Thoughts on Warm up Times?

[MegaMan]

Google says the proper amount of time for an engine to get to operating temps is about 30 seconds for a modern engine.

Now, maybe I’m more old school but I do a few minutes, 3 or 4 minutes or so on a cold start before driving off. Maybe I’m just wasting fuel…but I would think that you would want the engine temp, oil, hoses, drivetrain to get warmed up prior to taking off especially on a larger, higher HP engine.

Any ideas or thoughts on 30 seconds vs a few minutes on a cold start before driving?

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[robvas]

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[Starship Enterprise]

OK I'll bite....lol.

On a cool day, I'll idle for about a minute, and just go easy on it until it reaches full operating temp.

On a warm day I do the same except it warms up a lot quicker.

 

[Ewags81]

1/4 mile gravel driveway idle all the way in 1st gear ... just about right.

 

[MAT1955]

...... select and look at your gauges, that will tell you all you need to know.

 

[A.alansari]

the temp gauge shows baby blue color when I start the car when it changes color I drive
won't take more than a min I think

but I will drive normally around 2.5 to 3.5 rpm till the gear gets to around 80c which takes some time then I can do whatever

 

[Upacurb]

I watch oil temperature on my car.....limit RPMs until certain temps are reached......

 

[Interstellar]

I simply wait for the RPMs to kick down after starting before I get moving. Then pretty much romp it if i want

 

[GooberDH]

Usually the coldest it gets here is like 5-10F but windchill can take it to -20F. My 2004 Mach 1 I always started and let idle for like 20 minutes. Traded it with 175k miles, 135k of them were from me. Engine was still good and pulled hard as ever, no leaks or loss of compression. Just regular oil changes with Mobil 1 full synthetic 5w20. My S550 GT was a mix of letting idle until warm or taking off right away while keeping rpms below 3000, put 125k miles on it, just oil changes, no issue. I've decided with my Dark Horse I'll let it idle until the rpms drop then drive right away keeping revs below 3000. There doesn't seem to ever be a right answer to this so I'll stick with the theory of getting the engine to operating temp gently asap. Regardless of the season I keep revs low until oil reaches 180F.

 

[Skye]

I store my vehicle in the Winter.

From Spring to Fall,

After startup, I wait for the fast idle sequence to end. About 30 seconds. I don't feel there's a benefit to waiting longer. After that, I drive the car "normally". No hard pulls. No high RPMs. "High" defined by something greater than about 4K. No rapid shifts.

What I look for is the Cylinder Head Temperature (CHT). Skye's nominal CHT is 185 F / 85 C.

When the CHT is consistently at 185 F, I do as I like. Less than 10 minutes after start.

By the time the engine has stabilized, there's also heat in the other components of the drivetrain.

Could I start the car, let it idle, until it reaches 185? I could, but I think driving to get to temps is better. As mentioned before, it's not just the engine, but the drivetrain. Further, letting the car sit and idle for long periods, hot spots develop. The airflow while driving relieves that, while spreading the heat to other components, making for a more consistent operating environment.

 

[Zig]

Back in the day before seat warmers and electric whiz bang, would idle / drive gently until cabin heat was felt. As the temperature drops the initial warm-up time increases. Curled behind the wheel gently scooting (all ya’ll that ride bike with a windshield know what i mean) down the road until she’s warm enough to feel comfortable. At a minimum no romp (min amount) until coolant temp shows life.

 

[Alan Applegate]

Everyone will argue about this subject no matter what is said! The truth is, within seconds fresh oil has reached every moving part in a modern engine. Warmup used to be a very important attribute, but with today's oils and oil rings, not so much.

Here is a question for those who store their vehicles for the duration of the Winter: Why does Jay Leno have his vehicles driven several of times a year?

 

[jeffnudi]

I start the car an d wait until the phone connects through CarPlay, so I have music and Maps on the screen, then I go. I was just starting and going after a few seconds, but I eventually figured out that that seemed to be confusing the computers and that was when I would have a problem that would cause me to reset the screen. Ever since I started waiting on the screen - maybe 15 to 20 seconds - I have not had the issue with the screen not working. I don't worry about letting things warm up, but I also don't spend time in sub-freezing temps.

 

[Starship Enterprise]

Yeah, by the time the infotainment screen loads all the crap, the car is more than warmed up and ready to go....

 

[Redback]

I wait until it drops to normal idle rpms. Probably overkill, but I don't care. Higher idle rpms make stick shifts feel/sound weird, and I don't like it.

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