To think people can defrost their cars without running their engine all morning?

[shinysnowman]

I start work in a couple of hours. I have been awake since 5am, due to a steady flow of neighbours who have sat in their car with their engine running, one actually revving their engine constantly, waiting for their car to defrost. The first at 5am, each for a good 15 minutes each. It's been the same every day this week.

Don't people scrape their cars anymore? Is it wrong for me to be annoyed and think that they are being inconsiderate?

(Apologies to those with DC who are dragged up with them at this time!)

www.thegreatcatsbycathotel.com/is-your-de-icer-safe-for-cats/

The main ingredient in Antifreeze – Ethylene Glycol is also found in some de-icers. Ethylene Glycol is highly toxic, the sweet smell often attracts the cats and they will want to lick any small puddles or drips. However, a cat may also clean their fur, which may have come into contact with the substance. If you are using a de-icer to clear your windscreens, check the ingredients are cat safe.

I use a cover over the front of the car, and scrape the rest of the windows, but I do run the engine for a couple of minutes while I scrape to demist the inside.

I dunno really, everything people do is annoying. I think the engine running is quieter than scraping but 15 mins is excessive.

To be honest I've stopped trying to be quiet and accommodating to my neighbours as nobody else seems to give a shit.

I get woken with children screeching and screaming and shouting or the incessant dog barking or all combined, doors banging or car horns tooting or people playing loud music or bouncing their balls up and down the street etc etc etc.It's just life I guess. i taught my own DC to be quiet entering or leaving the car/house especially when dark and not to shout in the street in the mornings or evenings, I thought that was pretty normal, but it seems not.

I wish there would be some sort of shit old car amnesty where people could trade old bangers in for ones that don’t need to be warmed up and defrosted like this

Because mining precious metals and producing new ones is tip top for the environment.

“ I wish there would be some sort of shit old car amnesty where people could trade old bangers in for ones that don’t need to be warmed up and defrosted like this, it’s SO BAD for the environment and for the air we breathe. It takes me about two minutes to squirt some deicer on and turn the engine on with heated windscreens and heated seats and off I go.”

I don’t have heated windscreens and scraping+engine on only takes me 2 minutes too.

And wouldn’t it also be lovely if everyone could be provided with garages that they are required to keep their car in so that no de-icing at all would be needed. In the meantime, most people aren’t deliberately trying to be dicks to their neighbours or destroy the environment or murder cats - they are trying to get to work or school in winter.

I have a 1 year old car, the ice doesn't seem to differentiate. Heated windscreens are really not the norm in new cars either.

Not sure if anyone else has said but it's not a good idea to start your car and leave it running while you go back inside. People down the street from me did that, their car was stolen and insurance didn't cover it. Just a thought!

Heated windscreens are really not the norm in new cars either.

They have them in the bottom of the range Hyundai i10s.

Don’t worry Eddie, that’s been covered

Why would you admit you left car running when you make a claim?

They have them in the bottom of the range Hyundai i10s.

And?

Ford had the patent for heated front screens for years, it’s only just started to creep into other manufacturers

@MinervaSaidThat
They can and do ask for the keys if it’s recovered as it’s their asset.

Who’s asset?

Just give them the spare key.

Its their asset once they’ve paid you out for it.

They have them in the bottom of the range Hyundai i10s.

And?

And...somebody said they are not often the norm, I pointed out that some bottom of the range cars have them so they are getting more the norm.

You have a problem with that?

Given the recent really cold weather we were talking about heated windscreens at work the other day, only two folk from the fairly large group had them. A ford owner and a Volvo owner. Everyone else had a mix of cars but no heated windscreens. A quick look at Hyundai doesn't show that it comes with any of their models either so I might be missing something. We might be in the market for another small car soon and it's something i would have considered.

rhubarb, because the way you stated it was like it was the norm as Hyundai lowest model has them. You didn't say that "some bottom of the range cars have them"

However, I can't actually see that they do.

I don’t have a spare key and I’m not about to commit insurance fraud, but I don’t leave my car running unattended anyway

This is my first winter driving a car with heated windscreens and it makes such a difference to cold winter mornings. I can get into a car with frozen windscreens, turn the engine on and be ready to go in two minutes. No need to stand outside and freeze your tits off scraping your windows, you can sit in the car while it starts to warm up and drive off within minutes.

I just start the car before sorting out my seatbelt/music and by the time everything's set up, I'm good to go. Much quieter for my neighbours than me standing there scraping my car for 5-10 minutes, while also needing to run the engine to de-mist the insides!

I have last years model of BMW and it doesnt have a heated windscreen. Back window is heated

Mine is the Ford KA metal from 2015.

SO much of this long and tedious thread could be boiled down to

"My car can defrost the engine when I turn the car on - so I'll bloody well use it"

"There's no way I'm going to be inconvenienced to spray de-icer/hot water bottle, I'd rather run the engine instead because I can"

"My ability to see clearly through the windscreen can only be achieved through turning on the engine, at least that's what I tell myself is more important than your DC's lungs"

Folk will always put cars and their own personal comfort, before people, it was ever thus.

The worst part is that there is actually a difference also between how diesel cars sound on tickover, and petrol.

I have a neighbour with a diesel VW 2015 plate, and bloody hell it is loud - clatter, clatter etc, running the engine for 15 minutes.

Contrast that with my other neighbour's 1.4 petrol Seat Leon...it's not whisper quiet but it's a low thrum compared to the monstrosity of the diesel.

@shinysnowman YANBU, but you'll be told you are by plenty of folk who bristle at the idea that they're doing something wrong. Hope their cars get nicked from their street.

Tbh what I do actually matches the OP’s expectations of her neighbours (I’m not revving, running the engine for 15 mins nor leaving the car unattended). But I don’t see why I am assumed to be lying about my windscreen misting up as long as the car is cold. If I wipe it, I have to pull over further down the road as it is already misted up again. Which doesn’t solve the “running the engine destroying the environment giving children lung disease” problem, and nor does it stop other people being disturbed by my running engine. I’m not fooling myself, just experienced in how my car windscreen behaves in winter. And yes, it is rather tedious reiterating this

If you use your heated windscreen on an icy windscreen there's a good chance it will crack it. It happened to me!