I love the Yuletide BITOG warm up thread.
Is there any practical benefit to letting a passenger car oil warm up before driving?
- Thread starter BrianApp
- Start date
The not cold part.
CleanSump
Site Donor 2022
It's two miles from my house to where the speed limit exceeds 35mph, plus we have speed cameras set up. By the time I need to do more than chug along my engines are giving me heat.
Heated seats are the bomb too.
Heated seats are the bomb too.
my plan is simple. i will not warm my car up, do short OCI’s, use expensive oil or filters, use oil additives, or take any other neurotic maintenance steps until i actually wear out my first engine. if and when that happens, and it hasn’t after 30 years of driving, i will reconsider.
I wore out my first engine when I was about 18, in 2001. A 1986 Honda xl250 with 25,000kms on it. That taught me to up my maintenance game and since then I haven't killed another engine, including my 46 year old 350 Oldsmobile in my car since 2007. Unknown mileage but I've put 110k miles on it so far, hoping for another 100k before I die. Also got 332k miles out of an 89 caprice 305 which had a swiss cheese frame from rust and lack of undercoating before I got it.
Lifespan expectations are the most important factor in maintenance choices IMO. If you only keep vehicles for 10-15 years or plan to upgrade the engine to something better (not really common anymore with modern vehicles) then no point in overdoing it. People tend to assume nobody would want to keep a vehicle for longer than 10 years but with the prices of trucks these days I'm going to squeeze every last mile out of my 2005 Silverado. 9500 hours and 217k miles on it so far....means there is a higher chance of wearing out the engine and having to swap it out. The transmission will almost certainly need replacing or rebuilding at some point but it's still cheap compared to a newer truck.
my 6.0 2500HD has about 70k. I plan to run 5w30 supertech, delco e-core filters, and follow the OLM until the engine fails or the rest of the truck gives out. My money says this baby gets towed to the junkyard with that iron block 6.0 still purring like a kitten ...
Patman
Staff member
I never impede traffic with my warm up method, there is rarely anyone behind me at 6am when I leave my apartment and by the time I get to the area where the traffic is busier, the engine is warm enough that I can drive it harder at that point.
Because it's been covered ad nauseum, the short answer is no, the longer more in-depth answer is No, nope, nada, no way, not even close. You need 10-15 secs and then go.
I give it a moment to get oil pressure 15 seconds or so and then slowly drive off, its about 1.2 miles to get on the freeway I will take it easy until that point and then it gets the gas to put me on the freeway, UOA results are excellent without any elaborate warm up.
The short answer is sometimes. The long answer describes when yes and when no. Unless you're "that guy" that feels it necessary to pull out in front of me and slowly creep up to speed, forcing me to jam on the brakes and slow down to 20 below the speed limit.
If you're that guy who cares only about himself and his car then the answer is always no. Otherwise yes, there is more to the answer then always no. Lol
Considering the amount of vehicles on the road and over 90% or better the owners never warm them up and the vehicle is just fine would tend to believe it isn't necessary to warm up. Otherwise the scrap yards would be full of bad engines and other components.
I let the engine run for about a minute then drive. I drive moderately slow until engine is at full operating temp.
www.roadandtrack.com
Here's the Real Reason You Should Never Warm Up Your Car
It takes longer, wastes fuel, and actually increases the wear and tear on your engine.
www.roadandtrack.com
CleanSump
Site Donor 2022
The scrap yards are full of bad engines and other components!
Sorry, I get your point, but I just couldn't resist that one.
today many people complain about oil drinking.
i think years ago it was not so common
i do 60 seconds warm up in summer and 30 minutes warm up when it is below -40 celcius. this morning, it was -44 celcius without wind chill. -47,2 Fahrenheit in chibougamau, quebec, canada. it is impossible to do start and go. first, your vehicle has to start. try starting an unplugged vehicle at that temperature. second, if you manage to start, the rpm is at 1800-1900rpm and does not want to go down for at least 30 minutes.
- Joined
- Dec 30, 2006
- Messages
- 29,558
I don’t like the way a freshly started cold engine will slam into gear while it’s still revving high. I’d think it would be hard on the transmission.
like many, i turn the key, give it about 30 seconds which is the time it takes me to plug my phone and buckle up. Basically, when it comes off high idle i go. I also do that with automatics because i hate how hard it jerks when you put it in gear. Then i start driving very gently, shifting around 2000 rpm with light throttle input for a few minutes and then gradually start driving normaly until the engine reaches operating temps which only takes 5 minutes at most. The only times i let it idle longer is when i have to defrost a windshield.
I used to be paranoid about that and let my cars idle for 5 minutes. if the SAE rating is ok for your car and climate there's no problem. 15W40 would be enough for me but i use 5W40 most of the time because i'm still a bit paranoid.
I used to be paranoid about that and let my cars idle for 5 minutes. if the SAE rating is ok for your car and climate there's no problem. 15W40 would be enough for me but i use 5W40 most of the time because i'm still a bit paranoid.
Have you seen houses on the sides of a single lane per direction road in a 40mph(sorry practically 55) zone?
Cool story
I am that guy, and you are obligated to "jam" on your brakes to slow down and drive legally at speed limit, especially if it is a one lane per direction. You make it seem you struggle to get past 25mph
I feel sorry for you
What do you consider short OCIs?
Similar threads
