Letting your car warm up

[wvjules]

Do you?

I get in my car, start it, put on my seatbelt, then back out of the driveway. I never let it warm up. Other than not having heat for a few minutes, is there any reason I should let it warm up for a few minutes before driving?

 

[kimblebee]

It depends where you are. Where I am, we have to plug in our cars overnight or they will not start the next morning. We usually also have to brush off the snow and scrape the windows as well. I don't remember why but I do know its really bad to drive when your engine is too cold.

 

[Janepod]

I have to warm mine up for about 3 minutes when it's cold out. Just enough to get the needle off the C. If I don't, I get warning lights coming on for no real reason. It's a 2011 Toyota.

 

[Golf4283]

I have a remote start so I start it up and let it warm up for 10-15 minutes. then it's nice and toasty when I get in it. I know it's bad for the environment but I'd rather be comfortable.

 

[Soldier's*Sweeties]

I start mine to defrost the windshield and warm it for the kids.

 

[gracie1]

I let mine warm up for about 10 minutes every morning. I hate getting into a cold car!

 

[powellrj]

I start mine to defrost the windshield and warm it for the kids.

Thats what I do too, except I am warming it up for me!!!

 

[Soldier's*Sweeties]

Thats what I do too, except I am warming it up for me!!!

Well...I do it for me too. Sometimes I forget if it's just myself though.

 

[njmom47]

Do you?

I get in my car, start it, put on my seatbelt, then back out of the driveway. I never let it warm up. Other than not having heat for a few minutes, is there any reason I should let it warm up for a few minutes before driving?

If it's really cold (like this week) I do.
I had to get a new engine one year. (That $ coulda been a Disney trip).
It was in the low 20s and I was leaving work, and I was in a hurry.
Yup, I heard CLUNK CLUNK. I ended up needing a new engine.
Now I go outside in the parking lot at work to warm it up about 10 mins before I leave, and I let it warm up in the AM as well.

 

[hiwaygal]

Just speaking in general, it would seem to me that the cold would make all the fluids a bit less viscous, which could cause extra damage to pieces-parts in the motor if you try to drive too soon.

But, if you don't do it and never had a problem, I guess it's not as important as I was taught!

 

[jen0610]

Do you?

I get in my car, start it, put on my seatbelt, then back out of the driveway. I never let it warm up. Other than not having heat for a few minutes, is there any reason I should let it warm up for a few minutes before driving?

Yes and no. It all depends on the weather condititions around here. The last 2 days with the wind chill factor, it's been in the negatives so the car has been started and warmed up for 10+ minutes.

In the mornings, if there is frost on the storm door, that tells me the car will be frosted up to, so it gets started and warmed up for 5 to 10 minutes. The more frost it has, the longer it warms up.

If it's a frost free morning, then I usually don't warm it up.

Any overnight snow, the car gets warmed up while I am cleaning off the snow.

 

[wvjules]

If there's frost or snow it gets warmed up so I can remove the ice/snow/etc. However, this morning it was 10 but no precipitation on the windshield so I just got in, started up and went. Maybe I should start letting it idle for a few minutes before I drive when it's this cold out. I wasn't sure if I was damaging the car or not. It's a 2011 Altima.

 

[momof1princess]

well, my husband is a mechanic, and we never let our cars warm up, and they run just fine. however, we live in alabama, and temps rarely get below 20 degrees F, so extreme cold isn't an issue for us. if we lived further north, where temps get close to, or below, zero, we would definitely warm up the cars before driving them, to make sure the fluids were able to circulate properly.

 

[java]

One thing I learned is that if the fuel is too low you can't remote start! So I filled up today. It's very cold here and the windshield is frozen over- so if I don't start it up early - I can't see. 2 days ago I couldn't even use the scraper it was so frozen over.

So yes when it's brutally cold I am remote starting my car. And I don't think it does anything to improve the performance of the car, just improves my day.

 

[gator75]

We live in a climate that forces us to plug our cars in. My cars are spoiled i let them warm up for 15 to 20 min every morning in the winter. I hate the feeling of driving a cold stiff car, plus it's alot easier on the engine and other parts. I'm also spoiled i will not get into a cold frosty car.

 

[robinb]

Yes. It was below zero yesterday so I started the car about 10 minutes before we wanted to leave. It was nice and toasty by the time I had to drive my DD to school. I also needed to move my car off the street and into our driveway a couple days ago so I started it and just threw it in 1st gear and drove it into our driveway. It made the most awful noises!

 

[Ginny Favers]

My car is garage kept so it's never in bitterly cold temperatures, and since a few mechanics have told me it's not something you need to do if your car is not prone to stalling, I don't.

 

[Minnesota!]

We warm up the van if it's below 15 or so. Let it run for about 10 minutes to get things warmed up. growing up my parents plugged in their cars...

 

[Poohbug]

I don't normally warm up the car but since it has been bitterly cold here the past few days, I have been letting it run for 10 minutes or so. Not so much for the car, more for the kids and me. Wind chills of -10 and more are just not nice and I want it nice and warm in my car.

 

[jiminy.cricket]

I've heard you only needed to in the past to warm the carburetor, but that it's not necessary anymore since mist vehicles don't have them now. There may be more to it, though. This is interesting and I'm glad the question was asked. Maybe I should let mine run for a few minutes.