I was just curious how long does it take for the rest of you guys to warm up your car, specially in the morning. thank you!
warming up
- Thread starter At1Maverick69
- Start date
Legendary
Founding Member
If it's real cold I try to warm it up for about a minute, otherwise maybe around 30 seconds. I don't drive it hard when I first jump in it either.
Hmm...well if I was to start it from a dead cold in this cooler weather were having I bet it would take about 15 minutes to get it to operating temperature at an idle...
I usually let my car idle for a couple minutes but I don't gas on it until the car has some temperature to it...
I usually let my car idle for a couple minutes but I don't gas on it until the car has some temperature to it...
wyominghotwheel
New Member
5spd GT said:
It doesn't get REALLY COLD here in the Bay Area, but I dont wanna run my baby cold, and the gauge dont move till about 10 min of idling, is that normal? I've just serviced my cooling system, put a new 190 tstat too.. anything wrong here
The Shape
Founding Member
I normally let my run atleast 10 minutes or so if it is in the 30's outside. It takes mine atleast that long for the gauge to even start moving as well. Having an AOD I want to make sure the tranny fluid has had a chance to warm up as well as the oil.
depending upon the ambient temps, that sounds alright (just realized that i am thinking of my aftermarket gauge, which starts at 130*). i cant remember what the deal is with the stocker.At1Maverick69 said:
with lower temps, im with The Shape. i drove another car a couple days ago - it was ~35* outside. typical start up in cold weather: crank it up and turn the heater or defroster on low. by the time i come out 10 mins later, it is a little warm inside and windows are clearing. i do it more for visibility than to warm the car up.
an old rule of thumb was to allow a vehicle to warm for 30 seconds to a min and then drive it unaggressively - idling takes too long to achieve operating temp. by driving it, it gets things warmed-up more quickly (though coolant temps might not increase as quickly as they would have idling). that said, i prefer to let them warm up before driving.
Rockin302
Founding Member
I've never warmed my car and I haven't had any issues to date. I was always thought (with fuel injected cars) that if you just drive at a moderate pace you'll warm the car up quicker. You figure that the engine will warm up quicker with higher rpms during "normal" driving. Plus, you're not wasting gas just sitting there for your car to warm up. I love in California, so it doesn't get to cold out here. Just my 2 cents.
Rockin302
Founding Member
well, they say that is one way to keep from getting cold.Rockin302 said:
you said what i did in a long rambling - moderately driving the car warms it up quicker (and warms the rolling parts as well).
Rockin302
Founding Member
Yeah I usually let it idle for a couple minutes then I will drive it...as stated "easy"...
It warms up much quicker that way...
At1Maverick69 - Your cooling system sounds fine...my "bar" doesn't hardly move either even after probably 10 minutes if at all...but when I get going the temp will start to climb much quicker...
It warms up much quicker that way...
At1Maverick69 - Your cooling system sounds fine...my "bar" doesn't hardly move either even after probably 10 minutes if at all...but when I get going the temp will start to climb much quicker...
The Shape
Founding Member
It is true the car will reach operating tempature quicker moving that setting there idling. I however do not reach operating temp quicker that way LOL. I prefer to let mine idle while I am in the house till I have some heat going on in the car so I don't shiver my way to work. 
The Shape said:It is true the car will reach operating tempature quicker moving that setting there idling. I however do not reach operating temp quicker that way LOL. I prefer to let mine idle while I am in the house till I have some heat going on in the car so I don't shiver my way to work.
, yeah I know how that feels,somtimes I get to work my hands still a bit numb. I live in a gated apartment complex and my garage is just a bit far, I really dont trust my neighbors that much to let my car sit idling for that long so I sit inside, he he he
Hissing Cobra
Founding Member
I start mine up and play with the gas so that it won't stall (two carburetors.) I don't rev it much, just enough to keep it going. I then won't move the car until the oil pressure hits 60 psi (less than 30 seconds.) Once the oil is flowing well, I'll leave the driveway.
Once on the road, it takes three to four minutes and then my temp guage is at 150. Two minutes later, it's at 180 and the thermostat opens. From there, it'll idle nicely on it's own and I can turn on the heat.
Once on the road, it takes three to four minutes and then my temp guage is at 150. Two minutes later, it's at 180 and the thermostat opens. From there, it'll idle nicely on it's own and I can turn on the heat.
Michael Yount
Mustang Master
Mine cranks right up hot or cold; you can drive away immediately without it stalling or bucking - one of the benefits of efi that's working properly. How long it takes to warm up depends on the type of driving. But I'd say two to three minutes and it starts to show coolant temp movement. I try to limit revs to about 1/3-1/2 of redline when the oil's cold (oil pressure on mine hits 60-65 IMMEDIATELY upon start up cold) so I don't take it over about 2000-2500 rpm until the oil temp hits at least 160F. That can take 10-15 minutes of around town driving. It can take as much as 20-25 minutes if it's less than 40F outside, and I crank it cold and head straight for the Interstate - which is only about 3 minutes from my house.
As many have alluded to, the car warms up MUCH more quickly being driven than it does idling. There's no load at idle, and relatively speaking, the engine just doesn't give off much heat.
As many have alluded to, the car warms up MUCH more quickly being driven than it does idling. There's no load at idle, and relatively speaking, the engine just doesn't give off much heat.
Similar threads
