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Just received a $180 quote from the dealer for a block heater for the 05 HCHI. Is that reasonalbe? I understand that a bit of dissassembly must take place to put it in. Any advice on what temperature it is cost effective to consume electrical energy to gain fuel economy? In the past I have only plugged in vehicles when it was below zero F. And yes even with golbal warming it does get that cold here. But through the years it seems that the cold spells are less in duration now.

that sounds close to reality. i priced one here in minnesota and was given a quote of about $150, but i haven't followed up on it yet.......waiting for some spare cash and colder weather.

Had the heater installed last Friday during an oil change and computer reprogramming recall. It took a the better part of the afternoon. The good thing is a spent it reading a book on how Iraq was really created in 1922. My bet most people have not a clue.

The heater is 400 watts. So that means it will cost me less than $.05 to have it plugged in for an hour. Surely we can get that back in gas in a short time. The ROI for the $180 will take somewhat longer.

Next I need to determine how much temp gain I will get per hour. I tried to figure this out but had to make too many guesses to get anywhere.

Hi Greenblues:

___For the Honda’s, I believe they had to break into the blocks coolant cavity and thus the anti-freeze would/should be drained. The pdf I saw on the Accord looked a heck of a lot easier then what I did on the Prius-II last week but it was by no means a plug in and go activity.

___At $0.05 per hour (this seems a bit high w/ 400W over 2 hours =.8 kW and at $0.10 per, should be about $0.08 for 2 hours, not $0.05 for 1 hour?), you should see a max coolant temp reached after 2 - 2.5 hours depending on how cold it was to begin with and how cold it is where your HCH is stored overnight (ambient). This is where an SG-II becomes a handy tool. What I suspect is instead of 40 degrees ambient, you will see coolant temp in the 110 – 125 range with a 2 – 3 hour head start via the EBH. From there, the warm-up hit should only last 1 to 2 minutes in 40 – 60 degree F temps vs. 5 + without. In a Prius-II, 35 - 45 mpg over the first 5 minutes would not be that uncommon without an EBH in 50 – 70 degree ambient temps. In colder temps, I don’t know but Jerad and the rest sure would.

___As a baseline guesstimate, I suspect the HCH-I does not see as harsh a warm-up hit as the Prius-II but with an EBH, the first 5 minutes may be in the mid 50’s vs. high 30’s/low 40’s without. Do your calc’s off of that and maybe 2.5 miles covered over the first 5 - 6 minutes of driving.

___Good Luck

___Wayne

hey, wayne, thanks for the information. up here in minnesota and wisconsin, a 40 degree ambient temperature is still considered warm LOL......

i really need to get myself one of those, but i can't do it and the scangauge, and certainly not new tires.........

Thanks for the info. It will help. I agree with Laurie, 40 degree lows are still quite warm. Should be interesting to see the temps on the SG-II when it gets real cold. Wonder if it does negative numbers. That is a scary thought that is.