nipseyrussell

ok, so i'm not a car guy, sorry
question: its really cold out, your engine is cold*, you put the car in neutral (before you drive or while at a stop light) and rev the engine to warm it up. This is:
a) good because it warms the engine and a warm engine performs better
b) bad because its bad for the engine for some reason i am unaware of
c) somewhat neutral, doesnt do much besides waste gas
d) some other option?


*LukeaTron - lets keep this clean - warm ass is not the answer for my car

Simba91102

Maybe some "feel good" value, but that's about it. Newer cars are designed to warm up as soon as possible for emissions concerns (and will warm up faster in motion, under load). I basically just start it and go, then let the car do what it's supposed to do to warm up.

nipseyrussell

interesting, so even thought he car feels sluggish for minute, just go.....

HI OFECR

I dont see recent technology eliminating friction due to the lack of oil on the cylinder walls during a cold start ............

NEVER EVER high rev a cold engine!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Simba91102

This is a good point, and it also applies in warmer weather. It takes quite a bit longer for the oil to reach operating temperature than it does the coolant. I should have qualified my earlier post by saying "within limits". I usually start the car, idle for 30 second or so, then go. It's an easy ride pretty much wherever I'm leaving from, so it's some time before the car might see over 3K. If I needed to jump into it immediately, I'd adjust accordingly.

LuvMyTSX

Me too. I always heard it's better to drive the car gently until the engine warms up, rather than let it idle for 5 minutes before moving.

Viking

When the engine is cold I try to drive keeping the rpms under 3K until it warms up. I also remember reading somewhere extensive idling was not good for the car.

nipseyrussell

thanks for the advice, glad i posted!

LukeaTron

Uh, what?

Anyway, like others have said, after about 30 seconds you should be fine. The only reason to rev the engine would be if you personally are cold and want to get the heat going faster.

My neighbor starts his POS Chevy with his foot to the floor every morning. The engine starts and immediately goes straight to red line where he holds it for the next 15 seconds. Not surprisingly, his 2 year old car burns a ton of oil.

nipseyrussell

sorry - reference to https://acurazine.com/forums/showthread.php?t=41759


so that is a reason i have done this....but it sounds like that is a bad idea based on all these posts, so i'm going to stop. heated seats help this issue.

LukeaTron

I'm still totally confused but whatever.

It's not going to damage the engine as long as you give it a short bit to get the oil moving first. It does waste gas though. It warms up much faster when the engine is under load anyway.

black label

Depending on how high you rev it it's not necessarily bad not really necessary.

As others have mentioned, you are better off just driving it but going easy on it until it comes up to operating temperature. One of the problems with letting your car sit and warm up on a cold day is that it warms the engine, but not the transmission fluid. Might as well just put it in gear and drive it mildly to let both warm up together.

If you bring the engine up to operating temp while the car sat in the driveway then you drive off like the whole car was warmed up, you are being abusive to your transmission.

nipseyrussell

to all, thanks, this is helpful

to lukeatron, sorry, it was a lame joke

HI OFECR

Your trans fluid is wormed by the engine (not that it matters) there is no combustion in the trans and as for friction the fluids purpose is to reduce friction. Your gears are partially submerged in the fluid so un like the oil wich gathers in the pan there is no need to warm the trans fluid.