Running Cold - Advise on short distance driving

[Boy Torotot]

My normal daily drive in the morning from house to office take anywhere from 20 to 30 minutes only. My car's engine may not have been reaching its normal operating temp by the time i get to the office. So for this short distance travel, can you advise what i can do in terms of driving/engine maintenance routine to at least avoid problems later on due to this 'running cold' condition that i may be regularly subjecting my car to. I'm not even sure if this would be a problem later on, but i'm a bit curious as to the effect.

I can commute from time to time, but there are instances that i need to have a car.

[shadow]

easy on the pedal...

[woohoo]

20 minutes of idling is more than enough time for your engine to reach normal operating temperature. What more if it's driven (hence, higher rpm which means it will get to reach the normal operating temperature quicker) for that same length of time...

We're almost in the same boat. I drive 4kms one-way everyday. When I could still afford it, I would wait around 5 minutes after initial start until it reaches normal operating temperature, then drive it.

Nowadays, with the much higher cost of fuel, I wait for only around 1 minute and drive it slowly until it reaches normal operating temp, then I drive it normally.

My drive takes enough time for the exhaust to stop spewing out water, and that's all that matters to me. Any gurus out there who can tell us bad side effects of our daily driving routine?

[niky]

Driving short distances in traffic is bad for the oil. It can cause premature engine wear if you don't religiously follow oil changes. For sensitive engines (i.e.: those with tight tolerances like the Altis, or those with pretty loose tolerances, like some old diesel engines), you might want to change oil sooner than 5000 kilometers if you always drive in traffic.

[yapoy86]

it really depends on how long is your travel in distance and time... A 20km distance can be travelled in 20 mins under 60kph speed but can take as long as 2 hours under heavy traffic..

most cars today optimizes the engine cooling system so that it can reach the normal operating temp as soon as possible.. in under 5 mins going outside the village your engine will already reach the normal operating temp...

once your temp gauge starts to rise its ok to run the vehicle..

some toyota vios models don't have temp gauges but rather temp light indicators... blue light indicator if the engine is cold.. once the blue light indicator disappears i start driving the vehicle..

[rion]

this question leads to the old one... "is it necessary to warm up your engine before using it?"

[Memphis Raines]

For me, it is always better to warm-up your engine in gear drive out and slowly build up speed but do not race or do jack-rabbit starts.

.

[StraightSix]

this question leads to the old one... "is it necessary to warm up your engine before using it?"

Ano ba sabi sa manual?

On mine it says "Do not allow the engine to warm up at a standstill, but drive off as soon as possible, using moderate engine speeds." I've read somewhere that a part of the engine needs to have oil circulating immeduately, which can't be done while at standstill.

Of course there are places you can't do that, like in my old neighborhood in Baguio. Every car there - old and new - has to warm up at standstill, because the only way out is a narrow and very steep road.

[XTO]

once the oil indicator is turned off. meaning fully circulated na ang oil. pwede na yan. warm it up as you cruise, the lower the RPM the better, mas mabuti yan kesa in idle kaya nga may oil pump eh bawiin mo na lang sa oil change say every 3,500 4,000 kms laking pasalamat na ng engine yun.

[woohoo]

duplicate post... :sad:

[woohoo]

Driving short distances in traffic is bad for the oil. It can cause premature engine wear if you don't religiously follow oil changes. For sensitive engines (i.e.: those with tight tolerances like the Altis, or those with pretty loose tolerances, like some old diesel engines), you might want to change oil sooner than 5000 kilometers if you always drive in traffic.

How is driving short distances in traffic bad for the oil? Can you give us references or the technical explanation, please?

I think that driving short distances within a short period of time is WORSE than driving short distances in traffic where the oil gets to reach normal operating temp. Am I right?

[niky]

How is driving short distances in traffic bad for the oil? Can you give us references or the technical explanation, please?

I think that driving short distances within a short period of time is WORSE than driving short distances in traffic where the oil gets to reach normal operating temp. Am I right?

Any short drive is bad for the engine.

A new engine will usually get up to temperature within one kilometer. Prior to that, the oil is cold and (usually) more viscous. With modern multigrade oils, the difference in viscosity isn't so bad... for example, a 5w40 oil has the same viscosity as a 40 oil when hot but the same viscosity as a 5 oil when cold, since a 40 oil will be too thick for proper lubrication when cold.

So there's less wear, but you have to consider that each cold-start cycle will start everything inside the engine moving with little extra lubrication on the top of the engine, around the valvetrain... which causes metal wear.

So whether it's in traffic or on the open road, short trips are relatively bad for your engine due to the increased number of start-stop cycles (but mitigated now by stronger starters and better oils).

But traffic makes it a double whammy. Your engine is at idle most of the time, where it is usually least efficient... there's less valvetrain lubrication (relatively... because the pump is working less)... the thermostat cycles more between hold and cold, and there's no moving air through the engine bay to carry the heat out. It's the heat soak that actually gets to you... the lack of cooling air over the radiator and makes for hotter coolant, hotter oil, heat-soaked electronics (which eventually leads to ignition coil, IACV, cam position sensor, etcetera... damage).

When your car is moving freely down the road, it's running cooler because of airflow through the radiator and engine bay, the engine is turning over at higher rpms, which mean more coolant and oil flow, and the higher rpms make for smoother engine running.

Which is why I mention the Altis. Engine failures in the US were traced to the long oil change interval (in the US, the Altis has the same long interval as the Civic) mixed with conditions that the engineers didn't consider... namely the engine sitting in traffic for long periods of time, where the heat and wear turned the oil into sludge.

Actually, the US is a good example of the effects of long/highway trips versus short trips... it's not unheard of for compact cars in the US to log over 300,000 (around 500,000) miles without an overhaul... whereas here, thanks to the heat and traffic, you'll be looking at working on gaskets within 150,000 - 200,000 kilometers.

[Boy Torotot]

Very informative. Thanks Niky!