Engine warm up poll.

[Fly320s]

I start driving as soon as I can. I drive slowly, with low revs, for about 1 mile to get the oil moving.

[41magsnub]

I give it about 1 minute.  Generally I get in, start it, and fiddle with the radio or heater to kill the time.  Then I take it easy for the first few minutes.  

My new car instead of a temp gauge has an idiot light that is blue when cold, off when in the operating range, and turns red if it overheats.  I take it easy until the blue light goes out.

Edit:  oh, and when it is really cold out I plug in the block heater.

[Ben]

I put drive normally. I used to let my cars idle 30 years ago, but I'm pretty sure modern vehicles aren't as picky. That said, pretty much everywhere that  I cold start from has me driving slow for a couple of minutes before I get to a public road. Also, I keep the RPMs down (i.e., I don't punch it to accelerate) on my diesel truck until it starts to warm up.

[Tallpine]

Drive slowly until warm

You have to get at least 10 miles from our house until you can drive anything but slowly 


Exception is my 1976 pickup which has a carburetor and you have to warm it some or it will not move.  In cold weather you have to sit there holding the clutch in for a while before it will even turn the transmission in neutral.

[lupinus]

If it's particularly cold out, relative for around here of course, I'll give it a minute or so.

Summer, start and drive.

Either way just take it easy for a mile or so.

[Boomhauer]

Cold weather 5-10 minute idle.

Warm weather 2-5 minute idle to let the AC do its work.

[K Frame]

Cold weather start and idle for a few minutes, else it will race like mad when I pull up to a stop sign.

Warm weather start and go slowly for the first mile or so.

[HankB]

Let the care idle for 10 or 15 seconds just to be sure the oil is circulating well, then drive at normal city speed or less (30 MPH) until I get to the highway, about 7 or 8 minutes away.

Although with today's multi-vis oils, it's a lot less important to "warm up" the car before driving than it was 'way back in the days of straight-weight oil. (At least, if you're in central TX where you don't have to worry about sub-zero starting.)

[Gewehr98]

I watch the oil pressure gauge.

On a warm day, if it's showing pressure upon starting, I'm good to go.

On a really cold day, if it's bumping 80 psi on pressure, I wait a bit or keep the RPMs down on the 5 speed until that thick stuff can warm up.

[AmbulanceDriver]

I tend to drive normal-ish....   if it's getting close to freezing, I'll plug in the block heater on a timer to let it kick on about 2 hours before I leave for work.  I'll give it 30 seconds or so after the oil pressure has hit normal just to let everything get lubed...  If it's really cold, and I forgot to plug in the block heater, it takes the turbo a looooong time too spool up when the oil is a bit thick... And lemme tell ya, that thing is an absolute *dog* without the turbo kicking in...

[Boomhauer]

I tend to drive normal-ish....   if it's getting close to freezing, I'll plug in the block heater on a timer to let it kick on about 2 hours before I leave for work.  I'll give it 30 seconds or so after the oil pressure has hit normal just to let everything get lubed...  If it's really cold, and I forgot to plug in the block heater, it takes the turbo a looooong time too spool up when the oil is a bit thick... And lemme tell ya, that thing is an absolute *dog* without the turbo kicking in...

Turbocharged, now you have my attention. What do you drive?

[birdman]

I don't warm up anything.
That includes both of our twin turbo vehicles (GTR and explorer sport) and our non turbo ones (raptor and 3.5 Altima coupe).
That being said, the only one that really needs to be watcher carefully is the gtr and it sleeps in a heated garage, and will really let you know if its not warm enough to punch it (trans is all chunky)

[Hawkmoon]

Let the care idle for 10 or 15 seconds just to be sure the oil is circulating well, then drive at normal city speed or less (30 MPH) until I get to the highway, about 7 or 8 minutes away.

Although with today's multi-vis oils, it's a lot less important to "warm up" the car before driving than it was 'way back in the days of straight-weight oil. (At least, if you're in central TX where you don't have to worry about sub-zero starting.)

What you're forgetting is the transmission and the axle gears. The engine generates heat quickly due to the combustion -- the gears only warm up due to friction. It's important to drive not just slowly but also gently for the first several miles in cold weather to allow the gear lube (which is a lot more viscous than motor oil) to start moving around.

Even engines take longer than you might think. When I was in college, I had an engine oil temperature gauge in my car. During winter vacation, I had a job at a factory and my commute took me about half an hour. The first fifteen minutes was getting TO the highway entrance (about 8 or 10 miles). The engine oil temperature was only beginning to get into the normal range by the time I hit the highway.

[Lee]

I give my truck a few minutes, but I don't even get to anything faster than a 25 mph zone for a few miles, coming from or going to work. My 1990 jeep with the SB350 is another story.  In cold/cool weather, I let it run for at least 10 minutes before driving it. It hits normal operating temp about 20 minutes after the warm up. It's running great about the time I get home from wherever I've been.

[Regolith]

If the weather is cold enough (below freezing) I usually let it idle to warm up both the engine and the interior. Otherwise, I don't bother, unless it's the farm tractor which pretty much has to be warmed up, regardless, and can take 5-10 or so minutes to reach operating temperature.

[Perd Hapley]

Is the poll assuming cold weather, or do people warm up their cars when it's warm out, too?

My Tacoma needs at least 10 minutes, in cold weather. I hit interstate less than a quarter-mile from my house, and she acts funny if I drive her cold. We also warm up the Lumina, in cold weather, but I don't know that she really needs it.

[coppertales]

I let the motor idle long enough until the air conditioner starts to cool the car..............chris3

[zahc]

Let the care idle for 10 or 15 seconds just to be sure the oil is circulating well, then drive at normal city speed or less (30 MPH) until I get to the highway, about 7 or 8 minutes away.

This

[never_retreat]

I voted for the over 5min. Especially this time of year.
My ride is diesel so it makes a difference. Not as long in the summer. If its 80 degrees that oil is going to get worked around the engine really quick and everything is not cold and tight.

[Nick1911]

I drive normally.

My corolla takes 0w-20.  I have oil pressure about a second after startup, which means I'm good to go.  Cylinder walls are thin enough I'm not worried about creating an excessive heat gradient from startup driving; Honestly, if it were a problem, warranty claims would be through the roof.

[Boomhauer]

I drive normally.

My corolla takes 0w-20.  I have oil pressure about a second after startup, which means I'm good to go.  Cylinder walls are thin enough I'm not worried about creating an excessive heat gradient from startup driving; Honestly, if it were a problem, warranty claims would be through the roof.

Let's put it this way...in normal climes (i.e, not artic) then no warm up isn't going to create any major issues.

I do firmly believe it helps in overall engine longevity to have a decent warm up period. But what do I know...except that we get exceptional life out of our vehicles (300k+)...

[Nick1911]

Is there any hard evidence in one direction or the other?

[AmbulanceDriver]

Turbocharged, now you have my attention. What do you drive?

'96 Dodge Ram 2500 with the 5.9L Cummins Diesel.

[Chuck Dye]

Fast idle and my steep driveway are a bad combination, so at home my beast gets warmed enough to idle normally before I drive it.  That's true, too, anywhere else crawling in low 4x4 is needed to get around.  Out and about where idle speed is not an issue, I'll be sure of oil pressure then go, warm or cold. 

Idling the work truck while I do the walk-around, update paperwork, and build air pressure is all the warmup that one gets.

[Matthew Carberry]

Proportional to temp. Below 20 your emissions at speed go to *expletive deleted*it if you don't let the engine warm up a bit. Colder gets longer times, plus, need engine heat for the defrost.