Should You Warm Up Your Car's Engine Before Driving? Myth Busted
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- Опубліковано 27 лис 2017
- Warm up engine myth busted with Scotty Kilmer. Should you warm up your car's engine before driving? Warming up your car in the winter myth busted DIY. There are many myths about warming up an engine, and I'll tell you the truth about the matter. DIY car repair with Scotty Kilmer, an auto mechanic for the last 50 years.
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Scotty Kilmer hi i have a question the O/D light does not turn on when i put the O/D what can i do to fix it ,thank you
hey scott i noticed a bit of cheese stuff where the oil goes in but its not the head gasket thats away as the water levels are always the same maybe dampness from over night due to the cold weather ?
Scotty recording equipment cost more than Is cars.
Sorry but I always let my car run a few minutes before I drive it when it's cold out. I live in Pennsylvania and we get some cold winters and most people around here let their cars warm up before driving. You can do damage to an engine if the oil isn't circulating through the motor properly. I run 5w-20 in my Explorer because that's what the manual calls for
Scotty: Rev up your engines!
Scotty: This is why you shouldn't rev up your engines
Scotty: If you rev up your engines you’re stupid
Scotty is great. A lot of personality
lol
Lol
🤣🤣🤣
Watching this while my car warms up lol
Same. Sitting in my 2003 jeep....sigh
Same here lol
drby0788 lol same here bro 😂
Lol doing the same
Lol same, in my Lexus is300
I warm my car up just for the transmission's sake, not the oil or anything. You can feel her struggle when it's cold and she hasn't fully warmed up yet. Treat 'er gentle and she'll treat ya right too.
Me too.what car are you driving? Volvo V40 here
Both my cars do this where you have to go like 3,000 RPM and the car is only going 20 MPH I think this is built in function.
Yep, Ive noticed the cold-start struggle with my Subaru Impreza. Sounds like each car is different and you cant make blanket statements about what is good and what is not. A car owner with a brain with make the right intuitive adjustments to their particular cars unique character.
Uhhh… the engine doesn’t warm up the transmission, only using it will warm it up
@@George-uy2kb Im aware the engine doesn't warm up the transmission. I was saying, I don't warm up my car for the engine's sake: I warm it for the transmission. The transmission does warm up without using it. When I do a drain and fill on the tranny fluid, I watch the temp go from room temp to 108-120 F with my laser thermo
Sure you need to warm it to some degree . Sure oil will flow instantly, but it still takes around 5-10-20 seconds to lubricate everything normally. And I like to let my cars warm a minute or two before I get going . Nothing wrong will come out of it, that’s for sure .
Agree! When the RPM's are still high, I think engaging the transmission is not the best choice. I give a couple of munutes, especially in winter time.
I just start my car instantly then put the rear defroster on and step out again to remove ice or snow from the windows. By the time I’m back inside the car is about halfway warmed up and after 5 mins of gently driving it’s on operating temperature.
I totally agree. For years I've always allowed my cars to warm up then I got into this very same debate with him about whether it was necessary. I tried it his way and within less than a week I had to change my timing chain. Car engines endure so much so what's a few minutes or even half a minute for newer cars?
Depends on whether or not you’re merging onto a highway or climbing a hill shortly after cold start. I live in a quiet flat neighborhood so I don’t give my car more than 30 seconds before taking off.
@@surena9451 I do the same thing. It makes more sense to me than just sitting in my car and waiting for the defrosters.
This amount of people still warm there car up before they drive
👇🏾
Hehe, living in Finland when it might be -30 degees celcius... We don't warm engines by starting it but we have external electronic or fuel powered heaters that warm the engine before start-up...
3000gt sohc. i wait before driving off atleast a minute
Not on a hot summer day, but when it’s -10 to -40 degrees celsius, your darn right I do.
You sad, thirsty man.
Their*
It's not hard
Start it
Let it run for 30-45 seconds
Be *easy* on it till it hits temperature, then drive normally
Respect your car and it'll take care of you
My neighbor puts his car in gear a fraction of a second after the starter disengages. I guess he is late for work every day.
Lawrence Taylor or they have pther things to do other than sit in a car and waste time
it takes 5-10 minutes where i live in winter
Hahah Bro I aways leave my diesel to run for 3-4 minutes, during winter I leave it for 7-9 minutes or more 😂
I'll stick with Scott's advice but thanks for your uninformed opinion.
For an engine with higher mileage especially in cold weather the lubrication works better with warmer temperature. You can hear the engine sound changes and gets smoother when warmer so if i would push the RPM higher than idle too soon with less lubrication, it will definitely cause more friction and wear. Also transmission fluid when warm will circulate more efficiently leading to better pressure and shifting with less slippage which will eventually effect clutches lifespan in automatic transmission.
No need to push RPM high, just start and drive normally to warm engine up faster.
Scotty turned me on to proper transmission care. And my transmission sounds and works much better when warm. I am surprised he gives this advice, and only speaks of the air/fuel ratio
@@miste.remusic I was surprised too.
No matter if its a Rolls Royce or a VW Beetle - all engines are bound to the same laws of physics. Engines are all made of metal, and metal expands and shrinks depending on the temperature. No matter what advanced computers or fuel system you have, it cannot prevent excessive friction and wear when the engine is cold. And even if you have apropriate low temperature oil, its still best to wait for your engine to warm up abit, unless you want to do engine rebuilds frequently.
@@miste.remusic @2:44
In a newer video, Scotty says, yes, warm up your car before you drive because driving a cold automatic transmissions does a lot of damage to the automatic transmission
Should I warm up the car, or should I just drive away while not accelerating quickly or going fast?
"When I was young, we didn't have automatic transmissions.We had to push in a pedal called a clutch everytime we wanted to get moving or shift gears!"
@@dumymariposa6795 Pretty sure it's only Americans that can't drive manual
@@hatchingdraggon8073 Some of them, anyway!
Which video?
I personally treat my cars like I treat my women no matter the age.
I always warm them up a couple minutes before I go full throttle. 👍
Hugh Jass watch it.
(No matter the age?)
@@amypopov7726 houston, we got him.
Hugh Jass I’m gonna steal that when I get asked this question
Amy Popov get a grip
@@amypopov7726 i see your point and yet have to say its something how a few words can haunt a person for life . now we have to wonder has that guy been a very very bad male or was it just some not so well chosen words.
I warm my car up everyday. It sits all night sometimes 12 - 14 hours and in the winter 10 degrees at night or colder. Nothing will convince me it doesn’t run better after warming up first. Running it cold, you can almost feel it telling you to “give me a minute.”
Yeah I have an 18 year old car with a turbo and the noise and feel difference between running it cold and letting it warm up is night and day
Engine talks
LIKE HE SAID if you are in freezing conditions you need to warm it up so it can keep you warm and be able to defrost the windows NOT for engine protection
@@u-know-this you should still do it for engine protection. Give it at least 1-2 minutes to circulate the oil and get it to a temperature where it isn’t as thick and can move fast enough when under load/rpm
@@u-know-this I feel bad for your car
Here is a general tip you can use.
When the car run it idle pretty high, when the car RPM goes down to something close to normal it means you can now move the car but it doesn't mean you can push it yet, when it reaches its optimum temperature only then you can push the car.
By pushing i mean try not to full throttle or generally stay under 3k RPM.
No false. Especially in colds in can take 10-15 min for the initial rpm’s to settle into 800-900.. this doesn’t mean you can’t drive until that point. Wait a min and that’s that.
@@ty8473 it doesn't make any sense what your saying. So your saying that because in some places the weather is too cold that a car takes 10min for the rpm to idle at low rpm so why not just idle for a min and your good to go? Doesn't that mean because the weather in some countries are soo hot you turn it on 5sec and boom your ready to go?
In contrary because its cold you should keep it idle for longer. A car was built to operate at specific temperatures.
EX-DAMN-ACTLY!!! Neuro!!!
This is the best advice! I've had muscle cars my entire life, and I always let the idle come down before I put it in drive and never do pulls until it's at operating temperature. Think of it this way, would you do a 25-meter sprint as hard as possible without warming up or stretching? Chances are you wouldn't.
If you don’t let the idle come down it is hard on U joints in your drive shaft
Warm up you car for about 2-3 minutes, then gently drive and warm to the working temperature while moving. Definitely this works if your distance is long, not short.
unnecessary. you only need to warm it to operating temp if you are racing at high RPM's.
@@conn3r81 you have to be child, so you’re saying if you’re not gonna be racing you should just turn the car on and drive right off ?
@@buzzlightyear2851 he just probably doesn’t understand‘operating temperature{
@@conn3r81 What?
Try living at the Canadian border at 10 degrees temperature.
Imma gonna fakkin slappa you
letting it run idle increases the amount of time your engine is running with cold oil which means it wears your engine out more than driving of slowly and driving with max 2500-3000 rpm.
"Warm up your engines!"
Always
I’ll warm up my feet for my bike
Today im gonna show you why its not a good idea to warm up your engines
one more Red Bull would put this dude over the edge
Kevin Jones it doesn't have any affect on you when you're on coke, as I imagine.
Kevin Jones
Like the billy Mayes of the auto common sense world.
Lol
Lmaoo
Redbull doesn’t do this to me. This is called cocaine, brotha. Lmao😂
The purpose of warming up an engine is so you don't put too much stress on it from temperature differentials. If there is a huge difference in temperature between the inside and outside of the engine, this will create a lot of internal stresses since the inside will expand. But if you allow it to warm up slowly, there'll be a smaller heat differential and fewer internal stresses. This will make your engine last longer, and your less likely to have thing start to break.
NAILED IT MR
Yeah man
Yes and no. It’s good for it to slowly warm up. But that doesn’t necessarily mean at idle. You should let your vehicle run for like 15-45 second’s depending on how cold it is. Before you drive. This is usually how long it takes for it to idle down. As long as you don’t rev it really high after that it’s fine. It’s better to drive it not long after you started it because this allows it to warm up quicker which will decrease the amount of time that it’s running with thicker oil. This doesn’t mean drive it normally right off the bat. You should drive it slowly at the start so that it’s not too hard on the engine
Step dad taught me this young and I'm greatful
Hell yeah Scotty doesn't know crap
Wait for the temperature guage to move up, and the rpms to stabilize. That will forever be my guide. Pushing a cold engine always makes me nervous inside.
Be aware that idling our modern car for too long had a negative impact on our engine because of premature combustion. Also idling your vehicle releases harmful chemicals, gases, and other toxins into the air. Vehicles manufactured post-1980 have fuel management systems designed to heat up the engine fairly quickly. Under normal wintertime circumstances, idling your car or truck for about 30 seconds is all it takes to get the engine above 40 degrees; ideal for typical operation.
@@mohdfarhan5255 shhh… you’re interfering with his feelings. Feelings don’t care about your facts!
@@mohdfarhan5255 idling in a drive through for McDonald's is fine tho right
In my experience, a transmission always works/shifts better when warmed up. I’ll stick with warming up for at least a minute and several minutes when it’s cold out.
If you can a mix of both schools of thought is good. Too long of cold idle to warm up is increasing wear time. Warm up driving where you keep it under 2500 rpm is probably the most ideal. In other words getting that temp up fast but safely.
Some cars have a thermometer on dash like mine and after 3-4 min idle it turns off and you can drive
@@allandiaz2830 you mean a temp gauge?
@@MrRedHotChiliMan yes
Stupid. It takes about 20 minutes for the oil to get to temperature. Your also not considering everything like your tires or suspension all of which needs to be warmed up.
I always warm up my engine.
Mileage: 350,987
Not even a tap😃
what kind of vehicle ?
Jason Voorhees
1997 Ford 4.6
Machia, I think that is key! I have a 2000 Toyota 4Runner (186K miles) and I have been warming it up for years. It idles smooth like the day I bought it!
Martin Young
That and oil changes every 3,000 miles.
Nice Shepard !
@@Martin-Young Toyota's are good vehicles. I work at an automotive shop & some of the brand new vehicles don't run as smooth as an old Toyota. Silverado's, F150 all have a lil shake to them even being brand new.
To my own experiences, the car 's engine would perform better, run more smoothly if you allow it warm up for 30 second to 1 minute in cold weather. I don't want to say Scotty is wrong or right but I will do what I think it makes sense.
I noticed that
Especially with diesels
@nguoiviet4023, well I warm up my vehicle up to 15 to 20mins before I drive, I turn the ignition and crank it and let the truck idle while I'm scraping the ice and clearing the snow ❄️🌨️, and have my hot coffee and light up my menthol cigarette by the time I'm done the vehicle is already warmed up and go to drive.
I was taught that I still had to warm an engine with an A/T in order to warm the transmission fluid.
My 98’ BMW does not like a cold drive.
My 19’ Silverado can run perfect on startup. But, I always let it run for 2-3 minutes before driving.
My 08 v6 accord doesn’t like cold drives either I let her sit for 10 min warming up in the winter
We are supposed to believe someone that doesn't even know how apostrophes work?
Scotty: Unless you live somewhere it’s 50 below or something *chuckles*
Me: Sigh.
Yea I feel you
Scotty obviously has never driven on square tires 😄
Meanwhile in Wisconsin lol
Brent McDonald its been warm bro lol ........for now 😅
Ahhh here in Alaska.
“Warm up your engines!”
Hahahahahaha, yea if you don't you'll get " Freeze Up your Engines!!!!!! "
He says Rev up your engines.
He says Rev up your engines.
@@TroyTactical25 maybe you didn’t get the joke…
@@monkeytoall He didn't
I'll warm it up if it matters or not. I like driving away in a nice warm car and warm seat. 😊
Yup! I agree! 👍
Agreed, this is a basic luxury of living in a first world nation.
Finally, an extended idling proponent being honest about it! It's not about the car; it's about their wimpy constitution not being able to handle three minutes of ;ambient temps! Ever heard of gloves, hats, and jackets?
@@jthomas3773 Yep, warm comfortable vehicle is a lovely luxury :)
@@danielmanly4793 "Manly" LOL
Every morning I cuddle with my engine & transmission so that they’re warm before I need to go somewhere.
💧
I like to warm up the engine quickly, just hold it on the rev limiter for two minutes before setting off.
I allways do that and then I powershift from standstill.
without using the clutch, just get that nice immediate engagement in the tranny.
I love the grinding noise the car makes everytime. It also serves a purpose. Because when you hear that, you know the gear is almost engaged.
I remember a guy in Toronto who liked to rev his engine from cold. One very frosty morning we heard a very loud bang, and his engine never reved again.
You guys have got it all wrong, fucking amatuers.. The trick is to put the car into first and have your accelerator pedal to the floor before turning the car on. Noobs
Engines are designed to run at a specific temp. Too cold or too hot not good. Warming up your engine also warms up your automatic transmission.
Also help reach the right temperature for the right viscosity the oil is design to run at. Do 6k rpms on a car you startes 3sec ago... You'll probably have a bad time
M series will tell you max RPMs for the engine temperature.
Does manual transmissions exist in america ?
@yerb Unless your engine, transmission, and power steering pump are made to pump air not oil, you should just chill and let it warm up before driving off.
I agree specially if you want to keep the piston rings expand to keep the oil away from the explosion chambers.
Depending on temp i usually let my cars warm up briefly, but its the transmission that really likes to be warm!
Same. I don't know how it is in all cars but I know if I put the car in neutral it will engage the transmission and circulate ATF while the car is still idling, getting everything lubricated. At least that's what I was told.... and I haven't had transmission problems in my car since I bought it
when its -20 outside and you fire up your engine theres a massive difference in temperature. Pistons will heat up very quickly and unevenly while the outer cylinder walls are still cold. Cold starts as it is produce the most wear and tear on your engine. Best tp fire your car up, let it warm up for a minute or two and drive easy for the first few minutes of the drive
I have a LPG car which needs to run on petrol while cold. It will switch to LPG if coolant temperature has reached to 40 degrees celsius. In cold weather it can take up to 6-7 minutes when idle. When driving it would take some 2-3 km ride before it switches to LPG. Overall petrol consumption is less when i let it warm up at idle.
This is why there is a spec called piston ring gap.
@@NiiOnLood they just refuse to start on LPG when cold :/
Thanks indeed Mr.Sam Ya
I warm up any combustion engine before use for one simple reason, metals all expand at different rates at different temps, slowly raising the temp is much better to keep things tolerances from becoming too tight under fast thermal expansion.
Exactly! It's not about fuel economy or how it runs, it's about extending the life of the engine and transmission!
Exactly right Michael! Thats the bottom line! Professional athletes don't run out onto the field and start exerting themselves immediately!
It’s 100% true in my eyes I’ll always let my engine warm up plus I drive older cars any ways
At bare minimum I let mine get some temperature in it, when it shows on the gauge thats when I usually start light driving. I wont go above a certain rpm until the engine is all the way warm. We've all had those mornings when we wake up and have to get to work fast lol.
@@kevinmitchell3168 all bull. I have a motorcycle with 880k on the clock and never warned it up. Start and go. Anything else is a waste
This dudes awesome he’s just yelling at the camera the entire time
I dont give a too many shits about cars. Is he Aleins?
Omg
Lmao
He always does. Lol. Animated as it gets.
One of the reasons why I keep watching
For all us current apartment dwellers, I'm sure you can relate.
My new 23' Taco has to sit out in the North-Eastern Winter 😥.
I let it warm up for like 5-10 mins any day its cold, just for the ability to have heat on my way to work since its only a 5 mile drive and ~4.5 miles of that is a 55MPH highway, and the on-ramp for that highway is literally the exit of my apartment complex.
There is maybe 1000 feet of driving between me and the highway, and I don't like the idea of highway merging/acceleration and speeds while its still ice cold.
But I'm not sure if idling for extended times actually causes buildup/any other issues or,
if idling even helps to warm the Auto Trans fluid which is probably the bigger concern with little driving distance before the highway.
@Jason Martinez Wow that's crazy, I've the 4x2 4 cylinder for economical purposes ie. lower msrp, higher miles per gallon!
I only haul a single dirtbike in the bed, no need for more power as I don't plan on actually towing anything anytime soon.
Gonna treat her right, and hopefully this little 2.7L 4cylinder will last me forever!
Just waxed and ceramic coated it today and man does that Barcelona Metallic Red really pop! (Lunar rock woulda been cool but not available on the SR, womp womp).
One thing I noticed with these engines is the injector cleaning noise shortly after startup. I usually use that as my “warmup” indicator and take off keeping it under 3k rpm until normal temp
Also I think at 55mph you should mostly be under 3k rpm besides the on ramp lol
@@karlwithak1835it doesn’t seem like you know what you’re talking about
I give mine about 30 seconds to a minute just for the oil to get around the engine before I move off. I just drive it very slowly for the first 5-10 mins of driving
The oil gets around fast enough for the engine to not wear itself down at 8000-9000 RPM, I don't think it needs any time to do so on ifling
@@tbqhwyf 8-9k rpm? LOL!
Correct procedure: Idle for ~30 seconds, then try not to exceed 3k rpm until its up to operating temp.
Joe Barbaro i do 2min for -5°c or -10°c and below -10°c i use block heater and so on
Joe Barbaro Really Joe? You seem like the type to just drive a car like you stole it without giving a shit about it.... Well you probably did steal it actually lol.
No, Vito's the one who cant drive for shit.
Don Vito?
Don Vito
Joe Barbaro I don't know, your driving was pretty shaky during your 'adventure' xD
I live in Minnesota, I’m warming my engine. Oil is like honey at minus anything, and if it gets real cold you transmission won’t shift right.
@@MidwestRainstorms transmission fluid uses a radiator that runs with the antifreeze so as the engine warms up the transmission fluid is as well
Krahnik89 oh yes sir it does and my man is exactly correct that’s why I let my little civic warm up on the winter time it shifts hard if I just let it warm up for a min it if it sits 10 mins shift smoothly so somehow it warms up kinda like this guy said with the antifreeze
I warm it up because I have to drive it, and I like to have warm hands
@@MidwestRainstorms I live in Wisconsin. Do you know how cold -25 F (-31.7 C) is? You'll get frostbite just from touching the steering wheel! You'll have FREEZING cold air blowing in your face. Within 5 minutes, your lips will be like sandpaper! They'll be bleeding before you get to work! So take it from someone who was born and raised here, Floridaman, warming up your engine has VERY LITTLE to do with the mechanical components of your car, and has entirely to do with personal comfort!
@@MidwestRainstorms to check my transmission fluid in my cts I need to lift my car up and make it level then let it run for 3min to warm up 'transmissions fluids" then put the car into every gear for 2 seconds then back into park to let fluid flow into all parts evenly and only then can I get a accurate reading on the levels where I take a plug bolt out as if I'm changing oil (not regular oil drain plug)while the car is running and if it slowly leaks out it's at a good level, if not its low...it has no dipstick because some dipshit said we dont need it and put it into a sealed box(slot of new cars are being made lile this today). Anyhow this step by step is done by Cadillac mechanics and if they need to 'warm' up the transmission fluid for a good reading and it's done mostly with only idle I have a sneaking suspicion that it actually does warm up the transmission fluid.
My chevy takes 2 seconds to warm up, my corolla takes 5 mins 😂😂
However, I notice a huge difference in the performance of my older transmission in a 2007 Mazda 6 when I let its fluids get a little warmed by proximity to the engine warming up with an idle for a few minutes in cool or cold weather. Obviously the transmission fluid can't get very warm without beginning to move the gears, but the aforementioned makes a noticeable difference.
Might just need a service with the right grade of lubricating oil.
True, that's why we need to get our car moving slowly, without revving the engine of course. Our car will warm up faster when moving slowly.
Probably worth mentioning that you should drive the engine easy (compared to normal) until it's at normal operating temp, though. For various reasons.
I’d love to know the various reasons! 😅
@@asificam1 I have exactly the same opinion👍
And in simpler terms , cold metal on metal contact is harsh and causes excess wear and tear. drive slowly when the car is just starting its trip , but about a mile or 2 later you should be fine
my neighbor never warms up his engine in the morning . he just starts the car and leaves. 3 days ago his car broke down for the 5th time.
I have not warmed up my car for 9 years. I just gave it to my brother and it has 0 issues.
@@vinnytucks87 I never warm it up either (except for the winter time when I have to scratch off the ice anyway), but I avoid high engines speeds before it has warmed up.
is that related. i mean. he also never had sex before goint to work so therefor not having sex ruins your car?
Theres no need to let it warm up for extended periods of time, however starting the engine and letting it idle for 30-45 seconds just to get everything circulating isn't a bad idea.
got a boss at work with a 2012 camaro, he starts and in an instant no hesitation he reverses and drives off no time waited. lately his camero has been sounding like crap, a rattler now.
I always warm my car up for 10-15 min on average. It's a mustang. So before I get on it, I also make sure all temps have reached operating level. It's not to just allow the oil to circulate and lubricate everything because that happens very fast. It's more because it gives things an opportunity to gradually reach operating temp and allows things to expand. So even after warming up, I still won't go WOT for a few miles of driving.
Man this channel has come a long way. Great to see it grow.
shutup kid
I don’t care what the temperature is. I will always let any engine, brand new or not, light or thick oil, carbureted or injected, warm up for a few minutes. Gives me a piece of mind I guess.
Scotty contridects himself with this vid. Dohc engines and other complicated valve train engines need time for oil flow. Some parts heat faster than others under cold load. Oil temp is key and it is the slowest come up. Many road track racers recomend multi waight/ blended from a few drops in to 50 differaint waights. Makes the oil handle like a 0w 20w in cold yet gives the higher melecuilare density of the higher waight oil (Hydrocarbon polomer chains). Thin oil drains away the thick oil stays. The thinner oil moves the thicker into place and absorbs heat from the thicker oil that stays in the metal matrix. Manufactuars want every one to buy a new car. So they desighn obsolecance. This is the best way they do it. Engine oil. Make it wear out slowly so uneducated on auto ownership pays more. Yet we all can do are own research. Felt like putting in a few cents
Gabriel Bray Me Too 😂 Gotta See That Temp Needle In The First Line 😂😂
i always let it warm up for 3 minutes, and than drive away and switch gears at 2100rpm until its full warmed up.
I always let the engine warm up until the thermostat opens before driving. It worked 50 years ago and although it may not be necessary today, it can't hurt.
Gabriel Bray Same. TBH, I have a theory that small things like this are why some people's car go beyond 100k mi and others go to a scrap heap
Sorry, but I'm old school I still warm up my engines 3 to 4 minutes before putting in drive. Metals need to expand and lubricate properly before being put under stress.
John D I u r not alone, bro! Greetings from Ukraine
True. The idea that you don't have to warm up your car was probably started by auto manufacturers to sell their ultra-new technology to lazy people who are too stupid to realize when something goes wrong with their car anyway.
There is a thing I call 'mechanical empathy'. Where you not only know, but feel what's good or bad for your car.
I give my '03 Explorer 1 minute of idle (that's how long it takes revs to come down) and then drive it gently for 2-3 minutes.
I can FEEL by its response that it doesn't want to be pushed any harder up 'til then.
@@BWater-yq3jx Same here. I warm engine for 2 to 3 minutes, then drive slow under 20 miles an hour for about 1 mile or so. I'm not on a busy street , so traffic is not a problem. I can tell when the vehicle is ready to get up to speed. I like to keep my cars as long as possible. Not pushing or abusing them helps.
Same here brother. Being a machinist/ mechanic, everything I've experienced tells me it's better to do so and definitely won't hurt
Been in the auto repair game for 22 years now. I tell people if it’s 90 out, more than likely all you need is to wait 30 seconds for the oil to flow, but if it’s upstate NY winter weather it’s just a good practice to let it warm up for a few minutes.
Park outside in a Michigan winter. You need it warm enough to see out the windshield.
Get a space heater and an extension cord. Plug the extension cord in a few minutes before you want to leave.
Nah i let mine run for 2 minutes, and even after that i drive it easy until the temperature meter is in the center.
I seriously from the bottom of my heart appreciate people like you who actually understands, treats their engines well.
samrajya shakya thank i have a female neighbor “early 20’s” who just turns on her vehicle and drives off with a heavy foot and i cringe every time i hear the poor cold engine being revved so high.
@@Montesmike15 Oh. I know allot of those peoples. I feel the same and feel so sorry for the poor cold engine. But, their vehicles are the ones who throw up black smoke sooner than expected and decrease the pickup as well. Honestly speaking, these people's are the type of people who uses vehicles for transportation purposes only.
@MKMW C ?
For me, the key to longer engine life is driving slowly/easily until complete engine warmup, keeping the RPM's as low as possible. I SUSPECT that some, if not all, engines circulate the oil better under load.
Or should you.....”Rev up your engines!!!!”
Thats funny....but don't do that
No , but I hear my neighbor do it allot when its cold n freezing .
Bryan Oliver well if he sells that car don't buy it
Dan Sebastian hooah
No, you can drive right away, but don't rev hard until the engine is all the way warm.
Haven’t warmed up my car in years. Thanks for the reassurance Scotty!
I have a twin turbo engine. It needs to warm up some before driving for a few reasons. Turbos make lots of heat and it makes it quick. I don’t want to shock them too much as it can lessen their overall lifespan. Two, it idles high in open loop and makes it harder to slow down. I also like the transmission to warm up some before driving. I have a Ford 10R80 and it’s a fantastic transmission but it doesn’t like being cold. First shift is stiff and 3-4 slips. Been like that from brand new but only when it’s cold. After warming a couple minutes it won’t do this.
I don't wait for my car to reach operating temp, I do wait for the RPM's to drop below 1k though before putting it in gear.
GrAYvTrAnE the way to go! Most righteous approach
Always a good practice no matter the temperature.
💯
Exactly , I believe this is more appropriate than warm up.. I do follow the same whether I start in Texas or Minnesota, I wait for RPM to go down below
GrAYvTrAnE If the rpm is stable after cold start. I think It’s warmed up already. Because the oil circulates well. I live in a tropical weather country we dont have winter but I can warm up my engine within 2-3 minutes during cold weather about 20-25°C outside temp on 5 o’clock in the morning
idk man. lmao... i have a 2009 mercedes e class and i notice a huge difference if i start it up cold and drive, as opposed to start up wait 2-3 minutes and drive.
if i drive cold, my transmission wont shift into the next gear until it goes into a way higher rpm and it shifts jerky. but if i let it sit 2-3 minutes, it shifts like normal
Probably a transmission issue, not an engine issue. If where you live makes it possible, you can creep along the street at a slower speed. The engine and transmission will warm up faster.
Then again, there are different kinds of cold. Where I live now, the coldest morning you will ever see is in the 20's and the 30's (F) is more common. Back in Chicago, it could be 0 (F) or even colder in the morning now and then. In Minnesota or Canada, it could be very cold every day in the dead of winter. I would let an engine warm up at least some before I started driving. I would want to think that the engine oil was at least as warm as it would be on 30 degree morning before I started moving. That's 0 C, more or less.
Marks Tech that’s normal it prevents lugging when engine isn’t at operating temp. My 2001 tacoma does this. It will not shifts into the next gear until I hit about 3k rpms
@Drew McCarthy You have to know whether it was made to work that way before you can declare its behavior normal. I don't know and I am sure you don't either. Unless you have definitive information better to present your ideas as speculation because that is what they are. If I had any issue like that, I definitely would research it.
My 96 e320 does the same
fpineros22 If you can afford a benz why buy a toyota? Id only buy a toyota if my budget was too tight to get anything more exciting.
No way Scotty. I have a modern car, and I know the difference and engine sound when I drive after warm up, and without it. It is common sense.
I specifically got my civic in auto so I can remote start it in winter! Super convenient and I'll let it idle for 10 minutes or more. Once I get in it gets aggressive quickly with Chicago driving
@@MachLandar dont listen to these youtube "experts", keep warming up your car its not going to harm anything, in fact its probably better to let it warm up for at least 2-3 minutes then just zipping away with an ice cold engine
Hey I just got remote start for cold morning warmups in my Civic too! Feels a lot better getting in and driving after the rpms come down and it’s warm
Remember: It was the EPA (not engineers) who said you don't need to warm up your engine--it was in the name of saving gas. They don't care if you kill your vehicle prematurely. The various metals still need to be at their optimal dimensions.
I've never had a problem not warming up the car first. I just start it and drive normally without limiting the RPM. Our winters rarely get below freezing anyway. Modern engines already have the right tolerances and with thin oils, I don't see a problem.
Same pigs that sait start and stop sistem is a good thing
If it's cold I do let the engine warm up a little. I do it mainly because oil works better the hotter it gets.
Either way, I think the bigger issue is not putting too much load on the piston rings before the oil reaches optimal temperature.
As long as you don’t floor it soon as you start driving you’ll have no problems
@@BadDriversOfNapa modern engines do run tighter tolerances, making warm up much quicker. But they still need some warm up. They don't have some kind of magic metal that defies the laws of physics and basic metallurgy. The moving parts still have some expansion and contraction.
After getting 300,000+ miles without a rebuild out of the original engines in my personal cars, and seeing "cold driving" wear on several thousand customer's engines during rebuilds....
I'm going to continue to WARM UP cold engines before driving away.
MIKE MOTORCITY OG Amen my White brother
330k on mine depends what kinda mood I'm in if I idle +1 min
Meh depends on temp. If it's above 32F a warm up is pointless. You get a warm up as you back out or pull into traffic. 15-30 secs is adequate. Oil pressure should come up within 1 second. You figure everything is lubed in less than 2 secs. Just don't ream on the gas for a few minutes on a cold engine.
If it's below 32F warm up the car. If there's no snow or ice to clear off, 30sec-1min is good enough.
If it's below like 10F warm up for 2 mins or however long you feel like. Usually at this temp I end up warming up for about 5 mins because I have to melt the snow and ice off the windows.
These people "warming up" during the summer are just wasting gas. Also no need for a warm up if the engine is already hot even a little.
Now a days All these You tubers are trying to be different. It’s always better to warm up the engine. The difference in newer and older cars is: older cars take longer to warm up and newer ones take less. This guy doesn’t know anything. I bet you when he never never revs his own Card hard when it’s cold.
The people that are defending this video are probably the same people that get out of work when its 0 Fahrenheit and get on the highway within a minute of starting the engine and just red line it up to speed. Yes you should warm up your cars people even just a few mins. Anything below freezing just give it a minute
Be safe, warm up the car when it’s cold. You could get in a car at 15F, have nice clear windows, start driving and find out a couple of minutes later you breath has fogged up the windows. If you don’t have any heat in the engine, you won’t be able to clear the windshield.
That's what I've been saying. Yeah you can drive the car but you have to be able to see and a lot of these people don't know anything about snow. It's also possible they keep the car in the garage but my garage has the race car in it and I park in the driveway with snow all over in the morning
Why not just clear those windshields manually whilst letting the engine run???
@@Firemarioflower while you’re driving?? Sure if you have something inside the car to wipe off the condensation and it doesn’t come back. How about if what’s on the inside is frost? Ice scrapers are designed to work on windows with an outer curve and again what do you do when it fogs up while your driving.
If you have air conditioning in your car it will clear your windscreen much faster than heat.
@@Cooliemasteroz that is simply not true in cold climates. There is a point where it’s cold enough outside that your AC will not turn on. There are times when the only way to drive safely is to wait for the engine to heat up.
When I start my truck in cold weather the last thing on my mind is "I wonder if my engine is firing at the optimal air/fuel ratio yet". I'm thinking mostly about oil temp / lubrication and differential thermal expansion of the many many moving parts in the engine that were made with tight tolerances.
Don't you think manuals would say to warm the engine for 7 minutes if that were necessary?
@@h.d.h I could be wrong, it probably isn't necessary to warm up your engine as much as I do, that's just my preference based on how I think about machines. But to answer your question, no, owners manuals don't list all the driving and operating techniques that will help your car last longer.
@@jessequentin4441 An owners manual usually does say not to drive the engine too hard when cold, but it never does say to idle the engine till it's warm.
Its necessary - modern car manuals will tell you to get going immediately, cuz modern car manufacturers put priority on the eco-norms, and not how long your car will last. Infact they would like it if you ruin your engine, and have to buy a new car. THE FACT IS you need to wait for your engine to warm up no matter if you're driving a 2022 or a 1922 car - ALL ENGINES ARE MADE OF METAL and are bound to the same laws of physics! No computer or fuel system prevents excessive friction or wear if you start running your car without waiting atleast 30 seconds for your oil to start lubricating. Your cylinders and pistons expand when your engine warms up, so running your engine cold is a very bad idea - thats when the most wear happens. Thats exactly why Taxi cars do higher mileage than any other car - cuz their engines are always warm. So yeah, you need to wait atleast 5 minutes if its like 0 or less degrees outside. Doesnt matter if you're driving a Rolls Royce or a VW Beetle - you're gonna ruin your engine if you drive it cold, even at slow RPM. Wait atleast till your temp gauge goes atleast abit up, dont need to wait it to completely warm up.
Even with a new car, I let it warm up for a few seconds until the rpm drop. Just makes sense.
That's the key... you wait at least until the fast idle stops and it slows down to normal idle speed.
Really? I hold the gas pedal down, ignition on, then drop the clutch.
xD
Yes I wait until RPMs drop low and stabilized
It's called common sense, yet it isn't all that common unfortunately
I'll warm up my engine until the day I die.
Amen metal's are metals I don't give 2 shits how well the fuel metering systems work metals need to expand to their operating temperature state to get optimal life out of them. Nuff Said!!!
@@skylerhouston It's hard to say what puts less wear:
- Cold idling(~3 times slower to warm up)
- Light load short shifting (faster but more load)
@@She1lby I've wondered about that myself for a long while. I met in the middle and with my powerstroke with 15w-40 I let it warm up for about a minute or two and drive it gently until oil temperature crests 140 then I drive normally from there. Doesn't matter the time of year to me, usually in winter it idles a little longer just cause I have to get snow off it before I drive.
Same.
@@avernon2778 Doing almost the same, i'm letting coolant temp reach ~55 C ( temp gauge starts to move ) that's about 2 minutes of idle, then driving it gently.
Would really love to know how engine load affects this though.
I love both the history and the technical aspects. I would like more like these. Especially 3 minutes long.
Thank you, easy to understad, hard part is to get a car now
I wait for 8 hours to warm the engine up
That's right!!! 👍🏾👍🏾
You must own a pos GM
Might as well let it warm up overnight before going to bed
Not long enough
Where do you live? Antarktika? Or in space?
You literally yelled that whole video out impressive
Nick L thats what a human being sounds like who hasnt been raised by electronics or iphones.
@nick l well said!
Lol his entire channel is full of him yelling but we love our Scotty.
He has hearing problems
Kilmer was 101st Airborne. Gunfire does that...
I like to still give it a minute to let the parts change temp more gradually than hopping right in and hammering down.
Don't put the hammer down immediately after hopping in. Easy-peasy!
My work van is a 2012 GMC Savannah and the engine starts right up and runs good in the winter, however the tranny shifts pretty hard until it warms up. On the flipside the daily driver is a 2022 Audi and even when it's freezing the car runs and shifts great even when still cold.
Check solenoid valves or switch . Make sure they are staying in the open or closed position
Just wait till it's in normal idle rpm, that's my point of reference.
I'm old school...when I start my car in the morning, I always let my engine run a few minutes before I start driving. 🚗😎👍
Really? I don't know of anyone with the patience to sit there for 2-3 minutes before moving.
@@sk-un5jq I know right...floor it and go!
I'm a brand new driver and i do the same thing.
So do I I always see everyone start their car and drive away after work some people are putting it in gear before the car is even done starting. I like to wait for the rpms to go down which usually takes around 1 minute or 2. And when I'm driving something with a carb I'll give it a good 5 minutes if its 40°or below.
Be aware that idling our modern car for too long had a negative impact on our engine because of premature combustion. Also idling your vehicle releases harmful chemicals, gases, and other toxins into the air. Vehicles manufactured post-1980 have fuel management systems designed to heat up the engine fairly quickly. Under normal wintertime circumstances, idling your car or truck for about 30 seconds is all it takes to get the engine above 40 degrees; ideal for typical operation.
I've owned three Corvettes and I've never hammered them until oil temp is at least 160-180*. It is nice to have a readout to monitor the oil temp. Same thing for my GMC truck. Let the oil get up to temp before driving hard.
Where I live here in Canada you have to warm your vehicle up. Try cranking over your car in -30C and taking off. Doesn’t work very well.
Just trust Scotty, he redlines his customers BMWs while it's dead cold.
🤣🤣🤣😂😂 for real!
😂😂😂
I do this to my 20 year old BMW every day.. I even shift my automatic from drive to reverse while the car is still moving
@@magg93 I did it with my 94 celica while it goes 100 mph, I found that when you put reverse gear immediately when driving upward 100 MPH it gives you that turbo boost acceleration right away rather than reverse in my celica. R gear is only reverse when you switch it during stand still.
@@slothypunk cool! I will try it on my e39 today
In Minnesota you want your car to warm up so the defrost works when you are ready to drive,especially in really cold weather.
I tell my friend this. He bought a 2020 BRZ and warms the damn thing for 30 minutes before he starts driving. Treats the thing like a lambo:P
You just had to show that 1969 corvette l88 in the beginning didn’t you? Legit has been my dream car for at least a decade.
I set fire to my engine to warm it up. Work a every time.
LoL
I read this comment and bursted out laughing people are looking at me like I'm crazy ..... Best comment on the post 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
While he’s not wrong here, it’s not all about the air fuel ratio. Metal expands when it heats up. Engineers design the tolerances inside an engine with this in mind, which is why cars are set to run within a specific temperature range. Putting a hard load on your motor before it’s warmed up can lead to premature wearing of your engine’s internals.
Exactly!
What I learned is warm up for 2 or 3 minutes then start driving normaly. Idling too long can cause piston rings wear out
Even in 30 or 40 degree temps I’ll let the vehicle warm up for a few minutes before taking off! Just allows engine /trans to get fluids flowing and seals warmed up some.
Bitter temps I’ll warm it up while cleaning snow or frost off the car! Then to a point where the windshield is defrosting!
I’ll let my tractor warm up before working it also…usually 5-10 minutes if it’s cold…
Ya when it's -40°c in Canada I'ma let it warm up until the rpm's drop to operating idle. 🥶
I at least wait 30 seconds before i drive off and i noticed my transmission works better when its warm
This is why i do it too
I drive right away the sec I start the engine, just touch the pedal enough so it runs like a snail for a min or two. Never had a problem with it and transmission works really good as well. Just don't floor it right after you start it and you should be golden
@@slothypunk give 5 minutes minimum of normal driving before you floor it. 15 minutes to be on the safe end
I give mine 1 mnt at least.
I always run it until the RPM drops below 1k... at the very least there's less of a jolt when I put it in drive.
I live in Winnipeg, -54c with windchill is the coldest I've ever seen,have to warm it up but this info is good for "warmer startups".
Greetings from Edmonton Canada 🇨🇦☃️ where we get -40s Celsius days doing brutal things to our vehicles. Thank-you everyone for sharing vehicle care info & Happy New Year best wishes 😊🍀
My truck is smoother and more responsive switching gears once warm.
Same here and my power steering pump is quieter when warmer
I've noticed this on both of my cars
Yes, he's wrong about this. You CAN drive it from a cold start, but it's like saying you don't need a jacket to walk when it's 20 degrees out.
@@LORDRA1DEN Or, think about walking in heavy wind chill with nothing covering your face and hands, and then you walk into a warm space. Your face and hands will be stiff and slow until they warm up. Why are a car's engine, trans, and oil different?
Agreed once my Sprinter is warm it just runs smoother, why put that extra stress on the engine if I dont need to.
Love the Channel, I learn a lot from Scotty. But I’m old school when it comes to my car. I always let it warm up for about 3-5 min. And in my case I come from a race car family that specializes in drag racing with Toyota four-cylinder engines like the 2RZ, 3tc and the mr2 motor. And we always dropped turbos on our cars. And the one thing I was always taught by my father was to always let the car warm up so the piston rings seal because if you don’t depending on how much boost you’re pushing you can easily blow the piston rings and blow your motor up. And in my case I drive a Volvo with the 2.5 turbo so I always have a habit of letting it warm up so that way the piston rings don’t blow up. That’s just me, everyone is different and has there own opinion and I respect that.
Living in MN I know of people who DONT warm up their cars and yeah...my friend's Astro didn't make it to 100k. Another friend's Celica threw a rod / he didn't warm up his car either. And another guy's toyota pickup had a noisy timing chain...he didn't warm his vehicle. I have 178k on my 2011 Sienna. It uses no oil / doesn't leak...I think its on the original plugs and wires! And I prefer to warm it up. Not forever, but the heat is slow in coming at -10 so there you go. Remote start
I know a few taxi cars that are driven 24/7. They never go cold, and easily make it to 6-700k km without touching the engine. An auxiliary heater that warms up the coolant in winter can extend the engine life by a lot.
Love your output..Great channel
I always let my car warm up. It drives smoothly.
Ikr!!
Your car will love you for it.
Be nice to the car and it will be nice to you.
bru Bna same here. Feel comfortable when driving
Exactly !
I hear you on that, I let my mom drive my car the other day to go to school and she didn't let it warm up. Was tight
I like to warm it up until the rpms get down to operating point. Then, when I switch to reverse or drive, I don’t get as big of a clunk on my transmission.
Sounds like you might need transmission mounts
That's exactly how ya do it!
I do that in my subaru
That's like 5-10 seconds in my cars
@@bajszosjozsef4850 Your cars drop below 1000 RPM in ten seconds?
Thank you so much Scotty for this video
One thing I have seen no one mention is cylinder wall thrust . Any load on a engine creates more side pressure on the cylinder , cold oil will not spray out on the walls the way the engine is designed . As I write this it also occurs to me to mention " oil drag " . When a engine is turning , the oil between bearings surfaces tries to spin the bearing in the direction of rotation, cold oil creates more oil drag . Back in carburator days a lot of professional mechanics used to set the high idle totally off on their own cars . They would have to sit in a cold car with a toe feathering the accelerator but better than engine damage
I like getting yelled at
Then you’ve come to the right place!
Scotty Kilmer 😂
Haahah :D
Yelled at from Germany.
This is the best comment in the history of internet 😂😂😂
Eric Herrero kinky
We had -65°F here in Mn. Warming up your car before driving is no myth here
I believe you 😊
Yep lol I grew up in Embarrass MN. You can literally break an engine by not warming it up in that. (Also why I moved out southwest lmao)
I Hear you, I'm next door in Wisconsin.
Just good practice to warm up engine, I watched a guy tear up his bike by starting and then opening up throttle that that blew the engine 🏍
Here I thought the car idled higher when cold because the engine is trying to warm up faster? But it was actually because the air/fuel mixture wasn't right so its running to rich causing it to idle higher? Interesting.
this dude is on another level
He knows what he talking about though. :D
????????????????????????
What a mechanic told me, the oil takes a while to spread through the entire engine because it is all at the bottom. So let the engine idle for a while before driving away.
It takes around 30 seconds for oil to flow through all the engine. If it takes much longer, it means you have the wrong weight of oil in your engine
You still have to wait 30 seconds then.
@@zonedout5998 yeah, but some do it more than a minute without knowing they are damaging their car more while idling. By letting our car sit to warm up, it’s actually putting extra fuel into the combustion chamber, which can get onto your cylinder walls. Because gasoline is an excellent solvent, too much on your cylinder walls can dissolve the oil that lubricates your cylinders, leading to shorter life on crucial components.
@@mohdfarhan5255 this problem only exists if you don't change your oil and filter. So change your oil and filter.
@@mohdfarhan5255 but waiting in a drive through with your idle doesn't?
this guy is good. no wonder you have so many subs. nice work Scotty
Good Stuff, Great Tips😃👍🏿
Scotty, sensors can't beat basic metallurgy. So it's best to warm up the engine!
If you read the owners manual it will say the same thing, wait 30 seconds then drive gently until operating temperature is reached. This ensures the engine warms up quickly without stress, and wear and tear on internal components is minimized.
Good point!
That is for liability reasons only, unless you talk about a really old car.
once you enter de car,
turn it on
then accomodate yourself,
fasten your seatbelt,
prepare to drive,
set off slowly,
enough for 30 secs, you wouldn't have to wait
it's what I do everyday and it reaches early to good temp,
once I was very rushed, I set off as I turned the car on, the temp was longer to reach, I wonder people thinks it doesn't need to warm, has already drove cold engine for 30 secs or 1 minute, new gaskets are awaiting for them.
Manuals say that because it looks good to say no waiting, it's not really what is best for the vehicle. Just like 0-20 oil really is't the best viscosity but it helped them reach their MPG goal.
Big up from Scotland Scotty 👍..