Cold weather and car electronics
 

Living in Ohio, it's fun when its 65 degrees on Monday, and snowing on Tuesday (I'm kidding about the fun part, although that really happened this week). I have become quite the electronics person as of late, with my GPS, Sirius Radio, and MacBook. My question is, in the colder weather, is it ok to leave these things in the car? I'd like to keep the Garmin in the car, because I never know when I'll need it around town, and Sirius is something I use all the time. I don't tend to keep my computer in there, but have on occasion, like last week when I had it with me, and went to a movie. I'm more talking about overnight and during long periods during the day, not for 30 mins while I run into Target or something.

Thanks

The storage temperature for electronics is wide enough to leave things in the car. There are GPSs with HDDs that may failure quicker if you left them in the car under high temperature.

I would bring the MacBook into the house. The other items you should be fine leaving in the car. Lived in NW & SW Ohio with an XM unit and other electronics for years. The display will be a little cold on some mornings which will translate to pixels moving slower (or a blurring effect) but once they are warm they will look normal. I've had the same unit for over four years and it's never failed me.

The only thing I worry about is condensation if you immediatly turn on a car temperature computer it could warm quickly enough to form condensation inside the case.

If you are running the Garmin on it's internal batteries instead of 12 volt, it may not have as much power if left out and need recharging faster, but otherwise it should be fine.

Even the computer will be all right for a few hours. I've traveled with mine in the trunk of the car for several hours in cold weather. The MacBook Pro especially gets very cold to the touch on its outside, but it won't really harm it. If you know you're going in for the night, I would take the computer in. The rest of the stuff is fine. I have a Sirius receiver that's nearly always in my car, regardless of where the car is or how long it is parked. We have a basic Garmin as well but haven't taken to having that in the car all the time. There's nowhere to mount all this stuff!

Thanks for all the replies. I do take my computer in at night, otherwise I wouldn't be able to get on FT (and, uh er, study;)). I guess it kind makes sense that this stuff would be ok in the cold and heat, as some newer cars have them built in...
It seems like if I remember to bring the Garmin with me, I don't use it, and when I need it, it's sitting on my dresser.

DCATravel, Southwest Ohio, aka Cincy, isn't really a part of the state IMO :p

Redacted by FOIA.

I'd be more concerned about theft than damage by temperature, IMHO.

I thought this was about the electronics installed in cars. :)

In which case, when it's 0 degrees F, I do notice the LCDs on the screens in my car take a longer time to change than in more "sane" temperatures. Once they warm up, it's normal operation.

I was in cleveland last week and the weather was wild! We never exceeded the temperature range for the Macbook though.

Operating temperature: 50° to 95° F (10° to 35° C)
Storage temperature: -13° to 113° F (-24° to 45° C)