[Misc] Random question - do you warm you car engine up

[zefarelly]

I am offended

I love how some owners of diesels leave them to warm up before driving away as I’m not convinced they do unless you leave them for ages

Because they think the neighbours like the sound of clattery old truck engines and the smell of cancerous fumes? .

 

[zefarelly]

engineering tolerances closer,

A common misconception, although consistency is much better in modern engines so you don't need to run things in as carefully. 2 hours for a race engine.

Cosworth used to select their blocks from the Ford factory on the day the line boring machinery was recallibrated . . . . by the end of the week they would change slightly. Within tolerance, but not quite good enough for a racing engine.

building race engines is primarily attention to detail over and above standard factory, working tolerances for bearings and cylinder bores are all pretty much the same. Oils are much better, and protect much better. High quality mineral oils are also still available and very good. Particularly for older style engines. The Septics make most of that as they're still producing vast quantities of prehistoric engines.

 

[oxymoron]

The Septics ?

 

[BNthree]

The Septics ?

Septic tanks = Yanks.

 

[nwgull]

From really cold they do it is the cylinders/pistons that need to warm before they are under load or rev highly. Realistically however no one starts car and within 30 seconds is gunning it up the road.

Maybe if you live in the country, but anyone in a slightly urbanised area is going to be stop/starting for a good few minutes before they can put their foot down.

I'm an electric car owner now. Can't beat the timed pre-conditioning option and stepping into a toasty warm frost-free car on a cold winter's morning!

 

[Brian Parsons]

Depends on the time of year. Height of summer start engine as soon as you sit in car, by the time you've done up your seat belt, out a CD in, checked your hair in rear view mirror car will be ready to go. But on a sub zero morning brand new engine or not the viscosity of the engine oil will be no where near ready to go hurtling around inside the block, so yes a gentle tick over until the heaters are blowing warm air.
Also another point remembering in sub zero temperatures the catalytic converter wont be converting till that's hot, so for the first few miles of your journey your engine is chucking out crap of immeasurable proportions. Remember they were invented in California where the ambient air temperature is around 21C.

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[zefarelly]

Maybe if you live in the country, but anyone in a slightly urbanised area is going to be stop/starting for a good few minutes before they can put their foot down.

I'm an electric car owner now. Can't beat the timed pre-conditioning option and stepping into a toasty warm frost-free car on a cold winter's morning!

I was out accelerated by an I3 this morning. I was in the breadknifes Alfa Romeo, which with all the buttons pressed is no slouch. for work, I really should be looking into it.

 

[Icy Gull]

I was out accelerated by an I3 this morning. I was in the breadknifes Alfa Romeo, which with all the buttons pressed is no slouch. for work, I really should be looking into it.

Judas!

 

[WATFORD zero]

I was out accelerated by an I3 this morning. I was in the breadknifes Alfa Romeo, which with all the buttons pressed is no slouch. for work, I really should be looking into it.

I keep on thinking about the performance of electric but there is an element of selling your soul and they're all automatic. Really struggling with it

 

[zefarelly]

I keep on thinking about the performance of electric but there is an element of selling your soul and they're all automatic. Really struggling with it

I'm a staunch petrol manual man . . . . battling through Arundel and Worthing twice a day IS NOT ENJOYABLE DRIVING.

If I did go electric I still have a fleet of vintage tat to get my fix from.

 

[GREASED WEASEL]

I put mine in the garage this time of year

I do like to see where I'm going

Those people that scratch a little square out and set off

 

[Questions]

This. I have to reverse out of my drive, for starters, and then it’s a minimum 5 minutes of slow residential roads before I reach anywhere you could open up.

I’m ready to stand corrected by the petrolheads, but I’d imagine the need to warm up an engine is redundant in modern cars. Not that you’d have known it, from my **** of a (former) neighbour, who insisted on starting his car and leaving it chugging on the drive for a full ten minutes, at 6am every morning. The absolute cock.

When I was a little lad my dad threatened to thump one of our neighbours who did that on a regular basis..... Only because it used to affect the tv and he would be watching the racing.

 

[Questions]

When I was a little lad my dad threatened to thump one of our neighbours who did that on a regular basis..... Only because it used to affect the tv and he would be watching the racing.

.

....I still get edgy with delivery drivers stopping outside our house with engine running even though we've moved on with new TVs

 

[Marty McFly]

I warm mine up in the winter. Turn it on before breakfast and the snow and ice has all but melted away by the time I've got my boots, toque, gloves and coat on after breakfast.

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[zefarelly]

I put mine in the garage this time of year

I do like to see where I'm going

Those people that scratch a little square out and set off

a square is a right faff, 2 eye holes is much quicker and easier.

 

[zefarelly]

I warm mine up in the winter. Turn it on before breakfast and the snow and ice has all but melted away by the time I've got my boots, toque, gloves and coat on after breakfast.

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Do you get engine heater options over there ? I Kow some do in Scandinavia, if it gets that cold things seize up. even starter motors. batteries fail as well.

 

[Marlton and Hove Albion]

A few years ago, I was in Minnesota for a business meeting and the rental (VW Passat Petrol) was parked outside the hotel overnight. It got down to -34C and the wind was howling, so wind chill was frightening. I went outside in the morning with 100% expectation that the motor wouldn't move but it started up at the first turn of the ignition. A marvel of modern technology really. I imagine the oil was like peanut butter for the first 10 minutes.

2 Teslas now owned and operated, so no longer a concern but range does drop when operating below 5C

 

[Shropshire Seagull]

I believe modern fuel injected engines no longer need warming up, only carbureted engines do.

Wrong fluid chap - maybe confusing the old manual "choke" requirement for cold-starts?

Engine wear is a factor of lubricant [oil] not fuel [petrol/diesel] - unless you are referring to a fuel/oil mixed two-stroke.

Back in the mid-80's I took delivery of my first four-stroke race bike [GSXR 750] and attended a technical workshop at Suzuki's HQ in Croydon. One of the things that will live long in the memory that day is when they removed the cam-cover and started the engine from cold. It was almost 20 seconds on idle before ANY oil made it up from the sump to the camshaft. If you'd given it large-welly from stone cold I suspect the top-end would have seized. The point was also made about correct oil viscosity [thickness] - back then most 4-strokes were 10-40 & 20-50 but now 5-30 is more common - generally thinner oil, but with lots of synthetic additions to help it do a better job.

In essence - 30 seconds on tick-over and then 5 mins gentle load before full beans should be considered

 

[Birdie Boy]

I keep my cars dry stored at 62 F winter and summer.

How aged are they, I like mine at least 18. I also find that if you put them away upside down they stay moist![emoji3]

 

[zefarelly]

Wrong fluid chap - maybe confusing the old manual "choke" requirement for cold-starts?

Engine wear is a factor of lubricant [oil] not fuel [petrol/diesel] - unless you are referring to a fuel/oil mixed two-stroke.

Back in the mid-80's I took delivery of my first four-stroke race bike [GSXR 750] and attended a technical workshop at Suzuki's HQ in Croydon. One of the things that will live long in the memory that day is when they removed the cam-cover and started the engine from cold. It was almost 20 seconds on idle before ANY oil made it up from the sump to the camshaft. If you'd given it large-welly from stone cold I suspect the top-end would have seized. The point was also made about correct oil viscosity [thickness] - back then most 4-strokes were 10-40 & 20-50 but now 5-30 is more common - generally thinner oil, but with lots of synthetic additions to help it do a better job.

In essence - 30 seconds on tick-over and then 5 mins gentle load before full beans should be considered

proper engines have oil pressure gauges. like a heart monitor.

I've frazzled a few bearing due to oil surge in the past. If you have an accusump fitted to a race engine you can also use it to prime the oil system from a pressurised container on start up.

a high pressure competition pump will show oil pressure pretty quickly. but as you say, it takes 5-10 second even then to get up top. problem with some old engines is getting it down again when theyre revved hard!