Idle really harming the engine ?
 

Garaged my Porsche a month ago and already got a bad flat six withdrawal. I don´t want to subject her to our salty roads but I need to hear her grunt (yes, I am talking about the car).

Cranking her up without driving seems to be a cardinal mistake according to most people. Partly since a few minutes of idle will not get her hot enough to burn away condensation, partly since it seems idling, per se, would be harming the engine. Why is that ? Taxi cars spend a lot of time idling and they all seem to pile up a lot of mileage.

Way I figure, if you only let her idle long enough - say half an hour - it would prevent drying up rubber parts, hoses etc and still get hot enough to evaporate any moisture. Excluding the environmental issues, of course.

Would the battery get charged at the same time, or that needs driving ?

Or is this just blind stupid withdrawal talking nonsense ? ;)

Silly me, this probably belong in the Tech Forum. Move at will, moderators.

Idling is fine if the car's hot already. The problem is cold idle. The car runs so rich that fuel is washing down the cylinder bores, causing wear. So drive gently to warm up, then if you really want to idle for a while, you can.

Markus I feel your pain I am having the same withdrawl. Just think how great the feeling is gonna be this spring!

Riders of flat twins experience the same withdrawal! I am dyin' here!

It was nearly 80F here is SoCal today (global warming, I guess)... I went for a little spin with the targa top off...:D

Well, thanks Allen. That helped! :D

But seriously. I deduct from the first reply that running a cold engine (driving or idling) spells rich which hurts the engine. Now, driving will raise temps faster and therefore the harmful period will be shorter than if you let it idle till it gets hot. On the other hand I presume cooling will be less efficient at stand still idling.

So the difference in harm equals the difference in minutes for getting it hot idling as compared to driving. Right ?

Gee, I am really desperately seeking an equation/argument that will let me start her up without an anxiety attack. :D

My very first Porsche owner's manual, I remember, recommended that the car be warmed up by driving, under 4k until it reached temp. I always thought that it had something to do with air flow over the engine.

Why do you want to start it but not drive for 10 minutes a month?

Like I said, our roads are completely covered by salt now which I don´t want my twenty year old metal to be exposed to.

Oh well, suppose its back to the plan with the battery charger and total hibernation.

My previous '88 Carrera, the closest car I've had to yours, would NEVER get hot just idling in the driveway, so it was just futile trying to warm it up that way.

On the other hand, starting your car during winter is a small price to pay for preserving your sanity, so light it up for a few minutes. Seriously, you've got to do what you've got to do. :)

Disconnect the coil or dme relay and crank it to get the oil up to pressure first.

You weather must be different than I thought. We get a fair amount of snow here too, but there's generally 10 or more days a month when the roads are dry and (relatively) salt free.

As has been said, I would just let her sleep peacefully in the garage. My 911 is hybernating this winter with a new oil change, full tires, Stabil in the fuel, a dissconnected battery and a dust cover. I love the cold weather and snow, but miss the 911.

This and F1 give me something to look forward to the srping for :)

Edit: Definately use fuel stabilizer!

Markus,
I agree with Mike. Since you can't drive it anyway during the winter, why don't you just put it away properly and take it out when spring comes? Put it up on blockes, do as Mike says with some other things included like putting Stabil in the gas, fogging oil in the cylinders, put it up on stands, etc. Do a search. There have been a bunch of threads on the tech side regarding winter storage that will give you lots more suggestions.