liencongtu
New member
I'm always heard from other people that you should warm up your car first for the cold weather. Is it neccessary? what are the benefits for that?
Warm up for the winter
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One of the main things is warming up the oil up so it is less viscous (more able to flow). I think its necessary to let it sit a few minutes before driving. Or if you are in a hurry don't hammer the throttle for a few miles, or until the coolant temp guage begins to rise.
In CO, its illegal to warm your car up. Its called puffing, and if a cop drives by your house and sees a running car in the driveway with no one in it you get a big fat ticket. This is because they want to improve air quality in the Denver area. Also, many people have their cars stolen right out of their driveway when they do this, so I guess this saves the headache of filing a bunch of stolen car reports on cold mornings. Whatever, I just warm mine up in the garage.
In CO, its illegal to warm your car up. Its called puffing, and if a cop drives by your house and sees a running car in the driveway with no one in it you get a big fat ticket. This is because they want to improve air quality in the Denver area. Also, many people have their cars stolen right out of their driveway when they do this, so I guess this saves the headache of filing a bunch of stolen car reports on cold mornings. Whatever, I just warm mine up in the garage.
greasefingers
New member
Wow did not realize this. Puffing! I drive my kids into school each day so I always warm it up for ten minutes before driving. But this is mainly for comfort. If it is less than 15 degrees F (or -9.4 C) outside, then I always warm it up with or with passengers.
The manual states that it is unnecessary to pre-warm your 4Runner and it is better to start driving it immediately to warm it up. My previous car I used to wait a minute or two before putting it into drive, but now after reading that I wait about 15 seconds for the rpms to stabalize in 4R and I am off, just easier on the gas than normal until the temp gauge starts creeping up.
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sharp4runr
New member
I warm up the truck a few minutes so the heat starts to circulate and I also take it easy the first few miles of driving. Letting the truck idle for a while is more of a comfort thing for me, I just want the heat when I jump in and so that scraping the glass is easier.
When it is warm I just turn the truck on, wait about 30 seconds and drive off. The main road is a few hundred hards of driving so I take it easy through the neighborhood before I merge into traffic.
When it is warm I just turn the truck on, wait about 30 seconds and drive off. The main road is a few hundred hards of driving so I take it easy through the neighborhood before I merge into traffic.
I had always heard that letting your car idle for a long time when you start it up is not good because the oil pressure is low due to the low engine speed, and so the bearings, seals, and contact surfaces don't get lubricated very well. This is compounded because much of the residual oil left on these parts when the engine was shut off tends to drip off until you start the engine again. All this can lead to premature wear on these parts. So the best idea is to drive slowly for the first few miles. Does that make sense?
boston_kevin
New member
Be careful... As mentioned before it is illegal in CO and MA (and most likely a few more states) to let your car sit idling in your driveway. Some of my co-workers were burned by this when then installed remote starters in their cars. After the $200 to install the starter, they also received another $50 each time they started their car remotely and the cop was watching.
I start mine and let it sit for about 1 minute. That gives the oil pressure enough time to stabilize and everything is nice and lubricated. I don't hammer the throttle, but I do have to get on the highway within one mile of work (when the engine is still cold).
I start mine and let it sit for about 1 minute. That gives the oil pressure enough time to stabilize and everything is nice and lubricated. I don't hammer the throttle, but I do have to get on the highway within one mile of work (when the engine is still cold).
Northof49
New member
If it's iced up or covered in snow......I let it run while I eat breakfast, that way it's all defrosted and warm when I take off.
Maybe 5 minutes ish. Hasn't blown up yet and this way I don't freeze my ass off/smash into things during the first while of driving.
This is another one of those issues where you really can't do any damage, as long as you're reasonable.
Maybe 5 minutes ish. Hasn't blown up yet and this way I don't freeze my ass off/smash into things during the first while of driving.
This is another one of those issues where you really can't do any damage, as long as you're reasonable.
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DarksideSurf
New member
OUTRNNR said:
Poor college kids like myself didn't have garages to warm up our cars...oh well. Colorado is Colorado. You take the good (women, powder, nice people) with the bad (cold, CU, road salt, no In N Out burgers).
I do miss Fort Fun though. Getting hammered on Tuesday nights at some dingy cowboy bar; that's something you can't really do here in LA without getting in the middle of a Hells Angels vs Mongol stab fest.
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Bobby
New member
OUTRNNR said:
Actually, that's not true. Oil thickens as it heats up because of the modifiers. 5w30 flows easier when it's colder (70degF vs 212degF).
From HowStuffWorks:
ToolmanJohn
New member
Sequence of Events
1) Start truck
2) Drive
Time between 1 and 2, about 6 seconds. I barely have time to see the garage door drop when I drive down the road.
And the truck is easily within 5 degrees of outside temperature, not a heated garage.
I have NEVER had a problem on any vehicle I've owned related to lubrication or reliability due to cold starts. I think pre-warming for the sake of maybe "harming" something is pointless. Multi-viscosity oil, and proper design.
However, if you live in -40 below land, an engine block heater is recommended
1) Start truck
2) Drive
Time between 1 and 2, about 6 seconds. I barely have time to see the garage door drop when I drive down the road.
And the truck is easily within 5 degrees of outside temperature, not a heated garage.
I have NEVER had a problem on any vehicle I've owned related to lubrication or reliability due to cold starts. I think pre-warming for the sake of maybe "harming" something is pointless. Multi-viscosity oil, and proper design.
However, if you live in -40 below land, an engine block heater is recommended
TRD04RUNNER
New member
warming it up on a cold azz morning is just wasting gas and time! thats why they make heated garage
: get in, turn the key,Waite till the clutch fan kick down (15sec) and off i go!:zoom:
: get in, turn the key,Waite till the clutch fan kick down (15sec) and off i go!:zoom:
greasefingers
New member
Gas is cheap and I have lots of time. Today it warmed up for 15 minutes, before I sat in her. All the windows were defrosted and the cabin was toasty. I did this for both of my SUV's this morning 
Not only that but I do it before leaving work as well.
Not only that but I do it before leaving work as well.
Northof49
New member
This guy speaks my languagegreasefingers said:Gas is cheap and I have lots of time. Today it warmed up for 15 minutes, before I sat in her. All the windows were defrosted and the cabin was toasty. I did this for both of my SUV's this morning
Not only that but I do it before leaving work as well.
boston_kevin
New member
According to the EPA excessive idling (more than 5 minutes) is illegal in these states:
Gasoline Vehicles:
AZ, CA, CO, CT, HI, MD, DC, MA, MN, MO, NY
Diesel Vehicles:
AZ, CA, CO, CT, HI, MD, DC, MA, MN, MO, MT, NV, NJ, NH, NY, PA, UT, VA.
I would expect more states to start adopting these laws after the recent findings by Nasa discussing global warming...
Actually they already have gotten more strict. Here is the latest laws from August 2005:
http://atri-online.org/research/results/idling_chart.pdf
Gasoline Vehicles:
AZ, CA, CO, CT, HI, MD, DC, MA, MN, MO, NY
Diesel Vehicles:
AZ, CA, CO, CT, HI, MD, DC, MA, MN, MO, MT, NV, NJ, NH, NY, PA, UT, VA.
I would expect more states to start adopting these laws after the recent findings by Nasa discussing global warming...
Actually they already have gotten more strict. Here is the latest laws from August 2005:
http://atri-online.org/research/results/idling_chart.pdf
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