Those people who run their car engine for ages before driving off "to warm it up"

[cybershot]

Luckily this prick has moved but the bloke across the road was running his shitbox car for 45 minutes every morning and coming out every now and then to aggressively rev it. He left it running for 2 hours one evening until my neighbour went round to tell him to turn it off. He’d forgotten about it. Fucking twat.

Maybe I've inherited him. I have a neighbour that will do this, although I think he's potentially been kicked out of the house if he wants to smoke, so ends up sitting in his car and leaving the engine running. I don't know if anyone else gives their neighbours nicknames when they don't know their real names, but he's now referred to as 'knobhead' for me.

 

[Slo-mo]

This morning was a classic. It was very wet yesterday, damp and mild, then everything froze overnight. It only took me a minute or so to de ice the windows, but it took a full 6 or 7 minutes before I could get the inside of my windscreen to stop re misting up the second I wiped it.

I'm under no illusions that this is *dreadful* for air quality, especially since the cat converter barely works in freezing conditions, but I didn't feel safe to drive until my windows were clear and staying clear.

The sooner we get shot of the internal combustion engine the better.....

 

[Spymaster]

This morning was a classic. It was very wet yesterday, damp and mild, then everything froze overnight. It only took me a minute or so to de ice the windows, but it took a full 6 or 7 minutes before I could get the inside of my windscreen to stop re misting up the second I wiped it.

This is because your body and breath is warming the air inside the car which then condenses on the windscreen. Blowing air on the windscreen obviously helps (even if it's cold it's warmer than the windscreen) but it needs to be dry air so turn the air conditioning ON if you have it.

 

[Slo-mo]

This is because your body and breath is warming the air inside the car which then condenses on the windscreen. Blowing air on the windscreen obviously helps (even if it's cold it's warmer than the windscreen) but it needs to be dry air so turn the air conditioning ON if you have it.

I don't. My car is admittedly fairly old....

 

[Spymaster]

I don't. My car is admittedly fairly old....

Then wind the windows down as long as it's not raining. The quicker you replace the moist air in the car with dryer air, the better your windows will clear if it's cold and dry outside. Obviously it won't work if it's pissing down.

 

[spanglechick]

My car had to be broken into some years ago by a garage mechanic who pried back one of the rear doors. It was never quite flush after that, and so gets damp enough inside that i have to de-ice the inside of the windows as well as the outside.

Also, when it freezes, the driver’s door won’t open except from inside, but then won’t close again until the whole car has warmed through enough for the latch mechanism to move aside and then back into place.

I’m afraid this can take up to ten mins.

 

[Spymaster]

My car had to be broken into some years ago by a garage mechanic who pried back one of the rear doors. It was never quite flush after that, and so gets damp enough inside that i have to de-ice the inside of the windows as well as the outside.

Also, when it freezes, the driver’s door won’t open except from inside, but then won’t close again until the whole car has warmed through enough for the latch mechanism to move aside and then back into place.

I’m afraid this can take up to ten mins.

I've had this and it's a pain in the arse. You'll probably find that where it's not watertight the ingress is settling somewhere, probably under/in the carpets so the inside of the car is always humid. When it heats up properly it doesn't matter as much but as soon as the inside temp drops a bit (open a door or window) you're fogged again. Unless you can seal the door you just have to live with it but it's great when you get another car and it doesn't happen any more!

 

[mauvais]

Also, when it freezes, the driver’s door won’t open except from inside

If it's just frozen shut, which is common, you can stop this happening by buying some silicone spray, spraying plenty of it onto a cloth and rubbing the cloth around the rubber door seals. No more frozen doors.

It sounds like your issue might also be a sticking latch in which case some WD40 or similar wouldn't go amiss either.

As for the bent doorframe, you can always try and bend it back.

 

[stavros]

especially since the cat converter barely works in freezing conditions

I have it on very good (furry) authority that cats can't be converted if any way, shape or form. They're here to convert us to everything they demand.

 

[T & P]

In some countries you see peeps laying a bedsheet over the windscreen, putting the overhangs inside the car and closing the front doors on the bedsheet to clamp it in place. So long as no cunt decides to set it on fire for a laugh it seems a pretty simple way to deal with the issue. Never tried it though.

 

[Gromit]

Never saw this thread back when it started. Full of people who think unattended is stepping outside of the vehicle. If I'm stood outside the car it's still attended. It's currently unoccupied but you are in attendance.

Leaving it running whilst you sit in your house however. That's unattended.