Cold weather, start it and go, or warm it up?

New2DMax · 01-11-2008, 07:02 PM

Read an article about gas motors that says in cold weather to just start it up and go. No advantage to letting it warm up. Just drive it a little easy until there is some heat there. In contrast, I was watching Spike TV and a Diesel mechanic instructor suggests to get it warmed up before driving it. There are those that will argue that warming it up only wastes fuel, and at today's prices, higher mpg is king. I have a short commute and don't have the drive time to get everything up to temp for too long before I shut down. ANY SUGGESTIONS?

diesel · 01-11-2008, 07:49 PM

well I suggest letting any vehicle warm up. Even in the summer. For one reason. When your vehicle sets overnight the oil drains to the bottom. So you need to give it time go get things pumping. Especially in the cold seasone. Cause the oil is thicker. And diesels definetly need to be warmed up in the winter. Its just hard on the engine to take off without warming it up.
If diesels dont need to be warmed up then why does GM have the Elevated Idle feature for quick warm ups??? That alone should tell you something. If your in a hurry when you leave for work you may consider using the block heater plug so your engine will be warmed up when you are ready to leave of the morning. But I discourage anyone to just hop in and leave. Not a good idea at all. Just my 0.02

ronnymcdonny · 01-11-2008, 09:44 PM

I'm in the same boat I only work 5 miles from home how long of a warm up is long enough 1 minute? and then an easy drive, no hard excelleration?

New2DMax · 01-12-2008, 05:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by diesel

well I suggest letting any vehicle warm up. Even in the summer. For one reason. When your vehicle sets overnight the oil drains to the bottom. So you need to give it time go get things pumping. Especially in the cold seasone. Cause the oil is thicker. And diesels definetly need to be warmed up in the winter. Its just hard on the engine to take off without warming it up.
If diesels dont need to be warmed up then why does GM have the Elevated Idle feature for quick warm ups??? That alone should tell you something. If your in a hurry when you leave for work you may consider using the block heater plug so your engine will be warmed up when you are ready to leave of the morning. But I discourage anyone to just hop in and leave. Not a good idea at all. Just my 0.02

I should add that I currently do let everything warm up at least 15 minutes before I go to work and most other trips. Plugging in is free here at work so it is generally plugged in 8-12 hours 10 of 14 days. I was just trying to see if anyone had issues with a short warmup time. I try to give it a long run once or twice a week to keep the exhaust dry and boil the moisture out of the fluids.

Littlered47 · 01-19-2008, 09:53 AM

Warming the engine up to operating temp is always the way to go. Unfortunately snooze buttons and lost keys in the AM don't always allow us to to this! Engines are purpose built i.e. racing, etc to optimal performance at operating temps. If you must drive with the engine cold, do it gently until your temps reach the norm.

I discovered something strange a while back when I was using my block heater. Some of you guys up north may laugh at this, but when we got down into the high 30's in the fall here in TX it was "cold". I had the bright idea to plug in my heater to not only help with my heater, but to aid in warming up the engine. I did this for 2 days and my check engine light came on. I recently had my injectors replaced and naturally thought it was related to that. I pulled the code and called one of my installer customers to see what it was. The code was (forgive me for not remembering the exact name) something like Ambient Air Temp blah blah blah. He read on his Chilton web page that it was basically on because the water temp was too hot in comparison to the air and fuel temp. He also told me it said NOT to use the block heater until the temp dropped below 20 deg F or it would trigger the engine light. We cleared the code with the code reader, but 3 full engine cycles (from cold to operating temp and back to cold) would clear the code itself.

Hope this helps!

**deeretracks** · 01-19-2008, 10:01 AM

If im in a hurry my rule of thumb is to wait for the amp,volt gage to jump to full charge be for taking off. this gives the motor enough time to pull the oil back up into itself. I just take it easy until it warms up.BTW the colder it is the longer it takes do to the glow plugs.

Maverick684 · 01-19-2008, 05:42 PM

I would say minimum 5 minutes and you should be good to go as long as you are easy on it till it warms up.

lubeman1969 · 01-19-2008, 06:22 PM

Ok guys- I've been reading the thread concerning how long to warm up your truck. I think my question may have already been answered, but what exactly is the low temperature needed before using your block heater- is it 20 degrees? Is it actually keeping your coolant warm or the oil or both? And, if anyone knows, how long would you need to keep it plugged up before a cold start in the mornings?

**deeretracks** · 01-19-2008, 06:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lubeman1969

Ok guys- I've been reading the thread concerning how long to warm up your truck. I think my question may have already been answered, but what exactly is the low temperature needed before using your block heater- is it 20 degrees? Is it actually keeping your coolant warm or the oil or both? And, if anyone knows, how long would you need to keep it plugged up before a cold start in the mornings?

not to but in . what i want to no is it all right to leave it pluged in over night.

diesel · 01-19-2008, 06:46 PM

yea far as i know. But it really sucks some electricity. Best to put it on a timed outlet