Should you warm up your car? Does warming up your car actually help? During the winter most people think it is a good idea to warm their vehicles up before they head out for the day. With remote start vehicles becoming more popular than ever, the trend of warming up your vehicle has as well, because it just takes the push of a button. While warming up your vehicle may be convenient so you don’t have to deal with driving in a cold car, this can affect the overall health of your vehicle. Here are a couple of ways how this affects your vehicle and the environment.
Engine Life
Warming up your vehicle can actually shorten the life of your engine, by letting your vehicle idle in the cold you are actually stripping away oil from the engine’s pistons and cylinders each time you do this. While you may wonder where this myth came from since it’s not true, it’s because it was once based on facts. Jake Scheafer the Service Director at Smart Motors’ says before cars and trucks were equipped with fuel management systems, they relied on carburetors and simpler fuel system management which did need significant time to warm up. He also stated “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.”
Environmental Harm
While warming your vehicle up may make your drive a little more comfortable, it can add to more damage to the environment. Idling your vehicle releases harmful chemicals, gases, and other toxins into the air. This contributes to regional haze, depletion of the ozone, and global climate change. Idling your vehicle burns way more gas than just starting it and every gallon of gas burned produces more than 20 pounds of greenhouse gases.
Avoiding Damage to Your Engine
If you are worried about harming your engine and the environment but you still want your vehicle to be warm you should know that most new vehicles warm up fast. “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,” said Jake Scheafer.
Schaefer says that unless the outside temperatures are extremely frigid, drivers should start their vehicle, get out and walk around it to remove any obstructing snow or ice, get back in and start driving as usual. Driving the vehicle, he says, is a much quicker way to warm up an engine without causing it damage. “Of course, if it’s very cold out, you should wait until your defrost starts blowing warm air,” he warns. “You don’t want to compromise your safety by peeking through a tiny clear spot you’ve managed to make in your windshield.”
Another thing to be careful about is accelerating too fast the first few moments you are driving. This can add unwanted strain to your bearings and flood the combustion chamber with gas, which in turn will take miles off your engine’s life. This is why it is a good idea to take the first couple of miles on the slower side and not rev your engine too much. If you are worried that you’ve already done damage to your engine or you just need maintenance done on your vehicle, come visit our Service Center at Smart Motors Toyota in Madison, WI, and our Toyota trained technicians can help. We proudly serve drivers throughout the greater Madison area, including Sun Prairie, Middleton, and beyond.
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