Warm-Up Procedure

[EtaSax]

What does R3v do to get their cars up to operating temperature. Obviously when the engines are cold don't rev the nuts off of them, but what are some rules of thumb that you guys follow to bring your cars up to temperature safely?

Me, I try not to exceed 2K when the temperature is less than the first white tick on the temp gauge and very little over 3k when in between the first and the second tick. Once the needle goes vertical, it's business as usual.

As a side note, how long on average does it take your car to warm up all the way. Mine takes between 5 and 10 minutes of driving under normal commute conditions in the winter.

[nando]

follow the operating manual

[jlevie]

It is always helpful to say what car... In my race car or street car, both with M20B25 engines in cold weather (temps from 25F to 45F) I let the engine idle for 30 seconds before driving. More idle time would be appropriate in lower temperatures. Until the needle is out of the blue (~130F) I keep the rpm below 3000. From that point on the entire rev band is available.

While we are on the subject, with the exception of ETA cars, your E30's engine will be happier if you keep the revs up. I'd say that don't want to be below 2500rpm while driving and prefer the 3000-4000 range. That means 2nd gear for 20-30mph, 3rd for 30-50, and so on.

[EtaSax]

Well it is indeed an Eta car, so RPMs higher than 3500 happen much less often than you'd expect. Do you guys set mental limits on your RPMs when cold to make sure you don't exceed a certain threshold until warm? Is that practice even necessary?

[Vivek]

I don't do (much) over 3k until the needle is nearly center (fully warm for me is a hair behind vertical). That may be a little excessive though, I don't know.

[zig553]

Meh I just start it up, scrape the windows and start driving. I've had it over 3k when the engines cold, I just don't thrash the shit out of the car when its warming up haha. I've noticed my M20 does much better in the cold than my Subaru does though.

[325e10]

Try to keep it 3k or less until it's fully warmed up.