warming up truck in winter weather?
 

it has been said that idling your vehicle while warming it up is one of the worst things you can do to your vehicle......but me and i am sure most people will say the vehicle runs much better and smoother when it is warmed up then if you just start it up and drive it. obviously the oil needs to heat up and thin out.

when the temperatures in the winter up here in new york are 30 or less, it will be ok to let it warm up 10 minutes atleast, right?

thanks

Even here in Texas, on cold morning, I let my truck warm up a little bit before driving. I think it is just better on the motor. When I say a little while I am talking like 5 mins max.

How is it not better for the motor? Is it better to jump in a Frozen car and immediatley putting the engine under load before it had a Chance to expand the tolerances and warm up the oil enough to flow better than mollasses?

~HJ

ya let it warm.. my ranger needed about 15 to be fully ready. my vic needs about 5

it depends on the size of the engine&the age

I always let my truck sit a little bit even when it's not cold out. I am not talking that long maybe only 30 sec. Just long enogh so that it kicks off high rev. before i go putting it into gear.

i don't really care what the temp, -5, 0, 5, 10+ my truck warms up for a max 30 seconds.

you don't gain that much from a new vehicle warming up in the winter.

now i don't go out an beat the piss out of it but i will gradually accelerate to my speed and after 2-3 stops its pretty much warmed up...

other things like tractors, diesels, equipment, etc they need to warm up but a new automobile it isn't required or a necessity.

The conceptuable reason that I've always heard is that is better to just start and go (easily, not pushing it), since it gets the oil pump pumping quicker, allowing for faster lubrication than just idling (warming-up). Regardless of what is right or wrong, if it's cold in the morning, I warm up the truck for 5-10 minutes before going and even then, I'm easy on it for a bit.

idling is a waste of fuel...

mine gets 15-30 sec every morning...

so is revving, but you see people do that all the time.

Hit it right on the nose for me. I do 30secs ansd as I go I'll gently get into the gas. But for the first 5 or 10 min I'll be driving like an old lady! :196:

Warming it up for more than 30 seconds is purely for comfort so you don't get into a cold truck. It doesn't take 5 minutes for oil to circulate.

yep the only reason i let it warm up is to start defrosting the windshield and warm the truck up... tis all...

not that often, but if it wasnt that big of a waste they wouldnt talk about no longer selling remote starters...

most new cars dont even show a sign of heat through the vents until it is driven.

takes my truck almost 20 min of idling before the T-stat opens on a cool morning.

I love my old truck idling for 5-6 min outside its blowing hot ass heat lol...

x3

and this is why i am adding a engine block heater.........that way at 3am when it is 7 degrees outside(has been like that here for the last few days) and jump in it to go on a fire run, the block and stuff is somewhat warm........

If you Don't let my truck idle for at least 5 minutes in the morning, you aren't getting very far. Heck it takes ten minutes to come off of high idle on it's own.

I still can't understand how it is better to put your vehicle under load before the oil even comes up to a temperature that will allow it to flow throughout the entire motor with a decent Flow rate. Here in MN some days you pull that dipstick out and it looks like maple syrup on the end of the stick.

I start my Buick about a half hour before I leave work and when I get up in the morning. It still doesn't reach operating temp till I am bout 15 minutes down the road, but these things run cold.

~HJ

I always let mine sit for about 20-30 seconds until the high idle drops no matter what the weather is. When it's under freezing, I may go start it up and go inside and grab a cup of coffee or a pepsi to take with me, but thats only an extra minute or so. Just take it easy for a few miles when it's cold out. If you are really concerned about it, buy an engine heater and plug it in at night like your diesel buddies have to.

I have remote start, so i use alot of gas in the winter letting it warm up, if its 30 or under i start it up while getting ready for owrk (5 min) still not warm inside but not as bad as cold...

When i leave work i start it up 5-10 min beforei clock out so i dont have to wait any longer at work...

i thought it said in the manual to only allow the ranger to warm up for a max of 2 minutes before leaving? tho then again, who wants to cruise around in an ice box? not me! i get heat with in 5 minutes so ill let it warm up first. i acutally prefer to melt the snow off the windows than to use my snow brush!

hot engine, cold transmission = premature wear on transmission?

Good info guys. I was actually just wondering about some of this stuff this morning while I was driving to work. Took the truck like 10 minutes to warm up so I got to wondering what the average was. Seems like I'm about on par with most other rangers.

no because it would be no different if you just jumped into the truck and took off......the tranny doesn't produce heat until it starts working.......and just because the engine is heated, it has nothing to do with the tranny.....

the tranny will gain some heat from the engine because of blow by hot air from around the engine...

Yeah the tranny fluid wont get any warmer by letting the motor warm up....But the oil deff needs thinned out in the cold before getting on the gas....Alot of people at work dissagree with me, but i dont care i take care of everything i own, and i hate scraping windows!!

Rocky

:stupid: