Low power when car is cold

[Don Holg]

I live where it is very cold. If it gets below -20 Celcius at night when I go to start my car the next morning it has very little power until the car heats up completely. The RPMs go up when I hit the accelerator, but there’s no power moving the wheels. I mean there’s a little power, but much less than when it is fully warmed up. Any ideas on what might be causing this?

I know I should let it warm up more, but sometimes waiting 20 minutes or plugging it in isn’t an option.

Hey, here’s a supplemental question… maybe for someone into electronics: How many car block heaters can you run on one normal outlet? If I have two plugs in the wall can I plug 2 cars into one of them and one into the other? 2 plugs, 3 cars?

Thanks!

Topic

[college man]

what year,make,model engine are we working on?

[Don Holg]

Crap… sorry. It’s a 2003 PT Cruiser, limited edition with an automatic transmission. Has about 85,000 kilometers on it, so about 53,000 miles.

[college man]

see if this helps. Have you checked or changed the fluid?
Is the check engine light on?

http://www.justanswer.com/chrysler/5kuco-chrysler-pt-cruiser-transmission-won-t-shift-gear.html

[Don Holg]

I haven’t checked the fluid since the summer, but then it was pink and had no burnt smell and was at the right level. The check engine light is not on and it shifts through all gears normally.

Except… now that I think about it… I have noticed that if I park on any kind of incline, even a sloped driveway, that it makes a thud when shifting into reverse to back out.

I’ll check the transmission fluid tomorrow.

[Author]

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