how many people warm up their cars?

XxKHxX · 08-08-2005, 06:30 PM

Soooo how many people warm up their cars? what are the pros of warming up your car? if any?

Dantilla · 08-08-2005, 06:32 PM

Since I race my 944, it is important to have things pretty close to operating temp before the green flag drops and I go full throttle.

For street driving, I just take it pretty easy the first few miles.

livewirevoodoo · livewirevoodoo's Garage

these days? nope.

wintertime? sure... i take it easy till it warms up. basically until the heater vents are toasty. tranny feels sluggish otherwise.

swimmingly · 07:29 PM

From my understanding, the main purpose of warming up the engine is to promote longer engine seal life (and probably the engine as a whole since there probably is a point where oil can be too viscous to provide the lubrication it's suppose to - anyways, they go hand in hand). The engine oil warms up and thus, the oil pressure drops - promoting longer engine seals life because there's less pressure on them. Naturally, driving at higher rpms also increases oil pressure.

However, the oil takes FOREVER to warm up when the car sits idling.

So, what do I do? Start the car, start driving at low rpms (shift early if needed), and drive conservatively for the first mile or two until the oil warms up and I notice that the idle oil pressure drops down to around the 3 or 4 mark.

bryanthompson · bryanthompson's Garage

ditto the second part of swimminglys post. I watch for the oil pressure change as well, not the water temp.

Dantilla · 08-09-2005, 06:49 AM

The coolant heats up much faster than oil, so temp guage means nothing during warm-up.

One advantage of our oil being water cooled is that it helps warm the oil a bit quicker than air.

yellowline · 08-09-2005, 07:19 AM

Right now, my car runs a little rough when cold. I give it a minute at idle to clear its' throat, then I drive conservatively until the temp gauge reads normal.

Wintertime, I let the car idle for about 5 minutes while I scrape the windshield and such. Then I drive very conservatively until the car's warm. Even though I run Redline oil in my tranny, it acts sluggish...I've even felt a little grinding on a 1-2 shift before. Letting the tranny freewheel and gently gunning the engine in neutral seems to help a little.

CJFusco · CJFusco's Garage

in the winter i let it warm till it's just past the "cold" line

apparently the best way to warm a car is not to let it idle, but to drive it in the low RPM range until it is operating temp

will944 · will944's Garage

Same here....I run low RPMs, easy driving, until it's past the 1st white temp block. Then I will jump into the boost...

Zero10 · 08-09-2005, 07:46 PM

In the summer, I start the car, let my passenger (G/F) into the car, get back in, count to 30, then go. Take it easy until my oil pressure hits at max 3 bar when idling, I usually take it easy until it comes down to 2 bar. In the winter, I scrape the windows, etc, then take it easy for the entire trip. When it's -40C, the engine doesn't warm up fully, no sense in driving hard when your engine is cold.

ronin · 08-10-2005, 07:52 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by CJFusco
apparently the best way to warm a car is not to let it idle, but to drive it in the low RPM range until it is operating temp

exactly. the procedure is to start the car, wait until you have oil pressure and drive off. drive normally until the car is at normal operating temp, then have fun. but that also goes for the winter.

(unless, of course, it's 40-below outside)