Idling is bad for your engine..

[mazdamazda]

ako kahit masama pa yang pag-iidle ng engine pagka-start, gagawin ko pa rin yan for at least 1 to 1.5 minute.

Check your car's manual... most manufacturers recommend just a 15 second "warm-up" before driving off.

Ano bang masisira kung naka-idle, at least the engine is running on its lowest rpm habang umiikot yong langis sa buong makina. di naman kailangang hintayin na tumaas yong temp, basta masiguro lang na well protected na lahat ng parts ng makina bago i-rev ng up to 2000 rpm.

Idling a cold engine can lead to a faster carbon buildup in your engine. A combination of a high fuel-air mix at idle plus a cold engine isn't good for the environment also.

If you concern is about better (or overkill) protection - switch to semi or fully synthetic motor oils. A second after staring up your engine your motor oil would already have lubricated already all moving parts properly.

ganyan kasi yong neighbor ko, halos kaka-start lang takbo agad, at maririnig mo talaga yong ingay ng makina habang umaalis and yong car is only over a year old.

As I've said - the proper warm-up technique for a cold engine is a 10-15 second idling period then drive slowly for the first few kilometers / minutes.

[Picard]

I think the best thing to do is to follow THE manual. Meron din kasing ibang sasakyan like the classic Tamaraw FX na kailangang tlgang iwarm up muna bago patakbuhin dahil walang gagawin yun kundi pipiyok nang pipiyok kung pinaandar nang malamig.

[matty]

thanks to this thread, i learned a lot. i didn't know that idling my car 3 to 5 minutes was an overkill. i thought it is really needed hehehe. thanks to all of your expert opinions.

[Wouie]

Check your car's manual... most manufacturers recommend just a 15 second "warm-up" before driving off.

pag itinakbo ko ang car ko after 15 seconds warm-up, it wont upshift for the first couple of gears till it reaches 3000rpm. Like what you said, kailangan dahan-dahan lang at first which means lower rpm. There's nothing wrong with the car, that's just how it works after cold start, to warm-up the cat quickly.

[mbeige]

^^ and considering you're in London, it's a colder climate compared to Manila. So idling will have to be longer than 15 seconds to get to operating temp.

[M]

used to do this on our old DX.
pero now, hindi na. basta gentle driving lang until the engine warms up to the normal temp.

[Memphis Raines]

Exaclty 10 years ago, Al S. Mendoza of the Inquirer motoring section noted that "the best way to warm-up your car is in gear"; this way all your moving parts that need lube will get lubed altogether. This goes especially for the engine of modern cars with electronic engine management systems.

In regards that long idling can inflict harm to an engine, i don't believe that it can, at least not with todays engines. I do believe that it can be harmful if your engines cooling system is not 100% performing. In my experience, ang daming nag-rereklamo na their temp meter goes up whenever they idle long or get stuck in traffic. A closer look revealed that its either the driver didnt check the coolant level of the radiator or simply does not practice periodically draining the dirty fluids and put in a fresh batch.

I like to think that idling your engine varies from country or climate. Im sure yung mga taga Bagiuo would like to warm-up a bit longer for optimal performance lalo na sa area nila where you find lota hills that need ample torque. But as form of good measure, never race a cold engine.

[Picard]

sa manual ko, nakalagay, warm-up by driving. Tapos may section din na never let a cold engine idle for more than 10 mins, and no more than 20 mins for a normal operating temp engine.

[userfriendly]

Best talaga follow your manual. I normally just start the car wait 10 seconds or so and drive slowly until the car reaches normal operating temp. So far so good.

I belive that most if not all of us will agree that idling is bad for the wallet.

[Memphis Raines]

Picard,
If it is your Altis, you can actually start-up and go.

[Memphis Raines]

I belive that most if not all of us will agree that idling is bad for the wallet.

Amen to that. Now that will really damage...your budget!

[Picard]

Picard,
If it is your Altis, you can actually start-up and go.

Precisely..

[cocoy]

so from what i read, idling a cold engine is bad,,, but if the engine is warm then idlling is ok?cause if idling in traffic is bad, then wats the use of having aircon.

[mazdamazda]

sa manual ko, nakalagay, warm-up by driving. Tapos may section din na never let a cold engine idle for more than 10 mins, and no more than 20 mins for a normal operating temp engine.

Actually that is what also is stated in the Rav's manual (I just checked it AGAIN this morning)... "warm-up by driving and not by idling".

In regards that long idling can inflict harm to an engine, i don't believe that it can, at least not with todays engines.

There's also a special note in my car's manual not to idle the engine for more than 40 minutes as it might damage the 3-way catalytic converter.

Long idling also shortens your sparkplug's (for those that are using non-iridiums) life. This was specifically stated in our 323's manual wherein we had to replace the plugs if it regularly experiences long idling conditions.

[Picard]

Siguro idling will not directly damage your engine but will hasten regular wear and tear..

[Vinsanity]

Tanong lang po: Kasi lagi ako nireremind ng lolo at dad ko na painitin ko daw yun kotse araw-araw kasi I only use the car 2-3 times a week. 2000 Hyundai Sonata GLS yun kotse.

Sabi kasi dito masama yun to long na idling and if I am only going to run the engine kahit na hindi ko talaga gagamitin, isn't that bad too? Sabi kasi nila masisira yun makina kung hindi ko daw ipainit? Dapat everyday daw pinapatakbo, naisip ko kasi waste of fuel lang yun ganun.

any comments?

[RafRaf]

siguro wag lang yung sobrang tagal.

someone posted that it is not necessarily all bad... just that there isn't really much benefit.

BTW, sa manual ng diesel adventure, nakalagay to warm up the engine until the temp needle starts to move before driving off. so I guess for the adventure's 4d56 some amount of idling is needed... wag lang excess.

[Vinsanity]

siguro wag lang yung sobrang tagal.

someone posted that it is not necessarily all bad... just that there isn't really much benefit.

BTW, sa manual ng diesel adventure, nakalagay to warm up the engine until the temp needle starts to move before driving off. so I guess for the adventure's 4d56 some amount of idling is needed... wag lang excess.

Basically, good practice nga yun pinapainit yun engine everyday kahit hindi mo naman gagamitin and it will keep your engine in top shape?

[mbeige]

Tanong lang po: Kasi lagi ako nireremind ng lolo at dad ko na painitin ko daw yun kotse araw-araw kasi I only use the car 2-3 times a week. 2000 Hyundai Sonata GLS yun kotse.

Sabi kasi dito masama yun to long na idling and if I am only going to run the engine kahit na hindi ko talaga gagamitin, isn't that bad too? Sabi kasi nila masisira yun makina kung hindi ko daw ipainit? Dapat everyday daw pinapatakbo, naisip ko kasi waste of fuel lang yun ganun.

any comments?

Starting the car a few times a year is better than not at all. But starting the car just because you only drive it 2-3 days a week is just more damaging dahil:

1. Unless you reach operating temperature, idling the car for a few mins causes carbon build up. Do not think that revving the engine high will solve this by burning off the carbon because your engine is still cold, and revving it while cold is bad, really bad. Burning off the carbon is good on a highway/highspeed run at operating temp for extended periods.

2. From the moment you start the car to the moment you turn it off, maybe 90% of that is run with a cold engine. When you reach the operating temp, usually that's when you shut it off right? Or at least pag mainit init na. In this case, you're causing more wear because an engine does not like cold oil. It wants to be warmed up quickly but not too fast na it will run at high speed with cold oil.

So kung sandali lang like one week di mo tinatakbo, ok lang yan. Just make sure when you drive it, give it a good run at operating temp. Exercise mo lang siya when you're using it, rather than just idle it when you're not.

[Vinsanity]

Starting the car a few times a year is better than not at all. But starting the car just because you only drive it 2-3 days a week is just more damaging dahil:

1. Unless you reach operating temperature, idling the car for a few mins causes carbon build up. Do not think that revving the engine high will solve this by burning off the carbon because your engine is still cold, and revving it while cold is bad, really bad. Burning off the carbon is good on a highway/highspeed run at operating temp for extended periods.

2. From the moment you start the car to the moment you turn it off, maybe 90% of that is run with a cold engine. When you reach the operating temp, usually that's when you shut it off right? Or at least pag mainit init na. In this case, you're causing more wear because an engine does not like cold oil. It wants to be warmed up quickly but not too fast na it will run at high speed with cold oil.

So kung sandali lang like one week di mo tinatakbo, ok lang yan. Just make sure when you drive it, give it a good run at operating temp. Exercise mo lang siya when you're using it, rather than just idle it when you're not.

I see, so as long as I use the car at least twice a week, ok lang na di ko siya pinapaandar for the 5-6 days. Usually naman kasi when I use the car long trips. Either I visit my gf sa commonwealth or play basketball sa Magallanes. I come from Pasig and make use of the highways most of the time