Vehicle warming up

[D13H4RD]

Alright, chances are that you may have heard of people telling you that you need to leave your car idling for the engine to warm up properly before driving off.

 

That's not entirely bad advice to go off of, but I have been doing things a bit differently.

 

I daily drive a MY2016 Honda Fit, which has a fuel-injected Honda L15 engine. According to the manual and technicians, an extended warm-up period is not all that necessary and that the car should be ready to drive as soon as it starts although a short 10-30 second period is usually recommended.

 

I also live in an environment where 30-35 degree heat is very common. So what I usually do is crank the engine and leave it until the revs drop below 1000RPM before gently moving off and going easy for 5-10 minutes.

 

I'm genuinely curious as to how others do it and whether I'm actually doing any good

[Drak3]

I cold start my diesel and take off basically immediately. Beyong diesel engines with glow plugs (powerstroke and duramax being the big ones in pick'em ups), no mechanic I've talked to reaffirmed that idling is do8ng anything beyond letting the engine, and subsequently radiators, warm up.

[themaniac]

I don't own a car, nor have a license(nor do I believe my dad lets his trucks idle for a few seconds before going) but depending on how old/how good the condition of the car, the temperature, the type of engine, and the oil, the car should be idled for a little bit, but it can also be bad if you idle your engine for too long as well. this video does well to explain it 

also all idling really does is getting the oil and other fluids in the car flowing, so as long as you don't rev you car high you don't necessarily need to idle it for a few seconds

[dalekphalm]

1 hour ago, D13H4RD2L1V3 said:

Alright, chances are that you may have heard of people telling you that you need to leave your car idling for the engine to warm up properly before driving off.

 

That's not entirely bad advice to go off of, but I have been doing things a bit differently.

 

I daily drive a MY2016 Honda Fit, which has a fuel-injected Honda L15 engine. According to the manual and technicians, an extended warm-up period is not all that necessary and that the car should be ready to drive as soon as it starts although a short 10-30 second period is usually recommended.

 

I also live in an environment where 30-35 degree heat is very common. So what I usually do is crank the engine and leave it until the revs drop below 1000RPM before gently moving off and going easy for 5-10 minutes.

 

I'm genuinely curious as to how others do it and whether I'm actually doing any good

Actually with modern cars, you're not supposed to idle it to let it warm up. This can even cause increased wear. You're supposed to cold start, then just ease the car slowly down the road at first as it warms up, avoiding excess high revs.

 

You can warm it up before-hand safely though, using a block heater.

 

What you do with your Fit is basically what everyone should do with a modern car.

[D13H4RD]

Just now, dalekphalm said:

What you do with your Fit is basically what everyone should do with a modern car.

Yeah, I just keep it below 4000 and go real gently. 

[Motifator]

Our A4 Quattro TFSI starts with higher revs than what it idles at after it comes back home to warm up the engine first. I suppose a lot of other cars do this as well, it then drops down the revs. We have kind of an autistic small closed garage so it takes a while to take it out of there, and it warms up in that meanwhile. Afterwards I need to go beyond couple streets to get out to a highway anyway, so I can't just nail it right away even if I wanted to. That's my case pretty much.

[Razor Blade]

General rule I go by is to let the vehicle idle just enough to get fluids circulating (about half a minute). In that time I check mirrors, look for warnings or messages on the dash, adjust dials/switches, select music, and anything else on the pre-flight checklist for that day.

[dcgreen2k]

Meh, I think it's more important to let the oil circulate throughout the engine, since unlubricated metal inside it is what gets worn the most during startup. Basically, don't start racing your car as soon as you turn it on.

[bimmerman]

Once the idle stays steady it's good to start driving. Keep revs reasonable until water and oil are up to temp, which is (very generally) 5+ mins.

 

There's no reason to sit and idle for minutes on end. 

[Drak3]

5 hours ago, bimmerman said:

There's no reason to sit and idle for minutes on end. 

I've idled my truck for 4 hours once so that tje batteries wouldn't die from the cold.

[Beef Boss]

In the winter I let my car warm up, but that's also how fast my windows defrost and my car isn't 2degrees inside. When it's 80+ degrees out I don't warm it. I mean, I let it do something during the time I do my typical bumble fuckery with cords, my speaker system and radio... 

[D13H4RD]

12 hours ago, thegreengamers said:

Meh, I think it's more important to let the oil circulate throughout the engine, since unlubricated metal inside it is what gets worn the most during startup. Basically, don't start racing your car as soon as you turn it on.

I usually look at the tachometer during that period. Once it drops below 1000RPM, I pull off.

[Underi]

I don't have a car cuz I'm not of age yet, but I ride a bike daily to and from school. Usually I let it go on for a few minutes while I get ready in 15c mornings, when it's colder I let it go for longer. I don't look at the RPM cuz the carburetor is some weird ass mikuni with an automatic choke. Hasn't blown yet so I guess I'm doing it right.

[dalekphalm]

2 hours ago, D13H4RD2L1V3 said:

I usually look at the tachometer during that period. Once it drops below 1000RPM, I pull off.

“Pull off”... wait, you’re not actually revving the engine are you?

 

unless you mean “I switch into drive and start moving”?

[rcmaehl]

A car does not need to warm up nowadays. The Secondary Air Intake system exists for this EXACT reason to heat up the vehicle and emissions systems faster.

[D13H4RD]

3 hours ago, dalekphalm said:

unless you mean “I switch into drive and start moving”?

That’s what I mean. I never rev the engine past 4000 and at idle until at least 5-10 minutes of gentle driving.

[Guest]

Generally let it sit for about 2-3 minutes if I can. Lets the car warm up a little bit. It's good for the car. It's not really a problem in any car, but I live in a hilly place and on the highway, so need to get going a bit quicker. If you live in like a 50 zone or something, I wouldn't really bother. There's not much point if you don't need to push the engine a little ASAP. As long as you are a good driver, that is.  

19 hours ago, Razor Blade said:

General rule I go by is to let the vehicle idle just enough to get fluids circulating (about half a minute). In that time I check mirrors, look for warnings or messages on the dash, adjust dials/switches, select music, and anything else on the pre-flight checklist for that day.

I always just do that when driving. 

 

20 hours ago, themaniac said:

I don't own a car, nor have a license(nor do I believe my dad lets his trucks idle for a few seconds before going) but depending on how old/how good the condition of the car, the temperature, the type of engine, and the oil, the car should be idled for a little bit, but it can also be bad if you idle your engine for too long as well. this video does well to explain it 

also all idling really does is getting the oil and other fluids in the car flowing, so as long as you don't rev you car high you don't necessarily need to idle it for a few seconds

The fuel pump should be going when you switch it to 'on'. It's not really bad if you idle your engine for too long, if it's bad for the engine, then the car maker should take a long look at what they are building really. 

[Guest]

I have two "trucks" as Americans like to call it. 

 

I have an 80 series landcruiser and a 75 series landcruiser troopcarrier.

 

I personally leave it on ignition for 15-30 seconds and then start it, idling it for 2-3 minutes.

 

Both are 4.2L diesels and it's what I've always done.

 

 

[Drak3]

11 minutes ago, Netivity said:

I have two "trucks" as Americans like to call it. 

 

I have an 80 series landcruiser and a 75 series landcruiser troopcarrier.

 

I personally leave it on ignition for 15-30 seconds and then start it, idling it for 2-3 minutes.

 

Both are 4.2L diesels and it's what I've always done.

 

 

No American would call either of those trucks, unless you're specifically about the pickup configured Troopcarrier. They're SUVs.

[Motifator]

Your old 80 series Landcruiser is literally a jeep. It predates the era of "SUV"s.

[dalekphalm]

1 hour ago, Motifator said:

Your old 80 series Landcruiser is literally a jeep. It predates the era of "SUV"s.

A Jeep is an SUV - perhaps the (or one of the) first SUV. It simply predates the term. First known use was in 1969, but it didn't become a common term until the 1980's - yet these types of vehicles have existed since at least the 30's and 40's.

[Guest]

2 hours ago, Drak3 said:

No American would call either of those trucks, unless you're specifically about the pickup configured Troopcarrier. They're SUVs.

The 80 series is converted to a ute... 

 

I thought SUV meant Sports Utility Vehicle, and mine not being classed as "sport" in ANY way shape or form, would negate that statement.

 

But I guess our cultures are different. 

[Drak3]

13 minutes ago, Netivity said:

I thought SUV meant Sports Utility Vehicle

Technically. But that's a rather meaningless designation.

[Guest]

9 minutes ago, Drak3 said:

Technically. But that's a rather meaningless designation.

Yet here we are:

Quote

They're SUVs.

 

If it was rather meaningless, then why is it applicable?

 

Like I said, just a difference between culture. We have utes and fourbies, you have SUVs, pickups and trucks.

 

Let's not steer away too much from OP's original question. 

 

If it makes you any happier, i'll even edit it out of my original comment.

[Drak3]

3 minutes ago, Netivity said:

If it was rather meaningless, then why is it applicable?

Because the connotation of SUVs has become an encompassment of Jeeps, SUVs, station wagons, and larger hatchbacks. They all do the same job, and ignoring large SUVs like the Tahoe, to nearly the same capacity.

 

Whereas SUV used to mean a 4x4 station wagon with higher ground clearance.

6 minutes ago, Netivity said:

pickups and trucks.

Pickups are a subset of trucks.