Lots of raod crews trucks at our state auction idle all day long every day. They dump them with 175~225k miles depending on the age. All the engines still run fine although they are tired out just like anything else with that kind of mileage. Some flat tappet cam engine rely on a splash from the crank and when idled day in and day out the lubrication is not optimal. 3 hours is nothing to sweat.
Engine Idled for 3 hours!!
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p.s. All in good fun, right Astro???
ekpolk, I know you well enough to understand you were teasing. You jarheads just can't wait to get one over on us swabby-types.
It's all good, my friend. I got a good laugh out of it.
But I *have* cracked a few skulls with an SL-20 flashlight....but only because there was no other choice available at the time.
Just take it out for a good 30-45 min spin on the highway, get any fuel that may be in the oil out.
I'd be concerned morely with the cooling system as you mentioned, but sounds like you're fine.
I'd be concerned morely with the cooling system as you mentioned, but sounds like you're fine.
A few days ago I started my Supra in the parking lot in the morning - to charge up the battery, because I don't drive that car anymore. Sometime in the later afternoon, I was near it when I realized that it was still running! #@$%!!!!! I jumped in and looked at the gauges. Everything looked alright so I turned it off. One thing though, the low fuel light was ON before I turned the car on that morning... #@$%! only knows how low the fuel level had gotten by the time I found out!
When I worked in Houston company people with their big domestic company car would leave it running in the parking lot with the a/c on while the went shopping or had dinner. One problem is that cylinders, pistons and rings like a little more heat in them than idling normally produces. The boundary layer lubrication works best with some heat and pressure. That's one reason you have a thermostat that helps to warm the engine up a little quicker and may come back in to action in extremely cold conditions. It tries to not let the coolant get below a temperature like 185F or so. But you will probably sell the car before the increased wear will show up and if it does you'll never connect it with long periods of idling. Long periods of idling are getting more expensive. I just paid $3.11 for regular in Southern California tonight.
Our Toyota/ford/Chevy work trucks get idled 20 plus hours a day at times.
No problems.
Bill
No problems.
Bill
I don't think it will do any harm, but it's nothing I would want to practice on a regular basis. Im pretty sure it would have some negative effect on the emission system.
I once went to a camp site...bit of a drunken party type affair. There was this chap there in a brand new Opel Super Boss (quite a icon of a car here in SA)...I walked past this car at 5PM and noticed it was idling while he was blasting the music full tilt and slugging down the beer. Anyway I went to sleep and the next morning I woke at 7AM to find he had passed out....and the car was still idling
I once went to a camp site...bit of a drunken party type affair. There was this chap there in a brand new Opel Super Boss (quite a icon of a car here in SA)...I walked past this car at 5PM and noticed it was idling while he was blasting the music full tilt and slugging down the beer. Anyway I went to sleep and the next morning I woke at 7AM to find he had passed out....and the car was still idling
LOL where i used to work gmc pickup trucks would idle 24 hours a day i swear! 7 days a week they would last up to 100k
Took me 3.5 hours to get home today bc of the storm we had. I drove 20 mph all the way down 295 from Princeton to home. At least 70 miles all under 40 mph the whole trip. I was hoping to get a good UOA with the Havoline 5w-20. I wonder what impact the slow driving will have on the UOA?
Patman
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I wouldn't worry about that at all, every winter there are at least 2 or 3 times when we get a bad storm and it takes me 2 or 3 hours to drive the 25 mile trip home from work. And my UOAs still come out looking aok.
I work for a major tucking company. One winter when it was very cold we started all the trucks to warm them up. All trucks were not dispatched that day. A few days later a driver went to get a truck and when he went it to start one it was bone dry. Who knows how long it was idling that it ran itself dry
This is a concern to me. I mentioned in an earlier post, I attend car audio shows about twice a month and during the summer my car will idle for about an hour in the heat with the AC blasting.
I usually get in every 15 minutes or so and rev the engine up to 1500-2000 RPM's to get the juices flowing but have still always been worried about damaging something.
I usually get in every 15 minutes or so and rev the engine up to 1500-2000 RPM's to get the juices flowing but have still always been worried about damaging something.
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