How to Start the Engine on Cold Winter Days?

[theprodigy79]

As far as rotating tires go (and checking balance as well)... it's a gratis service (free) from most dealers (or shops that you buy tires from) so just have it done every second oil change as mentioned above... There's no harm in it, it doesn't take an immense amount of time to do... and it DEFINITELY adds life to your tires.

-James

[XEusioN]

Cars with FI do not require warm up of any kind after start. However, when cold you can hear the engine sound more pronounced, it means there is greater friction and wear. Something you might worry about on a chevy cobalt block, but not a toyoter. Besides, the wear will occur at high or low RPM, so you may as well be on your way.

Not entirely true.

Warmup's are definentaly neccessary. You need to ensure that the engine has properly circulated the oil throughout the entire motor (heads & block) so that there are no lubrication issues. Warming up the car also warms up the transmission fluid resulting in much smoother shifting which is not nearly as hard on the transmission. Driving is the only real way to get your car warmed up, but you have to be gentile with it.

If you notice taking the Solara out when it's been sitting overnight in 30-40 degree weather, the ECU pulls timing and reduces the rev limiter in order to keep the engine from revving as high and possibly causing damage from improper lubrication. Keep in mind that metals expand and contract with heat, and until the motor is at proper operating temperature, engine components may NOT be within their standard operating tolerances. You don't want to cause damage to journal bearings, rod pins and the valvetrain amongst some other parts, but those are the ones which will suffer the most from improper oil circulation.

I'm not 100% sure on the speed, but until my Solara (L4/4AT) is fully warmed up, the rev limiter is dropped to around ~5000...maybe less. Why? Because at 6000rpm, the engine is (obviously) spinning twice as fast as say 3,000rpm, and consequently the wear on internal components is much higher. The engine is designed to tolerate this wear, but not while it's not up to operating temps.

The ECU pulls timing so that the car doesn't accelerate as fast, keeping the revs lower (also responsible for part of the change in induction noise), and the transmission won't shift into 4th gear at the normal shift point.

The last one sounds a bit odd right? Cruising around town in third puts you around 3000rpm's give or take, which is not high enough to cause pre-warmup engine damage, yet the motor's spinning fast enough to generate enough heat to bring it up to operating temps.

What does all this tell you? That the Toyota powertrain engineers recognize the need for a proper warmup, and they wouldn't have put these checks in place if they weren't neccessary. While it's not entirely true that "no warmup" is the best, it does help to get out and drive the car after a minute or two of idling.

It also helps to NOT run the heater when waiting for the car to warm up because that actually helps dissipate heat away from the motor into the cabin, suck it up and wait a few minutes before running the heater...besides, it's only going to be cold air blowing until the motor's warmed up anyway.

Hope this sheds some light for you guys,

-James

[FLUXEMAG]

A modern engine distributes lubrication in negligable time. Negligible is an approximation for instantaneously. The lubrication is less effective at low temperature for preventing friction. It's important to draw a distinction between warming up your car by idling, and doing so by driving. There is no point in warming up at idle.

So you're right, warming up by driving is necessary, but inherently so.

[jandree22]

The ECU pulls timing so that the car doesn't accelerate as fast, keeping the revs lower (also responsible for part of the change in induction noise), and the transmission won't shift into 4th gear at the normal shift point.

The last one sounds a bit odd right? Cruising around town in third puts you around 3000rpm's give or take, which is not high enough to cause pre-warmup engine damage, yet the motor's spinning fast enough to generate enough heat to bring it up to operating temps.

sorry to bring this one up from the dead... but I was wondering before we take my wife's 04 Solara SE Sport 4AT in for a bunch of nit-pick fixes before the warranty's up in 1.8k miles. When starting up cold, like 45*F or below outside, for the first mile or two of driving, her Solara is reluctant to shift into 4th gear... like after I'm done accelerating and cruising at about 45mph, it seems to just hang in 3rd gear. Like I said, it's only temporary for a few minutes and it's only on cold mornings. Is this what you were talking about?

[Sentinel]

My gen1 SLEv6 (Automatic) holds gears longer when it is cold. This is normal and part of the warmup procedure the car does. Maybe to warm the transmission fluid faster?

As long as your car runs smoothly you do NOT need a warmup (at idle) Once you have oil pressure just drive the car gently for a few minutes. If idle is so high it bangs into gear? you might let it warm for a minute. If you can't clutch your manual tranny smoothly? let it warm. With an automatic, assuming that it goes into D without any hassle, drive the car gently to allow it to warm.

Anyone who has found that the rev limiter is lowered during cold starts is asking for trouble.

[XEusioN]

The ECU pulls timing so that the car doesn't accelerate as fast, keeping the revs lower (also responsible for part of the change in induction noise), and the transmission won't shift into 4th gear at the normal shift point.

The last one sounds a bit odd right? Cruising around town in third puts you around 3000rpm's give or take, which is not high enough to cause pre-warmup engine damage, yet the motor's spinning fast enough to generate enough heat to bring it up to operating temps.

sorry to bring this one up from the dead... but I was wondering before we take my wife's 04 Solara SE Sport 4AT in for a bunch of nit-pick fixes before the warranty's up in 1.8k miles. When starting up cold, like 45*F or below outside, for the first mile or two of driving, her Solara is reluctant to shift into 4th gear... like after I'm done accelerating and cruising at about 45mph, it seems to just hang in 3rd gear. Like I said, it's only temporary for a few minutes and it's only on cold mornings. Is this what you were talking about?

Yup, that's exactly it.

[jandree22]

great, thanks guys!