How cold is a cold engine?

[Last Kaws]

The worst thing for a car is going WOT when it is still cold, but how cold is cold? Obviously leaving the car overnight is cold, but is going to a restaurant or mall for 1-3 hours considered cold? Or this rule is basically only for starting the car in the morning? The reason why I am asking this is because I often go to places that are next to the freeway, so I basically got to get the freeway right after I start the car. Once I get on the freeway I often get to the very left lane (fast lane), and this involves some revving the engine. Anyone know if this will be bad for the car? Sorry, I love and baby my car too much.

[M3 DCT]

Just check your temp gauge, the manual says more or less 100 celsius before WOT

[chmura]

Seems like you are in Taiwan where they drive very very slow there. Why you need to rev a lot to go on the highway?? Just change gears sooner at like 2.5-3k rpm?? Easy IMO.

I drive like a grandma until a good 15+ minutes before I do any spirited driving.

[IND-Distribution]

I like to let the oil temperature get to full warm (halfway on the gauge) before I spin the engine past 3,000 RPM. If I get on the highway right away, I'll drive in the slow lane for a few minutes to let the engine warm up, and will gradually increase RPMs as oil temps increase. When it's dead cold I try not to exceed 2,000 RPM.

[SchnellM3]

My rules are:

Cold start in the AM very light on the throttle, shift no higher than 3.5k until the fluids get warmed to 210F

Going to eat/mall for a few hours in the summer it usually doesn't cool down much so its usually ready to go. During the winter its pretty much the same routine as a cold start until the temps pick back up.

[mahmud///M]

I find that here in Canada, the morning start up must obviously be babied until, like Ilia said, it's fully warm.

Even though I sometimes drive for 30 min when fully warm, I'll turn the car off, get in almost 40 min later agin, and it's frozen cold again. Winter time the rule doesn't just apply to the morning. It's all day unless u jump out to get a coffee quickly. Just watch your rpm thing (the part that goes down the warmer it gets). That's the best way to determine if u can go past 3k or not. Even though it allows to me to go 6k rpm off the bat, I still wait in my driveway for about two min before I set off. Usually I play one game of solitare on my iPhone as my bench mark (usually takes 1:30-1:45).

[-=Hot|Ice=-]

Freezing cold. It's that cold.

[BeamingE39]

I usually just follow the recommendations of the tachometer.

[Mr. ///M3 RD]

Originally Posted by Last Kaws

The worst thing for a car is going WOT when it is still cold, but how cold is cold? Obviously leaving the car overnight is cold, but is going to a restaurant or mall for 1-3 hours considered cold? Or this rule is basically only for starting the car in the morning? The reason why I am asking this is because I often go to places that are next to the freeway, so I basically got to get the freeway right after I start the car. Once I get on the freeway I often get to the very left lane (fast lane), and this involves some revving the engine. Anyone know if this will be bad for the car? Sorry, I love and baby my car too much.

Why would you even ask such a question with weather conditions like yours? Come to North America where we experience -40 to -50 C in the winter time and you would need to plug your car in to a engine heater LOL while you have a cup of coffee.

As others pointed out ... read your manual and you be fine ... enjoy the nice weather in Taiwan

[Erhan]

Just a side note, it is not only the engine temp. Be wary of transmission and differential temps as well.

[Memphis1]

Originally Posted by Last Kaws

The worst thing for a car is going WOT when it is still cold, but how cold is cold? Obviously leaving the car overnight is cold, but is going to a restaurant or mall for 1-3 hours considered cold? Or this rule is basically only for starting the car in the morning? The reason why I am asking this is because I often go to places that are next to the freeway, so I basically got to get the freeway right after I start the car. Once I get on the freeway I often get to the very left lane (fast lane), and this involves some revving the engine. Anyone know if this will be bad for the car? Sorry, I love and baby my car too much.

what's the coldest in Taiwan??? are we talking -15 degrees farenheit?? cuz that's when i would be babying the car... but if the coldest is 50 degrees farenheit than i wouldn't worry about it.

[Ateam]

Originally Posted by erhanh

Just a side note, it is not only the engine temp. Be wary of transmission and differential temps as well.

Totally irrelevent if you are watching the engine temp. If the engine temp is up to temp than the diff and tranny temp has LONG already been at temp. They get up to temp way way faster than the engine so there is going to be no scenario when your tranny and diff is still too cold but the engine is warm. Again disregard for all intents and purposes.

[gpitts]

Originally Posted by NAForever

I usually just follow the recommendations of the tachometer.

+1

I have DCT, and I shift well in advance of the yellow bars until the engine oil warms to the point that my redline achieves 8400 rpm. I know that isn't necessary, but why push things...

[Erhan]

Originally Posted by Ateam

Totally irrelevent if you are watching the engine temp. If the engine temp is up to temp than the diff and tranny temp has LONG already been at temp. They get up to temp way way faster than the engine so there is going to be no scenario when your tranny and diff is still too cold but the engine is warm. Again disregard for all intents and purposes.

If you're watching the engine temp at your drive way, it is totally not "irrelevent".

[Superfly_M3]

Originally Posted by Ateam

Totally irrelevent if you are watching the engine temp. If the engine temp is up to temp than the diff and tranny temp has LONG already been at temp. They get up to temp way way faster than the engine so there is going to be no scenario when your tranny and diff is still too cold but the engine is warm. Again disregard for all intents and purposes.

Any data to back that up? What about in a case when you let a car idle for 30 minutes and the engine is warm but you haven't moved an inch? You still think that the differential will be warmer?

[Gearhead999s]

Originally Posted by Ilia@IND

I like to let the oil temperature get to full warm (halfway on the gauge) before I spin the engine past 3,000 RPM. If I get on the highway right away, I'll drive in the slow lane for a few minutes to let the engine warm up, and will gradually increase RPMs as oil temps increase. When it's dead cold I try not to exceed 2,000 RPM.

+1

This is the way all my vehicles have been treated for all the time that I have been driving.And I lease my vehicles

[M3SQRD]

Originally Posted by Gearhead999s

+1

This is the way all my vehicles have been treated for all the time that I have been driving.And I lease my vehicles

Agree 100%

[Totti]

Originally Posted by Superfly_M3

Any data to back that up? What about in a case when you let a car idle for 30 minutes and the engine is warm but you haven't moved an inch? You still think that the differential will be warmer?

Who would honestly do that?

[J08M3]

.... always a thought provoking thread on this site

[disapr]

fight fight fight...

I was at a small exotic performance shop having some work done and was talking to the owner while I waited. He got a call and had to run but someone had taken the car that he came in so he grabbed the key to a GT3 that had been sitting there for a few days. I'm standing there in astonishment as he gets in, starts the engine and right as the engine fires he's backing up and punching it around in the parking lot. Once he gets to the main road he nails it wide open on the street leaving the building and ripped through 3 full gears before letting off.

Crazy.

I usually just baby the car while driving until the rev limiter is fully open and then I consider the engine ready to go.

[J08M3]

Originally Posted by disapr

fight fight fight...

I was at a small exotic performance shop having some work done and was talking to the owner while I waited. He got a call and had to run but someone had taken the car that he came in so he grabbed the key to a GT3 that had been sitting there for a few days. I'm standing there in astonishment as he gets in, starts the engine and right as the engine fires he's backing up and punching it around in the parking lot. Once he gets to the main road he nails it wide open on the street leaving the building and ripped through 3 full gears before letting off.

Crazy.

I usually just baby the car while driving until the rev limiter is fully open and then I consider the engine ready to go.

Well.... Not his car... what does he care? He'll probably get paid to fix it if it breaks too...

[IND-Distribution]

Originally Posted by disapr

fight fight fight...

I was at a small exotic performance shop having some work done and was talking to the owner while I waited. He got a call and had to run but someone had taken the car that he came in so he grabbed the key to a GT3 that had been sitting there for a few days. I'm standing there in astonishment as he gets in, starts the engine and right as the engine fires he's backing up and punching it around in the parking lot. Once he gets to the main road he nails it wide open on the street leaving the building and ripped through 3 full gears before letting off.

Crazy.

I usually just baby the car while driving until the rev limiter is fully open and then I consider the engine ready to go.

That must have been some phone call he got...