Research by Skoda has uncovered the amount of time British drivers lose each year while defrosting their car’s windscreen.Â
A survey of 2,000 drivers found that, on average, each motorist spends more than three hours a year defrosting their car.
More than a third (35 percent) spend between five and seven minutes on each defrosting effort. An unfortunate 13 percent of motorists take between eight and 10 minutes to remove ice from their screen.
Applied to a total UK car parc of 40.8 million vehicles, that means motorists could lose 337 years to deicing.
Ice breakers
When it comes to methods for clearing ice, making use of the car’s heating system was favoured by nearly two-thirds (63 percent) of respondents.
More than half (57 percent) use an ice scraper, while 13 percent admitted to doing the job with a credit or debit card. Worrying, 15 percent said they used boiling water to clear ice – risking serious damage to the windscreen.
Some 76 percent of those surveyed said they switch their car’s engine on and leave it running to help with defrosting.
However, more than half (51 percent) were unaware this could lead to a fine of £80 if the car is parked on a public highway.
Still Simply Clever
The Skoda survey also highlighted that 74 percent of drivers were unaware electric cars could be ‘preconditioned’ to clear the windscreen in advance.
Skoda highlights how its Enyaq iV electric SUV can be preconditioned remotely using the Skoda Connect app, or via the infotainment system. This allows the Enyaq’s cabin to be heated to a set temperature, and the windscreen defrosted, ready for a chosen departure time.
Using preconditioning could save drivers up to 10 minutes every day. However, Skoda still supplies the Enyaq with an ice scraper mounted inside the tailgate, just in case…
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