Driving your car when cold

**loki** · 23-10-2007,08:16 PM

I don't know about anyone else but I absolutely hate driving my car while it's cold - worse now it's about 5C in the mornings.

Got an A3 1.8T and always try to warm it up before driving it but sometimes that just isn't possible.

I doubt I should worry but whenever I start my car the oil warning light comes on and stays on until it's warmed up. I'm guessing that as long as I'm not thrashing it until it's warm then it won't do any harm/ excessive engine wear?

westie383 · 23-10-2007,08:37 PM

For me, the best thing about driving my Passat, now it's colder mornings is being able to switch on my heated seat. Feeling the heat come through the saet and backrest is ace. If and when I replace this car, heated seats will be a must, absolutely brilliant if, like me, you suffer from an aching back in the cold.
Trev.

**mluton** · 23-10-2007,09:50 PM

The 1.8T engine is terrible cold. I just get in and go, but dont raise the revs high till the temp gauge has hit 90. Then its all go.

**RickT** · 23-10-2007,11:30 PM

The 1.8T and most of the VAG petrol engines will not warm on idle unless running for about 20 mins.. (if i recall.. it states in the handbook don't run on idle to warm the engine..

If you run the engine at around 2500 rpm for about 5-8 mins you will will be at 90'c before you know it..

I know from my house in in a morning.. it take 5 mins before I'm at 90'c once i join the dual carriageway.. in total 8 mins driving time... if you go down the 30 mph journey this takes about 10 mins before at running temp..

always remember... never rev a dead engine... ie.. cold or not at running temp..

(one thing that makes me think OMG is when you see people starting a cold engine and revving it hard after a few seconds!! do these people not know that oil sits at the bottom of an engine??

Rick

**hagis** · 24-10-2007,02:01 PM

Doesn't reving it cause the oil to be pushed round the engine at a greater rate?

**cbrpaul** · 24-10-2007,02:25 PM

My oil pressure light takes about 2 seconds to go out from really cold starts also.

In my opinion its best to get going asap , as opposed to let it sit at idle on tick over ,

Never screw it from cold , !!!!

Its ok to let it sit on tick after driving hard , to allow any hot spots around the engine to dissapate !!

The only thing i dont like , is that my journey to work is only about 7 to 10 minutes or 4 miles the temp needle has hardley moved atall !!!!

**Eshrules** · 24-10-2007,03:55 PM

Originally Posted by cbrpaul

The only thing i dont like , is that my journey to work is only about 7 to 10 minutes or 4 miles the temp needle has hardley moved atall !!!!

although mine's a Tdi, i have the same issue, i hate having to run her for only 10 mins, which is why i try to make a point of having at least one blast on the m.way a week, helps to keep the engine free of deposits etc.

it's true that it's a bad idea to leave these engines ticking over at idle, never rev an engine straight from cold either.....

**loki** · 24-10-2007,09:47 PM

See I always thought that allowing it to idle over for say 5-10 mins would do it good - at least then it's not completely stone cold? Is it really best just to jump in and drive straight away?

Also, the oil warning light coming on, I guess this is nothing to worry about as long as it goes off? More annoying than anything I guess. Thing is I'm on dual carriage-way pretty much straight away in my journey to work or when I go to uni it's only just warm by the time I get there

Originally Posted by RickT

The 1.8T and most of the VAG petrol engines will not warm on idle unless running for about 20 mins.. (if i recall.. it states in the handbook don't run on idle to warm the engine..

If you run the engine at around 2500 rpm for about 5-8 mins you will will be at 90'c before you know it..

I know from my house in in a morning.. it take 5 mins before I'm at 90'c once i join the dual carriageway.. in total 8 mins driving time... if you go down the 30 mph journey this takes about 10 mins before at running temp..

always remember... never rev a dead engine... ie.. cold or not at running temp..

(one thing that makes me think OMG is when you see people starting a cold engine and revving it hard after a few seconds!! do these people not know that oil sits at the bottom of an engine??

Rick

**cbrpaul** · 25-10-2007,08:24 AM

Ive always been the same with my cars and bikes , start and go !!!!!

get some nice oil pressure up

I wish the tw4t next door would do the same rather than letting his poxy little car with a exhaust the size of box tunnel ticking over for 5 mins at 6am !!!!!

**hagis** · 25-10-2007,01:00 PM

Originally Posted by cbrpaul

Ive always been the same with my cars and bikes , start and go !!!!!

get some nice oil pressure up

I wish the tw4t next door would do the same rather than letting his poxy little car with a exhaust the size of box tunnel ticking over for 5 mins at 6am !!!!!

Leave a note in a chavvy pub that there is a car regularly left with its engine running and see how long the car is there for