My DH read an article that said you shouldn't allow a diesel to sit running in the driveway. Like allowing the car to warm up in the cool morning.
Is warming a diesel a bad thing?
Thanks

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Ginny in Denver-ish
78 300SD, 265K (mine)

Define "cool" When its 20 or lower I have to warm the SD or she goes no where. 5-10 minutes of idleing usually.

You really shouldn't get on the engine until it is up to temp. On the boats we usualy let them idle for a minute to clear their throat then keep the rpm's low until the oil warms up.

Cold oil plus a fast spinning turbo is a bad combo.

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1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

I warm up mine all the time. I cant really think of a reason it would do any damage. My wife usually starts the 240D about 5 minutes before she leaves in the morning too. If anyone has a good reason not to do this, please let me know.

Ever been on a road trip and stop at a truck stop? When it is below freezing and these guys pull over to sleep do you think they turn the trucks off?

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'88 Kawasaki KDX200
'71 Hodaka Ace 100
'72 Triumph T100R

GOOD POINT!!!

The article was about the VW TDI, I'm now told. That those are made to idle in a way that just barely keeps it started and that idling over a long time is bad for it. Don't know why.

But the trucks idleing overnight is a good point, thanks!

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Ginny in Denver-ish
78 300SD, 265K (mine)

Whats a DH - baseball player / designated hitter? The article is full of crap, probly written by an environmentalist whining about sulphur and dust in the atmosphere.

I usually fire up the 240D while coffee's still brewing. But be careful of oversetting the dashboard adjustable idle. Keep it really low if you use it at all, otherwise unburnt fuel will accumulate in precomb chambers and the engine will HIGH REVV as it warms up if you dont watch it.

i wait for the oil pressure to top off then motor on slowly. my machinist says no need to let it warm up, just go but not too vigorously right off.

but i dont see that it hurts anything to warm it up. when going on a trip in very cold weather i will but idling takes a long time to do much for cabin heat.

tom w

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Ginny in Denver-ish
78 300SD, 265K (mine)

That works too.

Diesels warm up very slowly when idling, as they consume so little fuel. You prolong the warmup by doing it at an idle.

That's not to say that you should get on it right away, of course, but note that these guys at the truck stops don't idle cold engines.

Looks like the negatives outweigh the positives there

Usually does. Idleing isn't good for any engine - the big trucks get away with it because they "high" idle their engines. I don't mind idleing it for awhile if the engine's been run for awhile, but usually I refrain. As for starts, I turn the key, wait for the gauges to be where they should be, then start driving. You want to get a diesel to warmup as fast as possible without going there too fast.

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- Brian


1989 500SEL Euro
1966 250SE Cabriolet
1958 BMW Isetta 600

all mine are sluggish in the cold so we try to get them started, a wake up if you will, before driving. we have also had them run all nite when the wind chill was real bad and starting in the morn was mandatory. always noce to have heat right away.

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currently
[1981 300 td tdidi 165500 dark brown/palamino-Brownie-mine-3k miles of ownership
1983 240d 162+++ Anthricite grey w/ henna red interior and hella lights-wifes car-Red

the above two cars are for sale
and can be seen on the cars for sale thread here. pix also available.


240d-144+ Manilla Yellow w/ palmino interior-greasecar kit-Blondie-the college kids car

23" gt 21 speed still on original tires-still got the nubs
21" khs tandem

In the old days, truckers & buses would cold idle a diesel engine to warm it up, because sometimes putting a load on a cold motor could pull a sleeve Not good, usually time to over haul if it happened. But that is no longer a concern.

Most Truckers you see ideling all night is to keep the heat or A/C running while their sleeping. Now with ideling laws, gen sets are being added to trucks to run heat and A/C. Plus I have seen it said that 1 hour of ideling is equal to 10 hours of warm pulling @ 60mph. So gen sets are saving ware and tare too.

A problem with cold idling is incomplete combustion and fuel getting past the rings and thinning the CC oil. Also wet stacking, where exhaust gases are not warm enough and condense on the valves, causing deposits to form and leed to improper seating. But cold stacking and pulling sleeves were/are problems in winter temps.

Best way to warm up the engine is to gently drive the car, so RPM's are above idle and the tranny fluid, rear end, wheel bearing grease, etc... come up to temp also. At idle diesels are not producing allot of heat.

POS is right on when he say's "High idle" also.

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