4wd
$50 site donor 2026
Would like to hear from Clinebarger on this … ^^^
Do you warm up your car before taking off?
- Thread starter M104
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I'm shocked , this being an oil forum not one person mentioned that they used a 0Wxx oil for just that reason......... to get the oil flowing when cold .
I always use a 0W20 or 30 year round and I'm on the roll very soon after it starts . My driving is in town.
I always use a 0W20 or 30 year round and I'm on the roll very soon after it starts . My driving is in town.
I'd love to see people with their cars parked outside and -5º F say "Nope, start it, wait 15 seconds, and go". Ain't happening...
Thicker is better
Less than a minute in the 240s. Start up and go in the Avalon.
4wd
$50 site donor 2026
Not well defined what warmup is … the OP mentioned temperatures but who else did …
My definition is any mile driven below operating temperature is not ideal … but OLM’s and conservative OCI’s take care of any short trip issues caused in that mode.
I wait until the tach gets to about 1,000 rpm, especially in my van with the stick. I'd rather not slip the clutch with the engine revving at 1,500 rpms or higher when I'm taking off on a cold morning.
https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/threads/let-the-truck-warm-up.316862/
https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/threads/warming-up-engine.310096/
https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/threads/how-long-to-warm-up-an-engine.306153/
https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/threads/warming-up-your-car-in-winter.300484/
https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/threads/vehicle-warm-up-question.281604/
https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/threads/warming-your-car-up.281343/
https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/threads/warming-up-engine.310096/
https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/threads/how-long-to-warm-up-an-engine.306153/
https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/threads/warming-up-your-car-in-winter.300484/
https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/threads/vehicle-warm-up-question.281604/
https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/threads/warming-your-car-up.281343/
No...
Please explainThicker is better
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Any mile driven bellow operating temperature? I’d take it a step further or from a different angle...anytime that engine is running bellow operating temperature is not ideal. The worst thing you can do is start your car. But the actual warmup, I think doesn’t matter much if driven reasonably - by that I mean keeping the rpm’s low.
I was thinking today about driving conditions and man, I’m really driving in awful conditions. It hasn’t been above freezing where I am in 7 days. I have 500 miles in real cold weather. A lot of short trips on the weekends. I only do 5,000 mile intervals so I’m not really worried, but I never really considered how many people in my area go 10,000 miles on oil change intervals (or more) driving in harsh conditions.
I was surprised to read some comments regarding high idle at 1700 rpm and waiting for that to kick down.
Sounds like the 70’s. Are there new engines that still high idle like that? My CX5 high idle is 700rpm and that drops to 550 within a few seconds.
Sounds like the 70’s. Are there new engines that still high idle like that? My CX5 high idle is 700rpm and that drops to 550 within a few seconds.
4wd
$50 site donor 2026
Lots of them do 1200 … many are programmed to get the cats hot … a whole nut-her temperature regime
If it's around 25° or below I tend to let the truck warm up for 10 minutes. Reason being is I have a steep mountain grade I have to climb shortly after leaving my driveway. Those cold temps the engine isn't even halfway to normal temps and I'm not revving the snot out of it cold (3rd gen 3.5L Tacoma, it's gotta have the revs for that, Camry's the same way...). I'll gladly spend a little extra on gas and do early oil changes than shorten the life of my engine.
I let my 5.7 Tundra warm up at any temps below 50 F.
The VVTs on the 5.7 are very noisy when the oil is cold.
5 mins or so and no noise.
Plus I can if I want to.
The VVTs on the 5.7 are very noisy when the oil is cold.
5 mins or so and no noise.
Plus I can if I want to.
I try to let the work truck warm up a couple minutes in the colder winter days or about 30 seconds in the summer.
My 84 Cutlass I would just take off or warm up 30 seconds max because it wasn't working very hard to get up to speed compared to the truck with lots of weight in the back.
My 84 Cutlass I would just take off or warm up 30 seconds max because it wasn't working very hard to get up to speed compared to the truck with lots of weight in the back.
My G35 cold / fast idles at around 1700 and takes at least 3 minutes to gradually lower to 650. It does have a 'sensor' that lowers the speed if you start to put it in gear (R) so it doesn't jar the transmission.
My wife's Fusion idles at 1200 when cold.
These are both when it's cold outside (below 40ºF). What part of the country are you in ?
Not really. If I had to immediately pull into 50 MPH traffic or something I might give it a couple minutes on a cold start, but I live on a one lane dead end road that goes around my neighbor's lake. I have to watch for their dogs and the herd of belligerent geese, so I'm not giving it much gas for the first few minutes of driving anyway.
I wait till the digital temp gauge moves two notches(1min) then drive around the block slowly in 1st and 2nd gear with not more than 1500rpm. It warms quicker to the middle like that. By the time I reach a major junction traffic light its already to the middle which its normal place to be.
PNW. Wet side. Even in the 20’s it does the same.
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