Winter Driving Guide

In many people’s concept of the correct way to warm up a car, they think that early in the morning, or after a long time without using the car, they should start the car, idle in place, wait three to five minutes, and then go on the road. Many believe this is the most beneficial method for the car.

But is that really the right way to warm up the car? According to one statistic in the original article, more than ninety percent of the wear and tear of engine parts is caused within three minutes after starting the car from cold. Therefore, how to warm up the car properly is a real concern for car lovers.

Warm-up reasons

Understand why the car needs warming up

Why a Car Needs to Warm Up

First, after the car has been parked for a long time, the oil in the engine flows back to the lower part of the engine oil sump. Therefore, after the car has not been used for a long time, such as overnight, the upper part of the engine has no oil and lacks lubrication.

It takes about 30 seconds after starting the engine for the oil pump to operate and deliver oil to the pistons, connecting rods, and crankshaft, which are the parts of the engine that need the most lubrication. But even if the engine is started and the car moves soon afterward, as long as the throttle is not slammed and the vehicle keeps low speed, the effect is similar to idle running.

Second, before the engine reaches its working temperature, about 90-110 degrees Celsius, the oil supply system is still cold and gasoline cannot be completely gasified. When gasoline has not been gasified and remains in a “wet” liquid state, it is not easy to burn and start the engine.

At this time, the damper helps improve the gasoline/air mixture ratio and increase engine speed so that the engine does not stall. When the normal working temperature is reached, the automatic damper returns to its normal state by mechanical action. Manual damper cars must remember to put the damper back; otherwise, the oil/air mixture ratio is too high, wasting gasoline and horsepower, and incomplete combustion can produce black smoke.

A cold engine takes about seven or eight minutes to ten minutes to reach normal working temperature, depending on the type of car. During this time, there is no need to warm up the car in place, as long as you do not drive at high speed.

Third, transmission gear lubrication is often ignored. Transmission gear oil and engine oil have something in common: when cold, the gear oil flows to the lower half of the transmission. Only when driving will the gears run and bring up the gear oil at the bottom to lubricate the upper part.

This is why most cars have rough shifting when cold. The solution is not to warm up the car in place, because the transmission does not have a gear oil pump. When warming up in place, only the engine moves and the rest of the car is not moving. The situation improves only when the car is actually on the road and driven slowly for a while.

Main benefit

Avoid cold engine wear

The Biggest Advantage of Warming Up the Car

According to some data, about 90% of wear and tear occurs at the moment of starting. The real way to love the car is to learn to protect the motor first. Therefore, it is not advisable to use a harsh “hot car” approach.

  • Reason 1: lubrication after overnight parking.When starting the engine overnight, the upper part of the engine lacks lubrication. Warming up the car for about 30 seconds after starting allows oil to be transported to the pistons, connecting rods, crankshaft, and other parts that need lubrication most.
  • Reason 2: gasoline vaporization.The working temperature required for complete vaporization of gasoline is 90-110℃. When gasoline is not yet vaporized and is in a “wet” liquid state, it is not easy to burn and start the engine. A cold engine takes about seven to eight minutes to ten minutes to reach normal working temperature, depending on the type of car. There is no need to warm up the car in place during this time, as long as you do not drive at high speed.
  • Reason 3: transmission lubrication.Transmission gear oil flows to the lower half of the transmission when it is cold. Only when driving will the gears run and bring up the gear oil at the bottom to lubricate the upper part. This is why most cars shift sharply when cold. The solution is to warm up the car by driving at low speed.
Warm-up experience

Four points to remember

Warm-Up Experience Notes

  1. Idle warm-up is not the longer the better.A long warm-up time makes the engine do useless work, wastes fuel, and is not environmentally friendly. Generally speaking, the warm-up time is shorter in summer, around 1-2 minutes. In winter, because the temperature is low and the oil viscosity at the bottom of the engine is higher, the warm-up time needs to be longer, generally 3-5 minutes. A simple judgment is to see the tachometer pointer turn to within 1000 rpm and the water temperature gauge begin to move, then normal driving can begin.
  2. Do not press the throttle when idling.It is best to drive the first 2-4 kilometers smoothly at about 40 yards per hour. Otherwise, the engine can wear quickly and engine parts can be seriously damaged.
  3. Small-displacement cars need a more thorough warm-up.For 3-cylinder or 4-cylinder small-displacement cars, small displacement means small power and larger load. When a cold car runs immediately, the machine may not stand it well. By contrast, a car with a large or slightly larger displacement can basically go once there is some temperature.
  4. Be careful when leaving an underground parking lot.For an underground parking lot, do not drive away hard just because there is a little water temperature. From an underground garage, the car often needs to climb a steeper slope. If the engine has not reached normal working temperature, forcing the car up the slope can create more wear and tear.
Winter precautions

Winter warm-up precautions

How to Warm Up Correctly in Winter

When you start the engine, the lubrication of the internal engine parts is poor. If you immediately put it in gear, it can cause serious wear and tear on the engine, especially in winter. Warm-up increases the engine’s working temperature and, more importantly, lets the parts get fully lubricated.

The wear and tear of the mechanical parts of the engine is mainly caused within 2 minutes of cold start, and correct warm-up can extend the service life of the engine.

For electronically controlled fuel-injected engines used nowadays, when the ambient temperature is high, the warm-up time after the cold start should not be too long; about 2 minutes before driving on the road is enough. For winter in Qingdao, the original article recommends warming up the car for 3-5 minutes after a cold start and waiting for the water temperature gauge to change slightly before driving.

Before the water temperature reaches the normal value, do not drive at high speed or high rpm. Drive at low speed to let the engine water temperature reach the normal value.

Many car owners have the misunderstanding that the engine should be warmed up in place for more than 10 minutes. In fact, warming up the car in place for a long time is not very scientific. Idling in place wastes gasoline and time, and more importantly, it can produce carbon deposits. As vehicle mileage grows, carbon deposits can seriously affect vehicle power and fuel consumption, so long idling should be avoided.

The content of warming up the car is actually simple, but because of different habits, many car owners still find it difficult to do correctly. Some wrong operations in daily driving can cause different types of vehicle failure.

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