Vehicles encounter extreme heat and cold. Most people worry about extreme heat, but extreme cold can also threaten multiple fluids. The reality is that no two automotive fluids freeze at the same temperature. Each product has its unique freezing point circumstances.
Continue reading to learn about the freezing point of gasoline in your fuel tank. We will look at the freezing points of other car fluids, including motor oil, coolant, and brake fluid.
Can Gasoline Freeze?
Simply put, gasoline can freeze just as surely as other liquids, but fewer people on the planet exist in conditions cold enough to see their gasoline freeze.
The actual freezing point for gasoline varies significantly and is dependent on many factors, including octane rating. However, for the most part, gasoline is reported to freeze around -100°F.
It is unlikely anyone will ever be in a situation where they are delayed in their commute by a frozen gasoline tank. The only reasonable exception is people stationed at several different manned research centers in the continent of Antarctica.
Likewise, gasoline stored in a conventional gas can would almost certainly never freeze, either.
Freezing Point of Gasoline: Around -100°F.
Can Diesel Freeze?
Compared to gasoline, diesel fuel will cause more headaches when this cold, but this is more related to something called “gelling” than it is about freezing.
Diesel fuel is thought to have a freezing point very close to gasoline; however, paraffin wax in diesel fuel begins to thicken around 32 to 34°F.
This thickening of the paraffin wax in diesel fuel is referred to as “gelling,” and it can be quite problematic. Gelled fuel can easily clog fuel filters and fuel lines, leaving you with an obvious blockage and reduced fuel delivery. Gelling in fuels gets worse the colder it gets (15°F).
Freezing Point of Diesel: Around 32°F to 34°F (gelling).
Can Motor Oil Freeze?
Motor oil doesn’t technically freeze even in the coldest temperatures. This is because motor oil is a petroleum product. It becomes thicker, or viscous, in cold temperatures, which can also worry folks who live in regions with northern latitudes and winter temps down to nearly 0° Fahrenheit.
Each engine is designed for a specific weight of motor oil. In other words, motor oil is generally determined by a temperature range. When it’s cold enough to thicken the engine oil, it can thicken to the point that it slows flow through bearing and critical components, and higher levels of wear can also happen.
For this reason, it is important to review your vehicle’s owner’s manual for the specific engine oil for colder weather.
The Freezing Point of Engine Oil: No real freeze points. Oil gets thicker with lower temperatures.
Can Brake Fluid Freeze?
Like engine oil, brake fluid can’t really freeze. In a very technical sense, brake fluid is an oil, so it can’t freeze. But brake fluid can gel or coagulate at low temperatures.
But that rarely has operational issues. Although the brake pedal first feels stiff during application, the fluid in a car’s brake lines reaches heated levels in short order.
For normal brake fluid, gelling starts around -30° Fahrenheit. For many brake fluids today, with additives, gelling doesn’t start until around -45 degrees Fahrenheit.
The Freezing Point of Brake fluid: Starts gelling at around -35°.
Can Antifreeze Freeze?
An important misconception that we need to clarify is that antifreeze (coolant) can freeze, but for that to actually happen, it would have to be extremely cold.
Most antifreezes are mixed to a 50/50 ratio (50% water/50% antifreeze) that would protect against freezing in temperatures ranging from -35° to -50° Fahrenheit. How far below zero you can go and still maintain protection can be verified by using an antifreeze tester.
If something were to happen where vehicle antifreeze were to freeze, you would see some pretty major engine damage in most cases. Most engines have freeze plugs to limit engine damage, but cracking engine blocks or cylinder heads is not an insignificant experience.
Freezing Point of Antifreeze: Approx. -35° to -50° Fahrenheit.
Can Transmission Fluid Freeze?
Transmission fluid, like brake fluid and power steering fluid, is all oils, so they wouldn’t actually freeze solid as water would.
Transmission fluid thickens in colder weather, and can provide flow and pressure issues, but it takes extremely cold temperatures (around 0° Fahrenheit or below) for this to happen.
If you are in extreme cold, and the fluid has thickened, you may find it is taking longer to establish gear shifts, or if you do shift, it may be more aggressive than normal, which should alleviate within a couple of miles of beginning your commute.
Freezing Point of Transmission Fluid: No true freeze point, but thickening occurs below 0° Fahrenheit.
Can Power Steering Fluid Freeze?
Like transmission fluid, power steering fluid is also classified as oil or petroleum-based. Power steering fluid, therefore, also cannot freeze in the typical sense, only because it can only thicken substantially based on cold.
The colder the air temperature, the thicker a vehicle’s power steering fluid. However, if there was water contamination in the power steering system, you could see isolated freezing within a line in the system.
Stiff, thickened power steering fluid from extreme cold is generally less effective at doing everything it is supposed to do in terms of reducing metal-to-metal component wear.
So, a power steering pump, when operated in extremely cold temperatures, is generally much noisier than when operated in regular temperature ranges.
Freezing Point of Power Steering Fluid: No true freeze point, but thickening happens below 0° Fahrenheit.
Can Windshield Washer Fluid Freeze?
Windshield washer fluid absolutely can freeze if ambient temperatures drop significantly low enough. However, the temperature at which the windshield washer fluid freezes depends on the additive package in the specific product.
Like antifreeze, windshield washer fluid is typically rated to withstand freezing down to a particular temperature. However, that temperature varies from product to product.
For example, Rain-X All Season is rated down to 0° Fahrenheit, while Prestone’s De-Icer Washer Fluid is rated -27° Fahrenheit. ON the flip side, Prestone’s Bug Wash is only rated to 32° Fahrenheit.
The point is, you should be aware of the freeze rating when searching for a windshield washer fluid, and make sure it’s appropriate for where you live.
If a vehicle’s windshield washer fluid were to freeze, you’re likely dealing with a busted washer fluid reservoir, and therefore, should not spray windshield washer fluid at all. This is a result of the expansion that occurs when the washer fluid freezes into a solid.
Freezing Point of Windshield Washer Fluid – Varies by product and alcohol content.
Cold Weather Vehicle Problems
Cold weather can cause a variety of vehicle problems. Some issues may be only annoying, while others may be quite concerning. Here is a list of the more common vehicle problems caused by cold weather.
Battery Problems
Cold weather can wreak havoc on your vehicle’s battery and leave you potentially stranded. The cold also puts a greater strain on your vehicle during the starting process and is the last straw on many aging batteries.
It is still a good idea to check the age and health of your vehicle’s battery before the winter chill.
Tire Pressure Light
All vehicles sold in the United States must now have a tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS), which will measure, monitor, and communicate what your tire pressures are at each of the wheel ends in real-time.
During winter, cooler temperatures can result in lower tire pressures, and turn on your TPMS light. If that happens, you should be able to replenish a couple of pounds of air in each of your tires.
Note: Certain vehicles, like Audi, may have an indirect tire pressure monitoring system that uses wheel speed sensors to monitor the individual wheel’s rotation speeds. Wheels rotating at different pressures will rotate at different speeds.
When the system sees a big enough separation of wheel speeds, the tire pressure light will turn on.
It doesn’t tell you what the PSI is for the under-inflated tire like a normal TPMS does, but if you have more than one set of wheels, you will save some money by not having to buy additional TPMS sensors.
Cold Water Leaks
In many instances, extreme cold can reveal existing coolant leaks that had not yet presented themselves. These leaks are referred to as “cold water leaks” and can be a pain.
Cold water leaks are caused by repeated thermal expansion and contraction of the clamps and seals. Consequently, these movements can lead to leaks that otherwise would have gone undetected.