within 10. The new car is a manual so it would be difficult or impossible to fit a remote car starter but given how quickly it heats up, I don't think there's really a need for one. Yes, the Altima got better mileage but not hugely so. If I drive really gently, I could get 7.8 L/100km in the Altima where the best I can get in the BMW is 8.4 L/100 km (average per tank of gas) - this despite the fact that the BMW is all wheel drive.