Alright, let’s talk about warming up the car. Used to be, especially when it got really cold, I’d go out there, start the engine, and just let it sit. Sometimes for a good 5, maybe 10 minutes. Went back inside, finished my coffee, thought I was doing the engine a favor.
I figured, you know, get everything nice and toasty before hitting the road. Seemed logical. Let the oil circulate, warm up the block, all that stuff people used to say. And yeah, the cabin got warm, which was nice.
What I Actually Do Now
But over time, I kinda stopped doing that long idle thing. Felt like I was just burning gas for no good reason, especially with newer cars. So here’s my routine these days, it’s pretty simple and seems to work just fine for my car.
I get in, put the key in (or push the button, whatever), and start the engine. Then, I don’t just sit there forever. I basically give it maybe 30 seconds to a minute. Enough time for the engine speed to settle down from its initial high rev.
While it’s doing that short idle, I’m usually doing other stuff:
- Buckling my seatbelt.
- Checking my mirrors.
- Maybe plugging in my phone or picking some music.
- If the windows are frosted, I’ll turn on the defrosters right away.
After that short bit, like maybe a minute tops, I just put it in gear and start driving. The key here is driving gently at first. No flooring it, no high revs. Just easy acceleration, smooth braking. I keep it chill for the first few blocks or the first couple of minutes.
My thinking is, this gets everything moving – the engine, the transmission, the fluids – way faster than just sitting there idling. Driving, even gently, puts a light load on the engine, which helps it warm up quicker and more evenly. The heater starts working faster too, usually.
I basically keep driving easy until I see the temperature gauge start to move up from the cold mark. Once it’s off the bottom peg and climbing towards normal, I figure things are warmed up enough to drive like I normally would.
Seems to work fine. Saves gas compared to the old way, and honestly, the car feels perfectly okay. Haven’t had any issues doing it this way for years now. It just feels more practical, gets me going sooner without wasting fuel just sitting in the driveway.
