Best way to warm the engine...
- Thread starter cleanbluesky
- Start date
Same here - get in and go. I just keep the oil pressure under the redline (6 bar) and after a few mins it soon drops down to the more normal 3-4 bar. No more than 3k rpm, no large portions of accelerator either. 
I'll say one thing though, getting onto the motorway on a cold engine is scary when you can see your oil pressure...
(take cover, she's gonna blow!
)
I'll say one thing though, getting onto the motorway on a cold engine is scary when you can see your oil pressure...
(take cover, she's gonna blow!
)I've never worried too much about revving cars from cold, I just tend to avoid really opening it up for the first couple of miles. Only one of my cars has ever met its demise through engine failure.
Of course if I had a car that I actually cared about I might think differently
.
Of course if I had a car that I actually cared about I might think differently
.
i just get in and drive, dont go over 3000rpm, and DONT labour the engine at all. just like running in for 10-15 mins, then if i feel the need i will open it up, but its a 1.2 corsa theres no point anyway lmao.
isent this like the 3rd thread since winter that this has been coverd?
for 10-15 mins, then if i feel the need i will open it up, but its a 1.2 corsa theres no point anyway lmao. isent this like the 3rd thread since winter that this has been coverd?
During the warm up phase a car will run rich. This excess fuel has the pleasant effect of washing the oil off the bores and also contaminating the oil in the sump reducing its effectiveness during normal driving. It is running with fuel contaminiated oil that will cause damage to the engine more than anything.
2-3k and no more than 60. if i have time... then i'll let it idle for 5mins to warm up, nowt worse than driving in the cold with the window down untill the car heats up 
@Jonnycoupe since when is a cold engine unable to lubricate itself while idle ? its if you start revving it, then it will not be good for it.
cams will see more load at low rpm, but they get plenty of oil, providing you dont rev the nuts off it. also iirc, to run in the cam+tappets, its run the car at ~2-2500rpm till warm. faster speed = more wear
@Jonnycoupe since when is a cold engine unable to lubricate itself while idle ? its if you start revving it, then it will not be good for it.
cams will see more load at low rpm, but they get plenty of oil, providing you dont rev the nuts off it. also iirc, to run in the cam+tappets, its run the car at ~2-2500rpm till warm. faster speed = more wear
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Just drive and go you wimps
Soldato
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chopchop said:2-3k and no more than 60. if i have time... then i'll let it idle for 5mins to warm up, nowt worse than driving in the cold with the window down untill the car heats up
@jonnycoupe since when is a cold engine unable to lubricate itself while idle ? its if you start revving it, then it will not be good for it.
cams will see more load at low rpm, but they get plenty of oil, providing you dont rev the nuts off it. also iirc, to run in the cam+tappets, its run the car at ~2-2500rpm till warm. faster speed = more wear
Oil pressure, i didnt say it couldn't lubricate itself, it would have seized if that was the case. Simply the oil pressure is much lower at idle rpm.
With regard to the cams, they have more load at idle, so why let it idle again when the oil pressure is lowand viscosity is high which will reduce the volume of oil getting to the head. If you buzzing up the road at 3k the high loading on the cam is less of an issue...
Faster speed = engine gets warmer where it doesnt wear. Most engine wear occurs when the engine is cold.
Or maybe i should take the laymen approach even if i didn understand engines like i do, and thats to read the manual
ahh but both low and high rpm will wear out parts when cold, so how can anyone be sure wether 10mins at idle is worse for the engine than revving(driving) it with 2-3krpm. id even sway to buzzing up the road at 3000rpm is going to be worse for your topend than letting it warm up at a slower speed.
ps. i see plenty(Loads in fact) of oil reaching the top end of my engine when hot or cold and the cam lobes are fully lubed
ps. i see plenty(Loads in fact) of oil reaching the top end of my engine when hot or cold and the cam lobes are fully lubed
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Get in and drive it like I stole it.
chopchop said:ahh but both low and high rpm will wear out parts when cold, so how can anyone be sure wether 10mins at idle is worse for the engine than revving(driving) it with 2-3krpm. id even sway to buzzing up the road at 3000rpm is going to be worse for your topend than letting it warm up at a slower speed.
ps. i see plenty(Loads in fact) of oil reaching the top end of my engine when hot or cold and the cam lobes are fully lubed
From what my understanding which may be poor, is as Jonnycoupe says. At idle the oil is thick and the oil pressure is low which means the oil will struggle more to get up to the cams. At higher revs because the mechanical oil pump is spinning up faster it increases the oil pressure which aids the oil to get to the cams.
Idling puts a lot of load onto the cam nose and when cold, and not having its most effective lubrication, causes wear. Just think why, when running in new cams, you're supposed to hold the revs at 2-3k rpm for about 20mins and not idle.
Personally I get in a drive and keep it below 3k rpm for about 5 miles
merlin said:
Yep, same here. Just start the engine, pull off the drive and go. Keep it below 3K for 15 mins and then when I finally get a good straight and temp gauge has gone up, start getting into the higher revs..
Revving the nuts of a car from cold just doesn't sound right to me...
I used to start the car and drive off straight away, but I've found the gauge gets moving a lot quicker if I let it idle for 30 seconds or so before hand.
This is better for me, as I want the car to have started to warm up before I get on the motorway (literally 1/2 mile from my house). Joining the sliproad and driving down the dual carriage way before it branches off to the motorway, I keep it around 2500rpm/50mph.
By the time I join the motorway sliproad, the water temp gauge is at its normal position.
Now at this point, I used to get some speed up while coming down the hill as there's quite a steep incline where my car used to slow down slighty going up it
I've seen speeds of 80-90mph (3500/4000rpm) from cold starts. I reckon the engine oil has just about reached its medium temperature by this point
For the last few weeks though, I've been going easy on it and have kept the revs at 3000rpm (70mph) all the way to work. I actually find it much more fun to cruise at 70, then I do to rag the car and do 90 all the way there.
When I move house this weekend though, it's too close to work to take the motorway. Luckily, as you come out of the estate, there's a slight hill which goes on for about 1/2 mile... light throttle, less engine wear.
Not looking forward to driving through town though... poor clutch!
This is better for me, as I want the car to have started to warm up before I get on the motorway (literally 1/2 mile from my house). Joining the sliproad and driving down the dual carriage way before it branches off to the motorway, I keep it around 2500rpm/50mph.
By the time I join the motorway sliproad, the water temp gauge is at its normal position.
Now at this point, I used to get some speed up while coming down the hill as there's quite a steep incline where my car used to slow down slighty going up it
I've seen speeds of 80-90mph (3500/4000rpm) from cold starts. I reckon the engine oil has just about reached its medium temperature by this point For the last few weeks though, I've been going easy on it and have kept the revs at 3000rpm (70mph) all the way to work. I actually find it much more fun to cruise at 70, then I do to rag the car and do 90 all the way there.
When I move house this weekend though, it's too close to work to take the motorway. Luckily, as you come out of the estate, there's a slight hill which goes on for about 1/2 mile... light throttle, less engine wear.
Not looking forward to driving through town though... poor clutch!
In modern cars the oil pressure is a maintained constant even at idle, comapred to older vehicles, so this is not really an issue!
Also, water temp should NOT really be used as a guage to tell you that your cars warmed up. Oil temp (if you have it) is the way to go.
Also, water temp should NOT really be used as a guage to tell you that your cars warmed up. Oil temp (if you have it) is the way to go.
