The operation characteristics of a direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) are investigated at low temperatures of -5 degrees C and -10 degrees C by using a laboratory-made 10-cell stack. The stack is operated only by heat generation of internal exothermic reactions without any heating device and additional insulation means, to examine behaviors of the stack performance at low temperatures. The self-heating stack is successfully operated in a stable manner at 10 degrees C by control of the operation modes. An appropriate operation strategy using the fuel switching as well as selection of the operation modes is proposed, and possibility and limitation for operation of DMFC stacks by self-heating under cold conditions are discussed, based on the results. Copyright (C) 2011, Hydrogen Energy Publications, LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.