By Stephanie Froese

Cars take a cold weather beating

Feb 1, 2011 | 11:11 AM

The wind chill brought temperatures to around –40 C during the past few days, a deep freeze that is taking a toll on people’s vehicles.

The big question for many drivers as they put their keys in the ignition is whether or not the vehicles will even start.

John Medynski with Lakeland towing said, when temperatures drop like this they see an increase in calls.

“A lot of boosts. People are trying to get them going and if they don’t go with a boost then they’re going to the shops for meltdowns,” Medynski said.

While the call volume has increased, Medynski said vehicles these days start better and engines don’t flood as much as they used to. He added it’s not like the old days where people may have to wait a couple of days for a tow truck — the trucking companies are able to keep up.

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“As long as the vehicles are plugged in everything seems to be starting by itself, you know maybe with the assist of a boost,” Medynski said.

The winter months are definitely the busy seasons for vehicle repair shops.

“With the cold weather there tends to be a little more damage to the vehicles, obviously the streets are more slippery, but people tend to be more cautious,” said Devon Kirkland with P A Auto Body.

“We see plastics on vehicles that that are more brittle in the cold weather but for the most part it’s the norm.”

If people don’t plug in their car, it might still start, but it is really hard on the vehicle, Kirkland said.

sfroese@rawlco.com