I think that the Webasto Thermo Top E Parking Heater is a complete waste of money and will now explain why. It heats up your car, without starting your engine. It will use a tiny amount of fuel to heat your car before you get in. It can be activated remotely using voice, SMS or a timer. It sounds good, right?
I live in Japan where just about everyone has a radio-controlled engine starter. You might argue that it burns fuel unnecessarily and you might be right, but it will spare your engine some harm. Starting your car five or so minutes before you get in will not only get your car toasty and warm, it will also see that your engine is a nice temperature for driving. Is there really any need to be dropping $1695 when you can get a remote starter for less money?
Source: Red Ferret
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Tags: automobile, remote-control, sms
5 responses
Feb 19, 2008 at 11:13 am
but your gearbox oil will still be cold, so you drive hard with your warm engine and shift the damage further down the drive train, instead of just driving gently until the car is warm.
Feb 19, 2008 at 4:38 pm
Exactly my point, an actual engine starter seems the better option and it is cheaper.
Feb 6, 2009 at 1:06 am
Preheating the engine coolant before you start the engine can save a lot of wear and tear on the engine in very cold weather, and saves a lot of fuel compared to using a remote start. A parking heater is also close to 100% efficient at warming up the car – the engine is only 30% efficient, so you car warms up a lot faster. In very cold climates, preheating the engine can be the difference between starting the car and not starting it. These gadgets also circulate the coolant and can run the car heater blower to de-ice the windows.
I’d love to have one of these for the Chicago winters.
Heavy trucks are being required to turn off their engines when parked to cut down on emissions – but the cabs need to be kept warm.
Just because you’re not the target market for a product doesn’t mean it’s a stupid product. Don’t need it? Then don’t buy it.
Feb 6, 2009 at 7:52 am
My opinion of this product has actually changed of late. It is something that I would consider worthwhile for colder climes.
Oct 12, 2009 at 2:57 am
C.S.Magor or Red Ferret or….Pfff….please take a line on the parking heaters before you writing stupidity!
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