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People who own a car in Yakutsk must leave it running all winter, or the oil will freeze & cause engine damage. A toolbox is always present in the car, since be

People who own a car in Yakutsk must leave it running all winter, or the oil will freeze & cause engine damage. A toolbox is always present in the car, since being stranded on the road, without cell phone signal, will lead to death within a couple of hours. Having a part of your ears exposed for 15 minutes will lead to frostbite. Cold is no joke...

Igelau 5y ago
In other words, a fire.
- briantakita 5y ago
  Maybe you can light the entire car on fire, by igniting the gasoline, which will work for a couple of hours depending on how full the tank is... I'm not going to disparage the survival challenges of extreme heat & humidity, but again, cold is no joke, even with a fire...
- wruza 5y ago
  I’m afraid that you’re taking gp comment too lightly. The described frosts are really dangerous, it’s not your regular get-two-blankets cold. One may die or become disabled in minutes after a technical failure, which is similar to failure of an AC. A little camp fire and running in circles will barely help you, because animals become frozen literally mid-step in it, https://www.google.com/search?q=animals+frozen+solid&tbm=isch https://www.google.com/search?q=animals+frozen+solid&tbm=isc... (dead animals warning)
  - Igelau 5y ago
    Fire was listed as essential. All I was saying is that the internal combustion engine is the fire. Take what you will.
Marsymars 5y ago
Couple notes from someone who lives somewhere less cold than Yakutsk, but still cold: * Synthetic oil won't really ever freeze. Other car components will freeze up prior to oil ever freezing - notably the battery will freeze if it's cold enough, which will permanently damage it. Most any other car component won't suffer permanent damage from cold. * A toolbox isn't the best option to rely on if you're driving in a remote area in the cold (I'm basically incapable of wrenching anything at -40 other than a tire change) - if I'm driving in the winter I carry (among some other things) a) a sleeping bag that's warm enough to keep me alive indefinitely given the shelter that a car provides, b) snacks and water that I can thaw with body heat in my sleeping bag and c) a PLB that, in a life or death situation, I can activate regardless of cell service.
- briantakita 5y ago
  I got my information from local lore in: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fz4ZMLsPzqM&ab_channel=DiscoverWithCenet https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fz4ZMLsPzqM&ab_channel=Disco... From ~ 8:43 in the video: "The scariest thing about being on the road is that people whose cars break down have a risk of dying if they cannot fix it within 30 minutes. Otherwise, engine oil under the hood freezes in minutes. If people get stranded in these rural areas with no phone signal, they have no choice but to freeze to death within a couple of hours. That's why every driver carries a toolbox in his or her car." He mentioned engine oil freezing a few times throughout that video. Perhaps their information & strategies are outdated, or perhaps there's some specifics to Yakutsk that is different from your circumstances. The people there seem to recognize changes in temperature based on the visibility & other heuristics, where it's recognized that a 10 degree Fahrenheit difference in temperature is something to consider. Perhaps you have some innovations that could help these people. The PLB seems like a good idea, though 30 minutes does not seem like enough time for a search/rescue effort. Either way, it's interesting to see how people adapt to their circumstances. I've watched documentaries on Mt. Everest ascents where the climbers faced brutal cold, wind, & avalanches. Perhaps gear adapted to the conditions of the tundra could be an effective "survival pack" enabling people to survive for a few more hours should a car be stranded.
  - Marsymars 5y ago
    > I've watched documentaries on Mt. Everest ascents where the climbers faced brutal cold, wind, & avalanches. Perhaps gear adapted to the conditions of the tundra could be an effective "survival pack" enabling people to survive for a few more hours should a car be stranded. Having a car simplifies life a lot compared to alpine ascents. A car is going to be a better shelter than any tent available, and you don't really need to be concerned about volume/weight/water resistance of sleeping bags. (So it's still not cheap, but buying and layering some cheaper synthetic options saves a lot of money compared to -40C down bags.)

Igelau 5y ago

In other words, a fire.

briantakita 5y ago
Maybe you can light the entire car on fire, by igniting the gasoline, which will work for a couple of hours depending on how full the tank is... I'm not going to disparage the survival challenges of extreme heat & humidity, but again, cold is no joke, even with a fire...
wruza 5y ago
I’m afraid that you’re taking gp comment too lightly. The described frosts are really dangerous, it’s not your regular get-two-blankets cold. One may die or become disabled in minutes after a technical failure, which is similar to failure of an AC. A little camp fire and running in circles will barely help you, because animals become frozen literally mid-step in it, https://www.google.com/search?q=animals+frozen+solid&tbm=isch https://www.google.com/search?q=animals+frozen+solid&tbm=isc... (dead animals warning)
- Igelau 5y ago
  Fire was listed as essential. All I was saying is that the internal combustion engine is the fire. Take what you will.

Marsymars 5y ago

Couple notes from someone who lives somewhere less cold than Yakutsk, but still cold: * Synthetic oil won't really ever freeze. Other car components will freeze up prior to oil ever freezing - notably the battery will freeze if it's cold enough, which will permanently damage it. Most any other car component won't suffer permanent damage from cold. * A toolbox isn't the best option to rely on if you're driving in a remote area in the cold (I'm basically incapable of wrenching anything at -40 other than a tire change) - if I'm driving in the winter I carry (among some other things) a) a sleeping bag that's warm enough to keep me alive indefinitely given the shelter that a car provides, b) snacks and water that I can thaw with body heat in my sleeping bag and c) a PLB that, in a life or death situation, I can activate regardless of cell service.

briantakita 5y ago
I got my information from local lore in: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fz4ZMLsPzqM&ab_channel=DiscoverWithCenet https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fz4ZMLsPzqM&ab_channel=Disco... From ~ 8:43 in the video: "The scariest thing about being on the road is that people whose cars break down have a risk of dying if they cannot fix it within 30 minutes. Otherwise, engine oil under the hood freezes in minutes. If people get stranded in these rural areas with no phone signal, they have no choice but to freeze to death within a couple of hours. That's why every driver carries a toolbox in his or her car." He mentioned engine oil freezing a few times throughout that video. Perhaps their information & strategies are outdated, or perhaps there's some specifics to Yakutsk that is different from your circumstances. The people there seem to recognize changes in temperature based on the visibility & other heuristics, where it's recognized that a 10 degree Fahrenheit difference in temperature is something to consider. Perhaps you have some innovations that could help these people. The PLB seems like a good idea, though 30 minutes does not seem like enough time for a search/rescue effort. Either way, it's interesting to see how people adapt to their circumstances. I've watched documentaries on Mt. Everest ascents where the climbers faced brutal cold, wind, & avalanches. Perhaps gear adapted to the conditions of the tundra could be an effective "survival pack" enabling people to survive for a few more hours should a car be stranded.
- Marsymars 5y ago
  > I've watched documentaries on Mt. Everest ascents where the climbers faced brutal cold, wind, & avalanches. Perhaps gear adapted to the conditions of the tundra could be an effective "survival pack" enabling people to survive for a few more hours should a car be stranded. Having a car simplifies life a lot compared to alpine ascents. A car is going to be a better shelter than any tent available, and you don't really need to be concerned about volume/weight/water resistance of sleeping bags. (So it's still not cheap, but buying and layering some cheaper synthetic options saves a lot of money compared to -40C down bags.)