do you let your engine "warm up" before driving?

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In the mornings, I usually cruise the car slowly down the street to let the engine warm up. But I always see my neighbors just pull out of their garages and speed off immediately. With these modern engines, am I just wasting my time?
 
I think some overlook the needs for the transmission and differential to come up to temp bit in automobiles,but where you live short of redlining it you could drive normally it seems to me.

With automatics I certainly like to let them shift easy the first few times each day even when the ambient is warm.

These Fuel Injected motors need to get off the cold start injector or other means of richening by the computer when cold ASAP without running the motor too hard when cold in an effort to keep the oil clean as possible but winter is a problem for those who park outdoors and have to de-ice the windows.

My 1985 Ford 302 with throttle body injection kills a dino oil in 2k or less when in icy conditions but they only used that type injection for two years,mine in particular suffers from standoff when conditions are just right. I need to take the intake manifold off and clean all the manifold heat passages from collected crud,,Just like Bush and Taxes " not gonna do it "
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I always start the car, wait the 30 or so seconds for the idle to drop, then drive. I do not drive hard until the car is up to temp.

I rarely let the car sit and idle for more than 5 min. That is only if the car is covered in ice.
 
Patman:

I completely agree with you. I just try not to rev the motor too high in the first 2 or three miles of driving. I stay below 50 Mph and I don't exceed 2000 RPM. My present commuter vehicle is a Chev K1500 with a 4.3. liter (262) engine. Even in winter I get at least 19 MPG, which is not bad for this type of truck.
 
I start 'em up and wait for 30 seconds or so for the idle to drop when its cold outside. Then I start driving and take it easy for a couple more minutes.

Only exception is when I've got to scrape the windows. The the routine is start the car, turn on defrosters, scrape, then go.
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I never warm up my engine before driving, even on the coldest day of the year. It's just wasted fuel. What bugs me is the people that start their engines and then go inside for a half hour. I worked with a lady who did that every day in the winter before she left work, but then she'd get into that habit and come March when it was 60 degrees outside, she'd still do it! Makes me mad!
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Even though its warm here I always let the engine idle at least 15 seconds before taking off if at all possible. I usually stay well below 3,000RPM and use the least amt of throttle until she's fully warm.

Once she's fully warm I normally drive it like it outta be driven
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However lately Ive been on a crucade for better fuel economy.. so now Im finding I can actually shift into 5th @ 43mph and stuff I never knew I could do before to possibly save fuel.
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On my way back from Pensacola early in the morning though I did between 95-105 all the way tailin a vette and got 32mpg
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Gotta love that camaro body style and 5 speed efficiency huh?
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Dominic, you're gonna hate hearing this, but I have gotten as high as 31.0 MPG in my former 98 Formula 6 speed! And I know guys with these cars that have gotten 32-33MPG! So to be honest, the MPG on the V6 f-bodies is really only better in the city.
 
quote:

Originally posted by Patman:
Dominic, you're gonna hate hearing this, but I have gotten as high as 31.0 MPG in my former 98 Formula 6 speed! And I know guys with these cars that have gotten 32-33MPG! So to be honest, the MPG on the V6 f-bodies is really only better in the city.

But thats running super unleaded which costs 13% more, and I was running 87 and was averaging 98mph
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To be price equivilent an LS1 would have to get 36mpg on super unleaded.

And yeah, LS1s are beasts around town lol.

Im not putting down LS1s for fuel economy, just thought I'd make a little note about my fuel economy at highspeed (its better above 90).
 
On long highway trips in my LS1 I would run 89 octane though, and could have easily run 87. At a steady speed in 6th gear, on flat roads, there would be no need for higher octane fuel.

Speaking of octane, now that the cold weather has arrived and it's not getting above 50F during the day, I've switched to running 89 octane in my LT1. No need to spend the extra money for wasted octane. I know I won't get any spark retard in the cold weather using midgrade like this.
 
Do you have HD (hi density) fuel available in Canada? Thats where big fuel oconomy gains come from. I gained 20% by going from a 98 octane non-HD (BP Ultimate 98) to 98 HD (Shell Optimax or Trafigura Fuels Evo 98). With addition of a quality UCL (I currently use Lucas) and a fuel burn catalyst (FPC from the U.S) amazing mileage is possible
 
Nope, no HD fuel up here. I've never even heard of the stuff. It sounds interesting though, I'm all for better MPG! I only get about 18-19MPG in my car (which is mostly highway but in rush hour traffic)
 
quote:

Originally posted by Patman:
On long highway trips in my LS1 I would run 89 octane though, and could have easily run 87. At a steady speed in 6th gear, on flat roads, there would be no need for higher octane fuel.

Speaking of octane, now that the cold weather has arrived and it's not getting above 50F during the day, I've switched to running 89 octane in my LT1. No need to spend the extra money for wasted octane. I know I won't get any spark retard in the cold weather using midgrade like this.


That makes sense, especially in Canada. I really like the LT1 engine, especially since its an iron block beast
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I wonder why they didnt keep the reverse flow cooling in the LS1, I really liked that idea - it worked well!!
 
There were a few reasons they got rid of reverse flow cooling. Number one was that in reality this setup let in too much air into the system. Also, when they designed the LS1 from the ground up, they were able to use a better set of coolant passages and could effectively cool the engine just as well with the regular method. Having an aluminum block helps cooling a lot too. Besides, the LS1s run great when hot, while the LT1 starts to lose a lot of power. When I went to the strip last weekend my LT1 ran it's best trap speed of the day with a 2.5 hr cooldown, it was 98.01 mph. I pulled right back up with a hot engine, and the trap speed dropped to 96.64. So I lost about 10-12hp. When I had my LS1, I could hot lap the car down the strip all day and still run consistent 110-111mph trap speeds. It would actually run quicker when hot lapped.

But the LS1 has it's share of problems, with oil consumption and piston slap. So the LT1 does win out on durability. But I still miss the raw power of my LS1!!
 
I think warming up is not necessary. I've always started the car, then drove gently till the temp gauge started moving, so I could dee that temps were above 120F, then drive normally.

That said, I have also started the car and let it idle to warm the interior, on the coldest mornings, when I would have my grandmother in the car, so she would not get chilled. I don't think it hurts.

I have a remote start now, and I use it without fear, to either warm or cool the interior. I've known quite a few people with remote starts, and they seem to have the same engine life as everyone else.
 
Through the summer months I'd give it like 15-20 seconds. Usually while I put on my oakley's and pick out a cd to listen to. In the winter I'll give it till the temp gauge just starts to move before I take off. And if I can help it, I won't redline it till it's at least 160°.
 
Allowing the engine to idle more than absolutely necessary (both gasoline and diesel) just sludges up the engine.

As soon as the car will drive, drive it gently until warm.

Ken
 
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