Quote:
Originally Posted by jaykay
My rationale is more gradual even warming of the aluminum heads. We all have heard of the cracking issue yes?
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Agreed, I think this is the most compelling argument for being really gentle (rather than just moderately gentle) when warming up the car. The mechanical side doesn't worry me too much, but cracking the heads definitely does.
That said, personally I think pulling away after about 30 secs is the best bet. It takes so much longer for the engine to reach temp idling that I think the load increase associated with very light driving is worth it compared to running the engine cold for long periods, which is effectively what you're doing when starting from cold and leaving it to idle.
I drive gently up to about 3k to 3.5k revs until the water hits temp, then slowly increase the available rev range over the next five to ten mins, depending on conditions. Even then, I probably won't allow extended excursions near the red line for another five to ten minutes. After that, I'll drive it like I stole it.
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