Warming up a modern engine

[70 copo]

"Gas-powered cars need oil to keep their engines lubricated. When you start a car, an oil pump circulates the oil in less than a minute. But if you let your car idle to warm up the cabin, the oil will start to slowly drain away from the engine's key components since the engine isn’t moving the car."

IMO...It was way worse for an engine to be put under normal load while everything is cold. Oil is not flowing at the right viscosity and pressures and can cause lack of proper lubrication amongst other things??

I always thought extended idling of a cold engine and hard use of a cold engine both have potential problems... .

Link to Peacock story:

https://www.12news.com/article/news/...d-d1d56006e5d9

[dustinm]

I used to think similarly until I was around 250-300hp diesel generators. These were set outside of the facilities no climate control and will fire up at rated rpm and run at full load in a seconds notice. Its either on or off for them

[Lynn]

JMHO. Take it for what it is worth, but this is pure crap.

"But if you let your car idle to warm up the cabin, the oil will start to slowly drain away from the engine's key components since the engine isn’t moving the car."

What about all the irrigation motors sitting still for hours on end? The "key components" get pressurized oil.

While I agree there is no reason to let a car sit and warm up, there is no real damage being done; especially on a modern vehicle that doesn't have a mechanical choke mechanism.

It is important to keep revs down until the oil is warmed up. Older Bimmers have a little blue area on the temp gauge. The owner's manual instructs not to take it over a certain RPM until the needle leaves the blue area.

[Tommy]

My Dad told me a thousand times not to dog a cold engine. I don't have Dad anymore but I still do as he said.... That's good enough reason in itself for me and anyone else that miss thier Dad I would imagine. I remember the lectures... Cold engine, cold transmission, not using the parking brake... sticking the ignition points because I didn't turn the ignition to accessory. I miss the lectures

Tommy

[hiperf406]

When I worked at Amoco Zama Lake gas plant the operators had a Suburban for traveling between plant & camp, all of a 1/4 mile. The Suburban ran 24 hrs a day summer & winter, they did finally have to put a new engine in the Burb after 5 or 6 years, didn't have a hour meter to tell how many hours it ran.