Informal poll: warmup time?
 

Hi all:

I'm wondering how long folks "warm up" the engine before actually leaving the driveway.

This is one of my longstanding questions, and I've heard opinions ranging from big-rig drivers who idle for "at least" five minutes, to an elder family member who preached "never" warming an engine up, to Click & Clack who seem to say "it depends" and go off about warming the block unevenly. I've even called the local radio call-in (KCKK for those in Denver) who told me to idle for "at least two minutes" before driving.

So what do other people do? My '02 Golf seems happier with a minute or two of idle time, and the Merc won't move until at least two minutes in. Is this an easy way to make an engine last longer or does it cause more harm than good??

Thanks;
sga

I don't really warm them at all in the summer, maybe 15 seconds at most before I put it in gear. It takes about a 1/4 mile to get decent power, but they will certainly move immediately after starting. I tend to let them warm up for a few minutes in the winter, but that has more to do with getting a little heat in the cabin and the defrosters. I keep the rpm down to about 2500 until they start to warm up.

30 seconds or less. Engines wear the most when cold, they also take the longest time to get warm when running without a load (idle).

Get in, wait for the plugs, plug in your seatbelt, let the oil pressure reach "3" and drive away. Obviously, don't hammer on it until its warm.

I just go. What good is warming up the engine when the transmission doesn't warm up until you use it? I just take it easy until warm. On my Honda, I dbl clutch until warm, but I don't know if that actually does anything.

I give it maybe 10 seconds.

I turn the engine on, put on my seatbelt, get the radio where I want it or select what mp3 i want, then go.

I just do as the manual says, let the oil pressure stabilize, then pull off.

Turn on the engine, wait a sec until the oil pressure reach 3 and drive away. I don't do over 2000rpm if the engine hasn't reached ~85*c.

Getting warmer...
 

While the '85 glows, I buckle the seat belt and then start the engine. Since northern California never gets really cold (the locals think it does but I was raised in Wisconsin and know better), I usually glow for about 10 seconds. The garage is insulated and rarely gets below 40F; the engine starts immediately.

While the engine idles and the oil pressure comes up to 3+ bar, I press the button to raise the garage door. I back out and turn around, then move down the driveway. Since I live at the end of a 1/4 mile gravel road off of the paved highway, I keep my speed very low to minimize dust. It takes a couple of minutes to reach pavement, by which time the engine is almost warm enough to turn on the heater, if necessary.

The paved highway has a 55 MPH limit and I usually have to get up to speed fairly quickly. With the gravel road as a warmup drive, the car is always ready.

When I visit snow country in the winter, I glow until the relay clicks off (about 30 seconds) and idle for a couple of minutes before moving, then keep my speed down until the coolant temp starts to rise. If I lived in a colder climate, I'd modify my pre-glow system to provide afterglow.

Jeremy

No more than 5-10 seconds. Thats plenty of time for the oil to get around the engine. Besides which I have a dead GP so I normally have to wait 2-3 seconds for that cylinder to start firing.

The engine will come up to temperature much more quickly by driving it, than idling it. Not forgetting the transmission.

I glow the car for 15 seconds.. start it, buckle up, tune in to my fav radio.. check mirrors, then move out slowly (this is probably around 1-1 1/2 minutes). For about 2-3 blocks.. just let it run wihtout revving it.. then by the time i get out of our village, i'm all set for a good run..:D

30ish seconds.

15-20. That's how long it takes to find something decent on the radio.

I only "warm up" long enough for the engine not to stall when I put it in gear. That's about 3 seconds in summer and 15 seconds in winter (GA climate). As others have pointed out, warming up is wasteful and creates unnecessary wear, without really doing much warming up at all. Given that my 300td barely reaches 100C in Atlanta stop-and-go traffic when it's 100F outside (and there's no belt-driven fan installed and the electric fan is inop), I'd say these engines hardly generate enough heat at idle to do much warming up.

Not here in Texas - ever.

when oil pressure rises, I go. if it stumbles, I know a Glow plug isn't working.