thewarmachine

Yeah, I was watching the Nascar Angels show last year, and they said you only need to let a car warm up for about 30 sec before driving on a cold start.

SonicBlue05GT

i let mine warm up until the idle finally drops down

oi8achevy

for normal driving conditions your ready to roll as soon as you have normal oil pressure, which is within a couple seconds. now if your gonna engage in some spirited driving conditions i would let it warm up for at least 15-20 minutes to allow engine internalls to expand and neutralize in size. ideal for my commute to work as i have about that long of a commute through town before i get on the highway then i dont hesitate to indulge in some heavy throttle flogging.

06Saleen3V

Like Venom said...the oil drains out of the engine and upon warming, the oil is redispersed upon the valves for proper lubrication. I start my car 5 minutes before I need to leave to let the engine properly heat, the oil redisperse, and the idle to drop.

landon.moss

i would be a lil hesitant to take off - especially in the cold....once in awhile i do if im just runnin a mile or so, but that's it...and it's goin 25-30...and we've been in single digits lately, so i'm pretty sure i NEED heat [8D]


[/align]

Valenti

the greatest danger in running a cold engine is blowing head gaskets. the head bolts are steel, and the block and heads are aluminum. two different metals which expand at different rates. however, this will only be a potential problem if you go WOT before all metal has expanded properly.

JudisStang

That's interesting.... my manual said to let the car warm up until the RPMs kick down to the normal 1000 area and not to drive the car until it does... and that's exactly what I do... especially when very cold out... it takes a good 3 minutes to head down...

CataclysmGT

Wait for the idle to drop, then drive nice and gently until the coolant temp comes up (coolant temp is an indication of oil / engine temp). Idling any more then required is not only bad for environment & a waste of fuel, but its also harder on your engine because it runs cold for a longer period of time.

GidyupGo

You need to let the fast idle circuit drop below 1000 rpms. Hard on everything if you just snap it in gear and take off.

pascal

I think of it like foreplay...
I let it get hot, before I jump on it.