Warming up the engine???

[whatchain]

hi, i have always been confused to wither a car needs to be warmed up before driving it. i heard some people said you should always let the car warm up before driving off cold, but i have also heard some people said with modern cars you don't really have to warm them up. i know that most cars warm up slower in colder conditions then winter so just wondering if it is necessary to do this at all with any cars?

[DRFVDR]

I always "warm" up my vehicles during the winter months, Mainly because, A/ its a Diesel Landcruiser and she dont like cold mornings B/I like to have the abiltiy to demist windows as I HATE DRIVING with foggy/icey windows C/so i can has heater as I dont like cold mornings

[nztintin]

I never warm up the forester, i jump in and drive, i just be nice to it till its warm, ie no boost

also as i have an oil temp gauge i wait till thats up before i call it warm

[gazzy2000]

yea i always warm up my diesel vehicles i winter too, coz of the heater etc, i warm up the missus's BH legacy for her, but she never goes over zero PSI boost any ways, and the BG is just too noisy to leave idling on a cold clear winters morning, so i just dont boost that AT ALL untill its nice and warm (dont go over 3000 RPM).

But yea, its well known that hot running is better for an engine, the likes of the shot over jet boat engines.. being as expensive as they are.. when not in use they plug the engine in to heat the oil/engine at a conistent temp to maximize engine life + assist with starting in cold.

[gazzy2000]

Block heater & oil heater

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Block_heater

[pedro]

Old school cars should be warmed up a bit before driving as they tend to hesitate when cold.

Modern engines are so refined they can be driven after a few seconds running with out problems.

Never boost your turbo until the temp gauge is showing operating temp.

Fyi...Oil takes 30 minutes to get to its optimum temp...

[B_Man]

I give it a minute before driving off, I just be nice until engine is up to operating temp, lucky its just as I am getting onto the motorway so I can BEEEWWWST then

[GC8E2DD]

Are you taking 'operating temp' off your water temp gauge B_Man?

[B_Man]

Pretty much, why is that?

[GC8E2DD]

Because the water warms up much faster than the oil, and the oil temp is the one that matters.

[Joker]

just get in and go, mind you I am less than 2 km from work...

BG5 GTB TT coming up 230k on the clock... OEM block

[nickch]

I normally start the car up for about 2 minutes before driving off, on cold days.

I've heard two different versions about this:

One says, to leave it to warm up around operating temperature before driving.

And another says, its better to just drive with a low rev limit (no boost), as the driving allows more oil to coat your engine and hence heat up more..

Which one is it?

[chulozumo]

+1 to the above,

Also what about short trips? e.g like 5 mins? any point warming up?

short trips are supposed to be bad for the turbo or something?

cheers

[DRFVDR]

 nickch said:

I normally start the car up for about 2 minutes before driving off, on cold days.

I've heard two different versions about this:

One says, to leave it to warm up around operating temperature before driving.

And another says, its better to just drive with a low rev limit (no boost), as the driving allows more oil to coat your engine and hence heat up more..

Which one is it?

Let it warm up at idle

oil pressure will come up as soon as it is started

higher revs will pump more COLD oil which could cause more wear

A warmer car will always preform better...

A warmer car will be nicer to sit in and drive

A warmer deiced/demisted car is WAAAYYYYY safer than an iced up car

[Guest]

 pedro said:

Old school cars should be warmed up a bit before driving as they tend to hesitate when cold.

Modern engines are so refined they can be driven after a few seconds running with out problems.

Never boost your turbo until the temp gauge is showing operating temp.

Fyi...Oil takes 30 minutes to get to its optimum temp...

Oil takes 30 mins to warm up, I don't think so!

Unless you have a MASSIVE external oil cooler without a thermostat.

That is why the factory subaru oil coolers run coolant through them to aid in warming up the oil!

If oil took 30 mins, most cars would never get hot enough to boil off the water that would accumulate in the oil

[Scoobydoo]

 pedro said:

Fyi...Oil takes 30 minutes to get to its optimum temp...

Nahhh! Only takes about 5 mins for oil temp gauge to show that the oil is up to operating temp, during which time I don't boost, and short shift less than 3500rpm. After that, she's good to go!

[Joker]

oil temp yes - whole motor - half hr maybe....

[boon]

With a forged motor it runs like a bag of shit until the pistons get warm anyway. So I drive it like a bit of a nanna for 5 mins or so until the temperature needle comes up, that's about it.

[jacsmiley]

 boon said:

With a forged motor it runs like a bag of s*** until the pistons get warm anyway. So I drive it like a bit of a nanna for 5 mins or so until the temperature needle comes up, that's about it.

haha know the feeling!!

i rekon start the car, run in kiss the mrs goodbye, put shoes on, pat the dog shut the gge door and drive off nicely off boost under 3krpm

[johnny5]

all of the above unless its a forged motor I reckon then maybe give it 5 mins theres a video of an F1 car warming up its engine which is a series of revs designed to get the car up to temperature as fast as possible being that the engine is made of different types of metal all heating and expanding at different rates get it all up to temp fast so as to reduce damage from the different expansion rates

[KarlGTB]

I just drive mine from the get go. My uneducated opinion would be the less time my forgies are slapping my cylinders at idle the better. But then more rpm = more slaps so who knows. I usually wait a few minutes after water temp is up before I give it the jandal though.

[will i am]

in my old ex lancer i just get in and thrash her, she loves it

however in my rsb i let her warm up for a minute then just plot along until the water temp is at normal

then in my terrano (she abit off a smoker ;D first thing in the morning. let her run for a couple of mins

[johnny5]

yea get the temp up as fast as poss

[subieboy]

 whatchain said:

hi, i have always been confused to wither a car needs to be warmed up before driving it. i heard some people said you should always let the car warm up before driving off cold, but i have also heard some people said with modern cars you don't really have to warm them up. i know that most cars warm up slower in colder conditions then winter so just wondering if it is necessary to do this at all with any cars?

Strictly speaking its a waste of petrol letting the car "warm up" in modern EFI motors, however, like anything there are exceptions to everything

a) winter and the windows are frosted

b) Your car hates the cold - i.e. diesel/petrol ute/van/truck that doesn't like the cold (usually below zero)

c) your trip is going to be a short one (less than 3 Km) and the car wont warm up properly

d) your a wuss, its cold an the seats are freezing your arse off

e) your mrs is a wuss (like mine) and likes a warm car when she gets into it when its frosty outside...

[WRXONP]

i never warm mine up and never turbo time it either.i hate idling it. all it does is create carbon deposits. i just drive with low rev and no boost to warm it up . . and just don't thrash it before i turn it off so oil is at operating temp when turned off .