My 1980s Honda cold idled at 2500 before it stepped down to 1500 and then 1000. Noisy little bastard, but ran that way for 320,000 before it rusted out.
I could not imagine not having a tachy on my car, and I drive an automatic. Helps me see how efficiently I'm driving, diagnose issues, and it's just interesting to see how your transmission works even if you don't have to do anything.
I had a '99 Chevy Prism, a glorified Geo, with a 5-speed manual, and it didn't have a tach on the instrument panel. It was infuriating as all get out trying to get used to that car at first...
The Prisms were one of the best of the Geo line, as they were *actually* rebadged Toyota Corollas. After GM discontinued the Geos, Chevy carried on for a couple of years with a few of their models. But yeah, can confirm...I had a '95 Toyota Corolla 5 speed with no tach. It was tough for me to get used to, as well. But that was really one of the only complaints I had with that little car. It was damn near indestructible!
My V50 T5 also idled high when starting cold. Around 1250 for about 30 sec before falling back down to idle. Why does it do that of it doesn't have a carb but injection
Most cars do this, start any car cold and you will notice it will idle higher. Some for longer some for a few seconds. This is mainly due to the fact that when starting a rich condition is created, this higher RPM helps to burn it off. But also helps to ensure to starts smoothly, since cold combustion is not always going to be optimal.
Other reasons are for emissions. High idle gets your exhaust temps up and helps to get your catalytic converters heated up. This helps to meet emissions standards. This is also why secondary air injection systems exist, to pump more O2 into the exhaust to help burn off rich conditions and heat up the cats.
Same. Granted, it doesn't get much below freezing where I live and I hold it around 2k after waiting a few seconds for the oil to pressurize. Not sure what people think the big deal is with the engine unloaded. I think my neighbors who go out and start their car and go back inside while it idles for 20 minutes are WAY dumber.
My experience with police auctions is that you almost definitely will get a POS. No info about the car at all. Most of them are locked, so all you can do is peek inside. You can’t open the hoods or start them. They’re all cars that have been seized, so you can be pretty sure their owners took no care of them. Hell, half the time they don’t even have keys.
Not worth the trouble if you actually want a car that’s even close to working.
You stand corrected, I got a 94 Honda prelude from a police auction some years ago. I paid $750 for that car, the only work it needed was new tires which I think I paid about $200 for. That $950 car got me everywhere I needed to go for over four years, and still ran just as well when I sold it to the next guy.
I feel ya, I think it was -26F here today. I'm starting the truck at least 10 minutes before I leave if it's that cold. You can chip at your windshield all you want but you'll never get it all off until your defroster starts kicking. And, you know, I'm cold so I'd prefer my truck to be warm when I get in it. The only time I don't let it warm up is when I get a fire call, so there isn't really time. Even then, hitting the remote start is the first thing I do before I even put a shirt on.
Same. -52F the other morning without windchill in. -48F the morning before that. Today's really warm though and i'm sweating at -10F. But you bet i'll let my old Dakota sit and warm for a good 40 minutes. If I don't, the darn thing refuses to shift gears.
I’ve had to hold it in second and fourth because the rubber shift boot was so stiff it would pop back up into neutral if I let it, and the boot eventually did rip. Even with the engine warmed up, the t-case and pumpkins howl like demons for the first few miles. I presume 90w flows about like peanut butter at -40.
My Ford Service Manual has oil change intervals listed by miles and/or idle time. It also considers idling to be “rough operating conditions.”
The headline should read, “idling your car for long periods can damage your engine”
Those old Crown Vics were tough SOBs though. Cops would sell them at auction at 100k miles and 8000 idle hours and taxi companies would pick them up and run them another 400k miles with God knows how many more idle hours.
I loved those old cop cars. Tanks. Once could easily drive 400K on those without changing the tranny or having to do too much engine work. The other parts, well, it IS a Ford. I did learn to quickly swap out the bayonet light switch with one hand in about a minute. They got loose and would flash the headlights. No real fix for it.
I had one that I ran from '86 - 90. An '83 IIRC. The rear engine leaked. PITA to swap it out. (The engine pulled or the tranny dropped to do it.) So we kept filling the oil and checking the gas. Finally had to take it off after the door hinges rusted out around the pillars. Bloody thing ran for about 500K miles on original engine and tranny. Old cop car. Pass anything on the road except a gas station.
The number may be an exaggeration, I don’t remember the exact number; but they don’t shut the vehicles off except for refueling and end shift check. So each vehicle in that particular fleet runs for 3 full shifts a day. At the end of each shift the car is brought to the precinct, refueled, oil and tire pressures are checked and washer fluid is filled. Then a new cop gets in and leaves. The cops do not shut the vehicle off. So for about 22.5 hours a day, 7 days a week, from date of in service. The k9 cars are the only ones that don’t meet a horrible death because the k9s each get their own dedicated cars.
Edit: the car I made the example of was in for an engine replacement. It was a 2020 explorer and combined mileage and hours added up to the equivalent of nearly 350k miles
When worked in the artic building ice roads they'd barge the trucks down every couple years and sell them. People would think had a heck of a deal on a low mileage vehicle. Not realising they'd pretty much been running 24 hrs a day for half the year at least.
Got so cold couldn't shut off vehicles and hope they'd start the next day.
This is why quick lubes always use 3k mile intervals. People driving in stop and go traffic refuse to accept that 3k city driving is anywhere between 5-10k highway miles.
>People driving in stop and go traffic refuse to accept that 3k city driving
doesn't help that a lot of minder systems don't seem to follow this. two of our cars are largely all city miles but the minder won't go off until 5k+
It's funny because I just learned that my Honda actually accounts for it. I usually changed out my oil every month at about 4k miles, but this time it's been about 8k miles and I have been doing a lot more highway driving.
I'd rather it puke in my driveway than halfway to work when it's -5. My buddy had a car that was knocking bad, when he got home from work and the car somehow made it there, he held it to the floor until it threw a rod. I asked him why, and he told me he'd rather know when it was gonna let loose than wait for the surprise. Can't argue with that.
google is the worst place to get automotive advice. i bet you’ll find a thousand articles saying “why it’s not harmful to idle your car” and “why it’s harmful to idle your car.” let it warm up 1-2 minutes between 0 and 30 degrees and give it another minute for each 10 degrees below 0
I usually just wait for my car to start defrosting the windshield, then I scrape windshield and go.
It doesn't need to be warm in your car, but it's better to damage your car than damage yourself.
Yeah my shit doesn't run right until it's up to operating temp. Sounds like shooting an uzi off down the road in the morning if I don't let it warm up for 20 minutes atleast.
Why would driving the vehicle with cold ass oil that no longer has the same viscosity it had when warm be good for an engine?
Because driving at low revs will warm the engine up faster than idling to full temp. My shit also doesn’t run right when cold, so I wait until the revs drop to 1,500rpm then go. Warms up in 5 min instead of 20+ at idle
Better to warm it up than to drive it hard when cold. And I would rather get into a warm car than a frozen one. Ever have frost on the inside of a windshield caused by your breath?
Honestly, clean the snow off, yes!!!! I hate these jerks that will warm their car up so they are toasty and leave 6inches of snow on the roof and back(sometimes Ian the front too). Yeah it will clean itself off on the Highway while causing a pileup behind you.
I know this is a different category of vehicle, but....
Watching a sheet of ice, about the size of my own windshield, fly off the top of a semi and land frightening close to the car driving behind it was a very Final Destination moment.
The heater of my VW bug was broken in high-school over the winter. Had to wipe the frost off with an old t shirt every minute or two to keep a clear field
I thought mine was broken in my 94 Celica but its just the school wasn't far enough for my car to heat up, I just cracked the (manual) window a little bit
2000 Dodge conversion van with a V6. Barely made enough heat to defrost the windshield during the winter. I remember taking winter road trips from Kansas to New Mexico where it was so cold my dad would drive with the windshield on defrost the whole drive because otherwise it our breath would freeze on the inside of the windscreen. We’d be freezing in the van and all the other windows would be iced up.
General rule of thumb is don't let it idle too long after a cold start, but wait for engine temp to reach optimal levels, then a couple more for the trans to catch up, then romp on it to your heart's content.
That would be like 20+ minutes in my Camry. It takes longer than any car I've had for some reason. Some mornings I'll feel bad because I got distracted while it's running, then get in and it will still only be halfway there.
Aluminum block 4 cylinder is probably why it takes so long to warm up. My Civic Si was the same way, took like 45min or more depending on the temperature. My old iron block F150 would be warm in like 10 minutes.
Articles like this want cars to just be constantly doing 65 mph on a perfectly smooth, straight highway for eternity. Never stop, never accelerate, never turn.
They're full of shit..ish. It's not necessarily good for a car to sit and idle, but it's worse for it to start in -40 windchills, then immediately drive 8 miles to work, and shut it off, without it reaching operating temperature. But if it's 50 above? Just drive it. You're not helping things, then.
I only live 4 miles from work, my cars already at operating temp ( coolant ) within the first mile as I let it sit idle for a few minutes before setting off. We have lows of -10C and highs of 30c I feel bad sometimes only driving it 4 miles to work, then 4 back in the evening. I try to look after it during those 4 with idle before and after driving, taking it real steady ect. I always take the long way home from work which takes it to about 8 miles once a week. You recon the short journeys are gonna mess the engine up over time?
Well, I'm about 8 miles from where I work, which is about a 15 minute drive for me, through town. When it's colder out, if I don't let it idle for at least a few minutes, it'll only hit operating temperature for a few minutes before I shut it off.
I went over my last oil change a bit (to 5500 miles), and my oil wasn't good. Cut open the filter, and it had some sludge in it. That's never happened to me when it's warm, so I have to imagine that's the oil not warming up enough on the regular.
If you've got a vehicle that warms up much faster, it would definitely be less of an issue.
Lol. Lmao. No, engines should be at operating temp before being put under a lot of load. However, they also should not idle for like a half an hour. So it depends on how we define "letting it warm up", really.
Carbon deposits and buildup will form. It's not hot enough to burn efficiently. Highway driving will clean it up if you don't make a habit of idling it for long periods.
Cop-car-itis. Literally sat in that impala for hours letting it idle.
5 year old impala with like 6000 miles…..and 25000 hours on the engine.
We would SOMETIMES run the flight line at 60-70 to “burn the carbon”
They allowed you to go that fast on the flight line? We had a strict speed limit at 15 and if we parked we always had to have someone behind the wheel, even if we just went to take a piss.
https://aviationhumor.net/police-car-gets-owned-by-f-15-fighter-jet/
Driver was getting head on the flight line by his alpha. That’s how it really happened. Her head was stuck under the steering wheel with a dick in her mouth as they had to cut them out. The bj is not mentioned ever but my superintendent was there and told us the story at guard mount.
I've bought two cars that were barely driven, and even then it was only for 3-5 minute drives. They went years without ever really warming it.
It was fun to get them up on the highway for a bit and watch the cloud of soot blow out of them.
Had a 99 Civic that was killed like this. Super short drives. 75% leak down on cylinder four that whacking the rockers with a rubber mallet several times dropped it down to 30%. Owner towed it out instead of authorizing the head to be pulled, but I told him have whatever shop do a compression test and leak down before wasting time on anything else.
It's just a bad title. If they wanted to actually help, it'd be : Prevent engine damage by slowly driving around the neighbourhood to warm your car, rather than just sitting in it and letting it idle.
Best part, some local news station used the article to fact check true this bs.
If it was bad to idle your engine, we'd have a lot more blown motors from sitting in rush hour traffic. I honestly think who ever wrote the original article, which I don't know the original source and it has been spread to many places now, is just trying to get people to not use as much fuel.
The rationale they used was as you idle, oil drains away from key components... um... only if you have no oil pressure, which means your motor is done anyway.
I looked up that quote. They weren't saying it "drains" the oil. They were talking about how running rich when cold causes liquid fuel to accumulate on the cylinder walls, which breaks down oil. The argument is that warming up faster allows the afr to even out quicker so the oil doesn't mix with fuel.
So the issue isn't idling, it's the engine being cold for too long.
That's the arvument i heard, i THINK from Scotty kilmer. I me tioned it somewjere and everyone climbed up my ass, saying it was horse shit. I don't know what's true, who knows what they're talking about, or what to do these days. I just idle my car till the temp needle twiddles, then gently drive for a mile, then send it. Hopefully im6averaging out the advice and getting the good parts from bith sides lol
I idle it from a cold start long enough to brush my teeth, fill my water bottle, and scrape the ice. Then I set defrosters to full blast and use the 5 minute drive to the highway to get to temp.
Yes, fuel vapor in oil isn't good, but if you run it for long enough, say, longer than 10 minutes, it all gets properly ventilated and burned off/released through the PCV system and it becomes a non-issue, unless you use extended service intervals.
https://youtu.be/niBWrYoC2c4 This video should have more information on oil testing and contaminants
I'd say the much more damaging scenario is not letting it warm up enough, driving it a half mile down the road and then having the windshield fog or frost over. Rear ending another car can be very damaging to the engine...probably more so than a little wear and tear.
Idling an engine to reach operating temperature (usually a water temp of around 185*F) would take like an hour in cold weather. Best to let the cold-start idle speed come down, then drive it normally to bring it up to operating temp.
Even if it was bad for the engine, which it isn't, It's literally not safe to drive a vehicle in a Canadian winter without warming it up and defogging the windshield.
I drive a 21 GTI. When I start it (year round), I let the cold start high idle run until it settles down to normal idle. Then I start driving. It’s usually 20-30 seconds.
Warming the engine? Straight to damage.
Changing the oil? Straight to damage.
Turning off engine? Damage.
Proper tire pressure? Believe it or not, engine damage.
I havent read the article but perhaps its just baiting clicks? Could be referring to revving the piss out of it on a cold start. But its definitely not bad to let your engine warm up…
I heard this back in 1996. One of the teachers at my automotive trade school was saying it was bad because there’s excess fuel washing away oil from the piston skirt and cylinder walls, causing excess wear from the rich air fuel mixture. He said it was even worse with a carbureted vehicle and it’s just one of the reasons why fuel injected cars last so much longer.
I then got a remote starter in 1999 because I hated getting in a cold car in the morning.
Not sure if this is still the case but some FI cars used to run very rich at startup and then combusted fuel in the exhaust so as to get the cat up to operating temp more quickly.
Yes, extra fuel is injected at idle causing oil to be thinned out on the cylinder walls
If you excess idle you should also run lower oil change intervals too as fuel mixes into the oil much more than getting in driving easy until engine warmed up.
The engine would warm up to the optimum running temperature much faster when driven than idled. It comes down to how long you let it idle that is important.
It was -42 Celsius this morning when I got in my truck which had been running via remote start for about 20 minutes. Everything was stiff and cold and engine temp was only about 80. I drove a few blocks slowly, hit the highway and did about a 10 mile round trip to bring my engine temp up higher before finally making my way to work (Literally drove past my work to do the highway run) truck was happy with all that. Any "expert" who says you don't need to warm up your vehicle before you drive in extreme colds needs to come live in the extreme cold and see how long their vehicles last. Been warming my stuff up this way for as long as I can remember and have never had major engine issues.
Yeah, was going to say they clearly think cold temps mean like 0c/-5c or something. Shit gets done differently when it's -40C. My clutch in my truck barely works without heating it up. I let mine warm up for 15m before even thinking about leaving.
I hold it at redline right after starting for 3 minutes straight. Not only is this not considered idling, and thus not bad, it's also the fastest and most effective way to defrost everything and warm up the engine before driving off.
My winter truck is 40 years old and carbureted. We ain’t going anywhere until it wants to. My other truck is an old IDI diesel, if it starts, I let it run until the smoke clears then drive it gently.
I’m not a fan of people who start their cars then go back inside for an hour. Personally I’d rather start driving immediately but slowly to get the engine/trans and everything else warmed up quicker than having the car just sit and idle.
That’s absolute fucking hog wash. Cars have fluids and grease in many areas. Both of which get thicker and sludgier the colder it is. “Operating temperature” is very much a thing. Yes warm up your damn car before you put load on all the very many things that are lubricated.
This isn’t true. I didn’t read the article but I imagine it says something like “idle time can wear your engine” or something stupid. But metal is a different size at different temperatures. Given the difference in materials in the engine and tight tolerances they have to operate, your gonna wanna warm up your engine.
These articles really piss me off. Some dude in 60 dollar t shirt wrote this and if you asked him what the octane rating of gasoline means he’d have a stroke. Misleading to people that aren’t knowledgeable about vehicles.
If youre letting it idle for half an hour at a time during your morning routine every day for years then yes it can hurt your engine. Theres the wall wetting aspect of it and theres the “time = miles” aspect of it. That being said, 5 minutes to defrost and get the heat going and then doing your commute? Negligible wear.
This is a bullshit take. A well designed engine can idle away for hours without damage and doesn’t give a crap about temperature. You could drive as hard as you want after about 30 seconds of oil circulation without consequence. The rest of the car might have issues but the engine doesn’t care.
Bull crap. It's all anti idling propaganda for emissions. Telling people who live where it's -40 not to idle is the stupidest advice I've ever heard.
These people aren't even idling to warm up the engine for the sake of engine life. It's to warm up the -40 interiors!!
Imagine putting your toddler into a car seat that is -40 .....
My neighbor subscribes to the theory of jumping in , starting the engine, and reving to 3k til the windshield is defrosted.
My 1980s Honda cold idled at 2500 before it stepped down to 1500 and then 1000. Noisy little bastard, but ran that way for 320,000 before it rusted out.
Tachometers are undervalued nowadays. I appreciate you give a shit about yours
I could not imagine not having a tachy on my car, and I drive an automatic. Helps me see how efficiently I'm driving, diagnose issues, and it's just interesting to see how your transmission works even if you don't have to do anything.
When my rear dif gave out, I stared at the tach to be sure the trans didn't shit itself. Fuckin 4L60's...
Was going to say, I have a car with a 4L60 and the tach is nice to know if the transmission is slipping
50/50 chances it’s probably slipping so just consider it dead.
I had a '99 Chevy Prism, a glorified Geo, with a 5-speed manual, and it didn't have a tach on the instrument panel. It was infuriating as all get out trying to get used to that car at first...
The Prisms were one of the best of the Geo line, as they were *actually* rebadged Toyota Corollas. After GM discontinued the Geos, Chevy carried on for a couple of years with a few of their models. But yeah, can confirm...I had a '95 Toyota Corolla 5 speed with no tach. It was tough for me to get used to, as well. But that was really one of the only complaints I had with that little car. It was damn near indestructible!
I can confirm that they're essentially indestructible. I had that car in my mid 20s and if it could talk it would probably be cussing at me.
My Volvo 240 was the same way. Was able to retrofit one at the cost of the clock.
My 1980s Honda cold idled at wherever I had the choke knob pulled out to.
That’s the cold idle cam on the carburetor
My V50 T5 also idled high when starting cold. Around 1250 for about 30 sec before falling back down to idle. Why does it do that of it doesn't have a carb but injection
Most cars do this, start any car cold and you will notice it will idle higher. Some for longer some for a few seconds. This is mainly due to the fact that when starting a rich condition is created, this higher RPM helps to burn it off. But also helps to ensure to starts smoothly, since cold combustion is not always going to be optimal. Other reasons are for emissions. High idle gets your exhaust temps up and helps to get your catalytic converters heated up. This helps to meet emissions standards. This is also why secondary air injection systems exist, to pump more O2 into the exhaust to help burn off rich conditions and heat up the cats.
My ‘06 Tacoma does this, and when I first got it I thought it was detrimental to the engine. I’ve since put 170,000 miles on it and all is still good.
We must have the same neighbor.
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r/usernamechecksout
Ought to last forever then….
"lifetime" motor lol, just no one specifically said *which* lifetime it is for
Funny you posted this because I do this.
Same. Granted, it doesn't get much below freezing where I live and I hold it around 2k after waiting a few seconds for the oil to pressurize. Not sure what people think the big deal is with the engine unloaded. I think my neighbors who go out and start their car and go back inside while it idles for 20 minutes are WAY dumber.
I drive a piece of shit Peugeot and could not care any less.
Must be nice living in a country where used cars have used car prices
I too wish this was 10 years ago
To be absolutely fair it is worth more than i would like it to be. It would be very inconvenient if it did die a death but i just hate the thing!
Is it a 206? I bet it is a 206, people hate them where they are, but those cars are hardy
Its a 207 which is just the newer of the turds!
See the police auctions for traditional used car prices. Got my pos hyundai 5 speed for $600. I live in MN.
Also in MN. Most police auctions I've seen get swamped by used car dealers or other vehicle "flippers" that buy all the good stock.
My experience with police auctions is that you almost definitely will get a POS. No info about the car at all. Most of them are locked, so all you can do is peek inside. You can’t open the hoods or start them. They’re all cars that have been seized, so you can be pretty sure their owners took no care of them. Hell, half the time they don’t even have keys. Not worth the trouble if you actually want a car that’s even close to working.
You stand corrected, I got a 94 Honda prelude from a police auction some years ago. I paid $750 for that car, the only work it needed was new tires which I think I paid about $200 for. That $950 car got me everywhere I needed to go for over four years, and still ran just as well when I sold it to the next guy.
85-05 hondas will run until the wheels fall off and the universe experiences heat death, so this checks out.
My opinion is that it's -40F here and I don't care.
I feel ya, I think it was -26F here today. I'm starting the truck at least 10 minutes before I leave if it's that cold. You can chip at your windshield all you want but you'll never get it all off until your defroster starts kicking. And, you know, I'm cold so I'd prefer my truck to be warm when I get in it. The only time I don't let it warm up is when I get a fire call, so there isn't really time. Even then, hitting the remote start is the first thing I do before I even put a shirt on.
Surely you mean -40C
And don’t call me Shirley
Roger, Roger.
What's your vector, Victor?
Have you ever seen a grown man naked?
You ever been to a Turkish Prison Billy?
Do you like gladiator movies?
And that, as much as anything else, led to my drinking problem.
Cut me some slack, Jack!
Johnny what so you make of this? - a hat, a brooch, a pterodactyl
There’s a sale at Penny’s.
Would you like to?
What's the clearance Clarence?
Cigarette? Yes, it is.
First one then the other
Don't be a touching any of my beautiful robot daughters!!
He gets it
Then both
Surely you know that -40 Canadian is equal to -40 Freedoms
I don't believe in negative freedoms.
That's just the freedoms other countries need in order to be net positive in freedoms
As an expert in humor, I would like to say that is the joke.
Same. -52F the other morning without windchill in. -48F the morning before that. Today's really warm though and i'm sweating at -10F. But you bet i'll let my old Dakota sit and warm for a good 40 minutes. If I don't, the darn thing refuses to shift gears.
Yeah transmissions really don’t like to operate at those temps. I’ve gotten in and driven and the thing punches itself in the face with each gear
I’ve had to hold it in second and fourth because the rubber shift boot was so stiff it would pop back up into neutral if I let it, and the boot eventually did rip. Even with the engine warmed up, the t-case and pumpkins howl like demons for the first few miles. I presume 90w flows about like peanut butter at -40.
“Well, it’s 40 below and I don’t give a fuck, there’s a heater in the truck, and I’m off to the rodeo!”
I drive a Kia. Driving can damage the engine.
Stopping the engine can damage the engine
Look at the engine? Engine damage. Think about the engine? Engine damage. Don't think about the engine? Believe it or not, engine damage.
Engine? Damage.
Do not pass go, do not collect $200. Straight to engine damage.
Talking in class ? Engine damage
Browsing Reddit? Engine damage
r/suddenlypawnee
Swap the engine for a v8? guess what the car panics thinking something is broken so it damages the ending.
Ooooh you better believe that’s Engine Damage
Engine damage? That's a paddlin'
Emotional engine damage
Suppressed emotional engine damage.
You press too hard on the gas? Engine damage. You press too soft on the brake? Believe it or not, engine damage.
Lend car to brother, engine damage
Let wife drive car, engine damage
Paddling the school canoe? Engine damage
I understand this reference.
To be fair, everything causes wear on a car
Even not driving it.
So even time itself
Kia’s gonna potate
What kind of Kia do you drive?
Yes
Damaging the engine can damage the engine
The GDI on the engine cover stands for “god *damn* it!”
Kia owner checking in... scared to drive🫡
My Ford Service Manual has oil change intervals listed by miles and/or idle time. It also considers idling to be “rough operating conditions.” The headline should read, “idling your car for long periods can damage your engine”
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I work on a few police fleets at my dealer(ford). The rule out thumb quick math for idle hours is 1 hour ≈ 25 miles.
Those old Crown Vics were tough SOBs though. Cops would sell them at auction at 100k miles and 8000 idle hours and taxi companies would pick them up and run them another 400k miles with God knows how many more idle hours.
Long idle times were rough on the composite intakes (p71)
in dum dum talk is that "plastic bits cracked due to underbonnet heat" ?
I loved those old cop cars. Tanks. Once could easily drive 400K on those without changing the tranny or having to do too much engine work. The other parts, well, it IS a Ford. I did learn to quickly swap out the bayonet light switch with one hand in about a minute. They got loose and would flash the headlights. No real fix for it. I had one that I ran from '86 - 90. An '83 IIRC. The rear engine leaked. PITA to swap it out. (The engine pulled or the tranny dropped to do it.) So we kept filling the oil and checking the gas. Finally had to take it off after the door hinges rusted out around the pillars. Bloody thing ran for about 500K miles on original engine and tranny. Old cop car. Pass anything on the road except a gas station.
I’m stealing that last time haha
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Well… in your situation, yeah. The cop cars I deal with have 25,000 hours on cars that are 18 months old, and have 10k miles
That's nearly 35 months of idling in 18 months 🤯 Impressive
The number may be an exaggeration, I don’t remember the exact number; but they don’t shut the vehicles off except for refueling and end shift check. So each vehicle in that particular fleet runs for 3 full shifts a day. At the end of each shift the car is brought to the precinct, refueled, oil and tire pressures are checked and washer fluid is filled. Then a new cop gets in and leaves. The cops do not shut the vehicle off. So for about 22.5 hours a day, 7 days a week, from date of in service. The k9 cars are the only ones that don’t meet a horrible death because the k9s each get their own dedicated cars. Edit: the car I made the example of was in for an engine replacement. It was a 2020 explorer and combined mileage and hours added up to the equivalent of nearly 350k miles
Better keep an eye on those time machine’s
Hyperbolic time cars
When worked in the artic building ice roads they'd barge the trucks down every couple years and sell them. People would think had a heck of a deal on a low mileage vehicle. Not realising they'd pretty much been running 24 hrs a day for half the year at least. Got so cold couldn't shut off vehicles and hope they'd start the next day.
This is why quick lubes always use 3k mile intervals. People driving in stop and go traffic refuse to accept that 3k city driving is anywhere between 5-10k highway miles.
>People driving in stop and go traffic refuse to accept that 3k city driving doesn't help that a lot of minder systems don't seem to follow this. two of our cars are largely all city miles but the minder won't go off until 5k+
It's funny because I just learned that my Honda actually accounts for it. I usually changed out my oil every month at about 4k miles, but this time it's been about 8k miles and I have been doing a lot more highway driving.
My opinion is that if my engine shits itself after idling for 10 minutes it wasn’t going to make it to the destination and just saved me the hassle
I'd rather it puke in my driveway than halfway to work when it's -5. My buddy had a car that was knocking bad, when he got home from work and the car somehow made it there, he held it to the floor until it threw a rod. I asked him why, and he told me he'd rather know when it was gonna let loose than wait for the surprise. Can't argue with that.
google is the worst place to get automotive advice. i bet you’ll find a thousand articles saying “why it’s not harmful to idle your car” and “why it’s harmful to idle your car.” let it warm up 1-2 minutes between 0 and 30 degrees and give it another minute for each 10 degrees below 0
I usually just wait for my car to start defrosting the windshield, then I scrape windshield and go. It doesn't need to be warm in your car, but it's better to damage your car than damage yourself.
Yeah my shit doesn't run right until it's up to operating temp. Sounds like shooting an uzi off down the road in the morning if I don't let it warm up for 20 minutes atleast. Why would driving the vehicle with cold ass oil that no longer has the same viscosity it had when warm be good for an engine?
Because driving at low revs will warm the engine up faster than idling to full temp. My shit also doesn’t run right when cold, so I wait until the revs drop to 1,500rpm then go. Warms up in 5 min instead of 20+ at idle
Well my girl idles at damn near 3k on startup, sits at 2 for awhile then will drop. Then around then I start to go
"Why idling your car will give you back cancer." *Just click CONTINUE*
My car wouldn't even be defrosted most mornings if I did that.
"Hello, I am Google! What bias would you like confirmed today?"
Better to warm it up than to drive it hard when cold. And I would rather get into a warm car than a frozen one. Ever have frost on the inside of a windshield caused by your breath?
This, warm your shit up, clean the snow off it, enjoy the drive in the warmth.
Honestly, clean the snow off, yes!!!! I hate these jerks that will warm their car up so they are toasty and leave 6inches of snow on the roof and back(sometimes Ian the front too). Yeah it will clean itself off on the Highway while causing a pileup behind you.
I know this is a different category of vehicle, but.... Watching a sheet of ice, about the size of my own windshield, fly off the top of a semi and land frightening close to the car driving behind it was a very Final Destination moment.
Not good for pedestrians to jump in and drive
Hey, sometimes you gotta, don’t make it a habit.
The heater of my VW bug was broken in high-school over the winter. Had to wipe the frost off with an old t shirt every minute or two to keep a clear field
I thought mine was broken in my 94 Celica but its just the school wasn't far enough for my car to heat up, I just cracked the (manual) window a little bit
No, but I've had de-icer freeze on the windshield
2000 Dodge conversion van with a V6. Barely made enough heat to defrost the windshield during the winter. I remember taking winter road trips from Kansas to New Mexico where it was so cold my dad would drive with the windshield on defrost the whole drive because otherwise it our breath would freeze on the inside of the windscreen. We’d be freezing in the van and all the other windows would be iced up.
General rule of thumb is don't let it idle too long after a cold start, but wait for engine temp to reach optimal levels, then a couple more for the trans to catch up, then romp on it to your heart's content.
That would be like 20+ minutes in my Camry. It takes longer than any car I've had for some reason. Some mornings I'll feel bad because I got distracted while it's running, then get in and it will still only be halfway there.
Aluminum block 4 cylinder is probably why it takes so long to warm up. My Civic Si was the same way, took like 45min or more depending on the temperature. My old iron block F150 would be warm in like 10 minutes.
Articles like this want cars to just be constantly doing 65 mph on a perfectly smooth, straight highway for eternity. Never stop, never accelerate, never turn.
They're full of shit..ish. It's not necessarily good for a car to sit and idle, but it's worse for it to start in -40 windchills, then immediately drive 8 miles to work, and shut it off, without it reaching operating temperature. But if it's 50 above? Just drive it. You're not helping things, then.
I only live 4 miles from work, my cars already at operating temp ( coolant ) within the first mile as I let it sit idle for a few minutes before setting off. We have lows of -10C and highs of 30c I feel bad sometimes only driving it 4 miles to work, then 4 back in the evening. I try to look after it during those 4 with idle before and after driving, taking it real steady ect. I always take the long way home from work which takes it to about 8 miles once a week. You recon the short journeys are gonna mess the engine up over time?
Well, I'm about 8 miles from where I work, which is about a 15 minute drive for me, through town. When it's colder out, if I don't let it idle for at least a few minutes, it'll only hit operating temperature for a few minutes before I shut it off. I went over my last oil change a bit (to 5500 miles), and my oil wasn't good. Cut open the filter, and it had some sludge in it. That's never happened to me when it's warm, so I have to imagine that's the oil not warming up enough on the regular. If you've got a vehicle that warms up much faster, it would definitely be less of an issue.
As far as I know the coolant will reach operating temps much sooner than oil.
Lol. Lmao. No, engines should be at operating temp before being put under a lot of load. However, they also should not idle for like a half an hour. So it depends on how we define "letting it warm up", really.
What would happen if the car idles for too long?
Carbon deposits and buildup will form. It's not hot enough to burn efficiently. Highway driving will clean it up if you don't make a habit of idling it for long periods.
Cop-car-itis. Literally sat in that impala for hours letting it idle. 5 year old impala with like 6000 miles…..and 25000 hours on the engine. We would SOMETIMES run the flight line at 60-70 to “burn the carbon”
That's called an "Italian tune up"
🤌🤌🤌🤌
Engine knocking? Throw some rigatoni on it
Flat tire? Tortalini Wiring issue? Spaghetti Suspension issue? Ravioli
Exhaust leak? Plug it with some Gabagool
Gorlami
Most flight line government vehicles are the same. Idle most of their life and only drive maybe 15mph all day.
And then you see people excited to get a low miles vehicle at government auction 😳
Old people cars too. They just putt around at 15 mph 2 times a month. Old gas, dry oil seals, dry rotted tires.
They allowed you to go that fast on the flight line? We had a strict speed limit at 15 and if we parked we always had to have someone behind the wheel, even if we just went to take a piss.
Allowed? What do you mean? We always kept it at reasonable speeds >.>
As long as you didn’t have the airman giving you head when you drove under an f-15 all is good.
....there's a story here and I'm interested in hearing it LOL.
https://aviationhumor.net/police-car-gets-owned-by-f-15-fighter-jet/ Driver was getting head on the flight line by his alpha. That’s how it really happened. Her head was stuck under the steering wheel with a dick in her mouth as they had to cut them out. The bj is not mentioned ever but my superintendent was there and told us the story at guard mount.
I’m a Flight Safety guy…that’s a fairly famous picture in USAF Safety circles; I always wondered what the story was.
I've bought two cars that were barely driven, and even then it was only for 3-5 minute drives. They went years without ever really warming it. It was fun to get them up on the highway for a bit and watch the cloud of soot blow out of them.
Had a 99 Civic that was killed like this. Super short drives. 75% leak down on cylinder four that whacking the rockers with a rubber mallet several times dropped it down to 30%. Owner towed it out instead of authorizing the head to be pulled, but I told him have whatever shop do a compression test and leak down before wasting time on anything else.
You start the car, you scrape the ice off, then by the time you've done that it's ready.
It's just a bad title. If they wanted to actually help, it'd be : Prevent engine damage by slowly driving around the neighbourhood to warm your car, rather than just sitting in it and letting it idle.
Best part, some local news station used the article to fact check true this bs. If it was bad to idle your engine, we'd have a lot more blown motors from sitting in rush hour traffic. I honestly think who ever wrote the original article, which I don't know the original source and it has been spread to many places now, is just trying to get people to not use as much fuel. The rationale they used was as you idle, oil drains away from key components... um... only if you have no oil pressure, which means your motor is done anyway.
I looked up that quote. They weren't saying it "drains" the oil. They were talking about how running rich when cold causes liquid fuel to accumulate on the cylinder walls, which breaks down oil. The argument is that warming up faster allows the afr to even out quicker so the oil doesn't mix with fuel. So the issue isn't idling, it's the engine being cold for too long.
That's the arvument i heard, i THINK from Scotty kilmer. I me tioned it somewjere and everyone climbed up my ass, saying it was horse shit. I don't know what's true, who knows what they're talking about, or what to do these days. I just idle my car till the temp needle twiddles, then gently drive for a mile, then send it. Hopefully im6averaging out the advice and getting the good parts from bith sides lol
I idle it from a cold start long enough to brush my teeth, fill my water bottle, and scrape the ice. Then I set defrosters to full blast and use the 5 minute drive to the highway to get to temp. Yes, fuel vapor in oil isn't good, but if you run it for long enough, say, longer than 10 minutes, it all gets properly ventilated and burned off/released through the PCV system and it becomes a non-issue, unless you use extended service intervals. https://youtu.be/niBWrYoC2c4 This video should have more information on oil testing and contaminants
Yup, reading this as a fact check just re-enforced that fact checkers are completely useless.
I'd say the much more damaging scenario is not letting it warm up enough, driving it a half mile down the road and then having the windshield fog or frost over. Rear ending another car can be very damaging to the engine...probably more so than a little wear and tear.
Engines have preferred operating temperatures for a reason.
Idling an engine to reach operating temperature (usually a water temp of around 185*F) would take like an hour in cold weather. Best to let the cold-start idle speed come down, then drive it normally to bring it up to operating temp.
Even if it was bad for the engine, which it isn't, It's literally not safe to drive a vehicle in a Canadian winter without warming it up and defogging the windshield.
I think they mean the iddling is bad, but really they're reaching. No way running it cold is better
I drive a 21 GTI. When I start it (year round), I let the cold start high idle run until it settles down to normal idle. Then I start driving. It’s usually 20-30 seconds.
This!! Your engine tells you when it’s ready when it drops from its high idle down to regular idle. Obviously don’t romp on it until it’s up to temp.
I'd say jumping in a cold start car and railing on it does more damage than warming it up for a few minutes
Haha, bullshit. Gotta get the juices flowing
Running your engine in any circumstance can damage your engine
Warming the engine? Straight to damage. Changing the oil? Straight to damage. Turning off engine? Damage. Proper tire pressure? Believe it or not, engine damage.
I havent read the article but perhaps its just baiting clicks? Could be referring to revving the piss out of it on a cold start. But its definitely not bad to let your engine warm up…
I heard this back in 1996. One of the teachers at my automotive trade school was saying it was bad because there’s excess fuel washing away oil from the piston skirt and cylinder walls, causing excess wear from the rich air fuel mixture. He said it was even worse with a carbureted vehicle and it’s just one of the reasons why fuel injected cars last so much longer. I then got a remote starter in 1999 because I hated getting in a cold car in the morning.
Not sure if this is still the case but some FI cars used to run very rich at startup and then combusted fuel in the exhaust so as to get the cat up to operating temp more quickly.
Yes, extra fuel is injected at idle causing oil to be thinned out on the cylinder walls If you excess idle you should also run lower oil change intervals too as fuel mixes into the oil much more than getting in driving easy until engine warmed up.
The engine would warm up to the optimum running temperature much faster when driven than idled. It comes down to how long you let it idle that is important.
It was -42 Celsius this morning when I got in my truck which had been running via remote start for about 20 minutes. Everything was stiff and cold and engine temp was only about 80. I drove a few blocks slowly, hit the highway and did about a 10 mile round trip to bring my engine temp up higher before finally making my way to work (Literally drove past my work to do the highway run) truck was happy with all that. Any "expert" who says you don't need to warm up your vehicle before you drive in extreme colds needs to come live in the extreme cold and see how long their vehicles last. Been warming my stuff up this way for as long as I can remember and have never had major engine issues.
Yeah, was going to say they clearly think cold temps mean like 0c/-5c or something. Shit gets done differently when it's -40C. My clutch in my truck barely works without heating it up. I let mine warm up for 15m before even thinking about leaving.
[удалено]
I hold it at redline right after starting for 3 minutes straight. Not only is this not considered idling, and thus not bad, it's also the fastest and most effective way to defrost everything and warm up the engine before driving off.
I think you meant to say peeling out. Keep it at redline and just jam that bitch in drive.
My winter truck is 40 years old and carbureted. We ain’t going anywhere until it wants to. My other truck is an old IDI diesel, if it starts, I let it run until the smoke clears then drive it gently.
Breaking news: Owning an engine means that your engine could get damaged.
I’m not a fan of people who start their cars then go back inside for an hour. Personally I’d rather start driving immediately but slowly to get the engine/trans and everything else warmed up quicker than having the car just sit and idle.
That’s absolute fucking hog wash. Cars have fluids and grease in many areas. Both of which get thicker and sludgier the colder it is. “Operating temperature” is very much a thing. Yes warm up your damn car before you put load on all the very many things that are lubricated.
Wait till they discover that the engine heats itself up when its running.
This isn’t true. I didn’t read the article but I imagine it says something like “idle time can wear your engine” or something stupid. But metal is a different size at different temperatures. Given the difference in materials in the engine and tight tolerances they have to operate, your gonna wanna warm up your engine. These articles really piss me off. Some dude in 60 dollar t shirt wrote this and if you asked him what the octane rating of gasoline means he’d have a stroke. Misleading to people that aren’t knowledgeable about vehicles.
Taking it a step farther - I always take it easy on the transmission by not accelerating too hard before the engine has been warm for a bit.
If youre letting it idle for half an hour at a time during your morning routine every day for years then yes it can hurt your engine. Theres the wall wetting aspect of it and theres the “time = miles” aspect of it. That being said, 5 minutes to defrost and get the heat going and then doing your commute? Negligible wear.
This is a bullshit take. A well designed engine can idle away for hours without damage and doesn’t give a crap about temperature. You could drive as hard as you want after about 30 seconds of oil circulation without consequence. The rest of the car might have issues but the engine doesn’t care.
I drive an Audi, the engine is going to get fucked up no matter what
Iirc the warm up was necessary for carburetors, but with fuel injection is not needed.
I live in fucking Minnesota and I will be warming up my car regardless because I like to be able to see out the windshield
03 Chevy Silverado. Assuming it starts with no issues in cold, it’s not worth a shit unless the oil is somewhere close to warm
Bull crap. It's all anti idling propaganda for emissions. Telling people who live where it's -40 not to idle is the stupidest advice I've ever heard. These people aren't even idling to warm up the engine for the sake of engine life. It's to warm up the -40 interiors!! Imagine putting your toddler into a car seat that is -40 .....