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Opinions - Cold start turbo engines
- Thread starter CosmoMS3
- Start date
crashkelly
Banned
How long should you warm up the engine in cold weather (below freezing)? I want to keep my MS3 past the warranty expiration. Should you not start driving until the temperature needle starts moving?
Just do a burnout in your driveway when you start it. It will get both your tires and engine up to temp! I am totally kidding by the way.
BlackCherry06
Member
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- '17 CX-3 GT
When the temps are above 60, I sit in the car in the morning and after work and let it run until the needle enters the normal bracket... then I drive. When it's colder, I start it and go back in the house and leave about 10 minutes later.
serialtoon
Member
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- 2008 Mazdaspeed 3
LMAO! Why wouldnt it last past the warranty? Beating your car much?How long should you warm up the engine in cold weather (below freezing)? I want to keep my MS3 past the warranty expiration. Should you not start driving until the temperature needle starts moving?
TurboWagon
Member
- :
- 2008 Mazdaspeed3
On cold mornings I usually let the idle revs fall until about 1250 or 1000. It doesn't take too long to warm up after that. I definitely wait until it is below 1500 though.
After seeing the post below mine, I also shift no higher than 3000 until the needle has moved to the middle position (or just below as I dont think it is ever in the exact middle)
After seeing the post below mine, I also shift no higher than 3000 until the needle has moved to the middle position (or just below as I dont think it is ever in the exact middle)
Last edited:
I am religious about letting a car warm up. No matter what, everytime, I let my MS3 as well as my Toyota truck, Audi, and Trans Am (when I had them), warm up until the needle has moved, and I will not shift above 2,500 until it is fully warm. I really dont think all this is necessary, but I have never had a car problem yet (knock on wood) and whether or not this is the reason why, I dont want to mess with it.
If you dont have the time to wait, just dont beat on it until it's warm.
If you dont have the time to wait, just dont beat on it until it's warm.
Young Roids
Member
- :
- The pennies have been saved the MS3 is mine!
I am religious about letting a car warm up. No matter what, everytime, I let my MS3 as well as my Toyota truck, Audi, and Trans Am (when I had them), warm up until the needle has moved, and I will not shift above 2,500 until it is fully warm. I really dont think all this is necessary, but I have never had a car problem yet (knock on wood) and whether or not this is the reason why, I dont want to mess with it.
If you dont have the time to wait, just dont beat on it until it's warm.
I think this is a good idea.^
Sacrilicious
boom boom!
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- Cosmic Blue MS3 of hawtness!
ya, you really shouldn't be beating the crap out of your engine before it is up to temperature. our engines are obviously made to take the strain of having full turbo boost shoved into its chambers, but it wasn't designed to have this happen while the metal is still cold. cold metal is more brittle than warm metal, so keep that in mind before you start blowing stuff up at +15psi...;o also, warm metal expands more than cold metal, so if your engine parts aren't at uniform temperatures, they won't be exactly the sizes they're meant to be relative to each other.
obviously, all these differences are pretty darn small, but i'm willing to bet that if you look at two engines where one consistently has been driven hard while it was still cold and one who has been consistently driven hard after allowing it to properly warm up, the latter will last noticeably longer than the other and have fewer problems in general. also, if you read those sites that advocate hard engine break-ins, you will notice that they always specifically mention that you should be allowing your engine to warm up properly before you go crazy on it.
obviously, all these differences are pretty darn small, but i'm willing to bet that if you look at two engines where one consistently has been driven hard while it was still cold and one who has been consistently driven hard after allowing it to properly warm up, the latter will last noticeably longer than the other and have fewer problems in general. also, if you read those sites that advocate hard engine break-ins, you will notice that they always specifically mention that you should be allowing your engine to warm up properly before you go crazy on it.
redspeed3tk
Member
- :
- 2007 speed3
i think some people are a little outrageous to be honest i dont have the time or wanna waste my gas by letting my car run for 10 mins and as long as you have the correct weight oil in and you dont beat the hell out of it right off the bat its no different than summer driving just use your head
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- Titanium MazdaSpeed Protege
i think some people are a little outrageous to be honest i dont have the time or wanna waste my gas by letting my car run for 10 mins and as long as you have the correct weight oil in and you dont beat the hell out of it right off the bat its no different than summer driving just use your head
I get better gas mileage if I warm up for 5 minutes than if I just start and go.
I've heard that it's only necessary to let the oil circulate in the engine when you start it. Apparently 20 seconds is enough time for that to happen.
That said, I follow a similar routine as TurboWagon. I start the car but do not touch the gas pedal at all. When it first starts up it usually runs at around 2k RPM (give or take), after a short wait (maybe a minute or so) it'll slowly creep down to 1000 RPMs or so. I start driving then but don't horse it. Usually by the time I'm at the first stop light the car has warmed up to the normal range.
After it's warm I think idle hovers somewhere in the neighborhood of 750-800 RPMs.
That said, I follow a similar routine as TurboWagon. I start the car but do not touch the gas pedal at all. When it first starts up it usually runs at around 2k RPM (give or take), after a short wait (maybe a minute or so) it'll slowly creep down to 1000 RPMs or so. I start driving then but don't horse it. Usually by the time I'm at the first stop light the car has warmed up to the normal range.
After it's warm I think idle hovers somewhere in the neighborhood of 750-800 RPMs.
On cold mornings I usually let the idle revs fall until about 1250 or 1000. It doesn't take too long to warm up after that. I definitely wait until it is below 1500 though.
After seeing the post below mine, I also shift no higher than 3000 until the needle has moved to the middle position (or just below as I dont think it is ever in the exact middle)
AutoXRacer
Member
You should definitely wait until its warm before you drive it...
When you first start the engine, yeah, it will take a short few seconds for the oil to be fully circulated, but thats just half of the story...what about the metal thats expanding and contracting due to the temperature differences...??
I would suggest to let it warm up until it reaches its nominal idle...then drive it slow (shifting no more than 2,500-3,000 rpm) until it reaches nominal temperature...
When the engine is cold or freshly started, racing the engine leads to increased wear due to increased metal contact... Basically, the engine needs to settle...
When you first start the engine, yeah, it will take a short few seconds for the oil to be fully circulated, but thats just half of the story...what about the metal thats expanding and contracting due to the temperature differences...??
I would suggest to let it warm up until it reaches its nominal idle...then drive it slow (shifting no more than 2,500-3,000 rpm) until it reaches nominal temperature...
When the engine is cold or freshly started, racing the engine leads to increased wear due to increased metal contact... Basically, the engine needs to settle...
Anothing thing that no one has mentiond is that when you car is cold the timing is advanced quite a bit. So even when it is warm out you shouldnt beat on it untill the car reaches normal operating temp. Especially when you are Forced Induction.
Idleing your car to warm it up is a bad idea. You think everything is nice and toasty but you're only half right. The motor might be up to temp but the trans isn't. Best bet is 10-20 seconds to get the oil moving then drive it and keep from high revving for the next few miles and you'll be fine. Switch to syn's and the oil will flow sooner as well.
I'm usually in a hurry to get to work on time every morning, so I never warm up my car. Not that I've done any testing myself on the effect on either the mpg or the longevity of the vehicle, but the so-called the experts of the auto industry seem to state that modern fuel-injected cars do not need to be warmed up. I obviously never race my engine before the temperature gauge reaches the middle as a common sense.
Heck, if something breaks I'll put my warranty to use, and if the car actually dies from not warming up for 10 minutes, I'll just get another car. I love the car for what it offers, but at the end of the day, it's still just a car which can be replaced at any moment. It's not your wife. ^_^;;
Heck, if something breaks I'll put my warranty to use, and if the car actually dies from not warming up for 10 minutes, I'll just get another car. I love the car for what it offers, but at the end of the day, it's still just a car which can be replaced at any moment. It's not your wife. ^_^;;
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- 07 Speed3, Cosmic Blue
I am quite sure wive's can be replaced on a moments notice....sometimes it just cost more than a car!
i think some people are a little outrageous to be honest i dont have the time or wanna waste my gas by letting my car run for 10 mins and as long as you have the correct weight oil in and you dont beat the hell out of it right off the bat its no different than summer driving just use your head
Waist Gas ? Life isnt that rough!
Warm her up and cool her down. A must for any FI driving
Sacrilicious
boom boom!
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- Cosmic Blue MS3 of hawtness!
Idleing your car to warm it up is a bad idea. You think everything is nice and toasty but you're only half right. The motor might be up to temp but the trans isn't. Best bet is 10-20 seconds to get the oil moving then drive it and keep from high revving for the next few miles and you'll be fine. Switch to syn's and the oil will flow sooner as well.
ooo...i didn't even think about the trans. that's a really good point...sux, but looks like i'll have to be a little more careful...=/
ooo...i didn't even think about the trans. that's a really good point...sux, but looks like i'll have to be a little more careful...=/
You can feel when the trans is still cold
Waist Gas ? Life isnt that rough!
Warm her up and cool her down. A must for any FI driving
^_^?
(I must be tired. I didn't get that at all >_< )
