No Need to Warm Up Modern Vehicles in Cold Weather

It is now that season where the question many motorists are asking is… do I have to let my vehicle warm up or idle before driving?

I’m here to ease your mind and let you know that, actually, modern cars will be ready to drive in cold conditions without excessive idling, according to the Vehicle Care Council.

The thought of idling before driving goes way back to when cars were constructed with carburettors. With new fuel-injection technology, complex personal computers, and thinner synthetic oils, motorists don’t have to worry about warming-up their cars before hitting the road.

Based on the Ecological Protection Agency (EPA), when a vehicle idles more than thirty seconds, there can be several unwanted effects…for example:

• Pollution of the environment
• Unnecessarily waste of fuel and cash
• Perhaps damaging a vehicle’s engine components, including cylinders, spark plugs, and also the exhaust system.

Contrary to public opinion, idling isn’t an ideal way to warm-up most vehicle engines nowadays.

 The easiest method to warm your vehicle’s engine would be to drive lightly in the beginning. Remember, an automobile will get zero MPG when idling so it makes sense…I mean, lower gas mileage means more wasted money.

The non-profit Vehicle Care Council includes a free 80-page Vehicle Care Guide for motorists that has several pages of gas mileage and ecological awareness tips. Available in English and Spanish, the popular guide uses easy-to-understand vocabulary instead of technical automotive jargon, fits easily inside a glove box and can be ordered totally free by going to:
www.carcare.org/car-care-guide.

Vehicle Care Council may be the best resource for consumer education, thanks to its excellent campaign promoting the advantages of regular vehicle care, repair, and maintenance to consumers.