Do You Have a Religious RPM Limit You Follow While Warming Up?

[Fetch]

That's right folks it's another one of my 'I might have OCD' threads...

Do you have routine rpms you use while your car's engine temp is not optimal?
I know I do.

Indulge in my routine:
-After starting engine: My driveway is ~100ft: 2,000 RPM limit.
-While engine is in the tiny blue zone: 2,500 RPM limit
-Engine is out of blue zone: 3,000 RPM limit
-Over 1/4 warmed up: 3,500 RPM limit
-Engine is just at operating temp: 4,000 RPM limit
-Before I'll go over 4,000-4,500 RPM I will drive awhile further at operating temp, to allow: engine oil, trans oil, differential oil, etc to get more up to temp.

So am I weird? Also, could I be doing something bad here???? Yikes!

[JerseySi]

Mine's a bit rough when it's cold at the moment, like the coldstart circuit isn't working.. Will look into when I get the time, but until then I tend to blip the revs upto 1500-2000 max while it's bad (normally only about 2 mins tops)..
Between then & fully warmed up it's max of about 3000-3500rpm, although I have been known to rag the daylights out of it when stone cold a couple of times - normally after an arguement with the mrs or something! :/
I feel more guilty about ragging the car when cold than the arguement that caused it usually though, is that bad? :D

[Ross]

You aren't doing anything wrong. I wish I had your patience.
Beating a cold engine is about the worst thing you can do to it.

[JerseySi]

the main reason I'm so good with mine normally is because i'm scared of breaking the gearbox!
Not that i'm any less scared of breaking a cold engine of course, just more paranoid about the already-fragile 4hp-22!

[Fetch]

I feel more guilty about ragging the car when cold than the arguement that caused it usually though, is that bad? :D

no! you should care about your car :p

[Fetch]

You aren't doing anything wrong. I wish I had your patience.
Beating a cold engine is about the worst thing you can do to it.

Haha, cool. I live in a rural area, so even after I'm warmed up there is still plenty of driving time left to have fun with the car, assuming I'm not driving to work at 7am in the city-like traffic that magically appears

[Jehu]

I usually let it idle till its just above blue. If i am pressed for time, I try and keep it below 2K to the end of the d rive way. I won't get on the road till its out of the blue.

[andmd]

I usually let it idle till its just above blue. If i am pressed for time, I try and keep it below 2K to the end of the d rive way. I won't get on the road till its out of the blue.

I idled mine the other day for 15 minutes to get it out of the blue. Damn near fell asleep.

[Jehu]

I idled mine the other day for 15 minutes to get it out of the blue. Damn near fell asleep.

its still the best thing you can do for the engine though isn't it ?

[GoldenOne]

i usually dont go past 2k while in blue otherwise it seems i use alot more gas then usual....prob cuz the o2 sensors arent warmed up yet...

[andmd]

its still the best thing you can do for the engine though isn't it ?

She didn't complain the whole way home, despite that it was 9 degrees Fahrenheit. And if she doesn't complain, I must be doing my job. Now, if I could figure out how to idle my girlfriend...

[Fetch]

I believe BMW recommends driving soon after starting, just obviously match your driving to the engine's temp. The way I understand it oil doesn't get everywhere it possibly can idling with the car sitting still.

From BMW:
'Do not warm the engine up to operating temp at idle speed, never allow the engine to idle for long periods'

I cannot find the other passage I remember, but it said to only let it idle for a bit if if it's extremely cold, and then take off at slower speeds of course
EDIT: I found it!!
It reads: do not normally allow the engine to warm up to operating temp at idle speed, however, at exceptionally low temperatures, allow the engine to run for 30 seconds.

[Traian]

I just start her and drive. I like to keep it to 2000 rpm until the temp needly hits centre, but I've revised that to 2000 till it's out of the blue and 2500-3000 till it hits centre, because I'm impatient. And then i just increase the revs gradually, because i think the temp needlie is a little optimistic, since dead centre after like 30 min driving feels different than after 20 min.

Is it okay btw to hardly ever rev the car past 4000-5000? Does it have any bad long term effects? I'm usually stuck in traffic, not much opportunity for fun...

[Blitzkrieg Bob]

It's already warm here

[Fetch]

Is it okay btw to hardly ever rev the car past 4000-5000? Does it have any bad long term effects? I'm usually stuck in traffic, not much opportunity for fun...

That's fine, I would try and get it up to 4k once a week (it's harder to do in an auto w/traffic I know ;) )

With the manual trans 4k isn't uncommon for me & where I live :)

EDIT: Here it is, straight from the horse's mouth: After a length period in heavy city traffic, let the engine breathe deeply by driving for a few miles at engine speeds above 3000 rpm. This will disperse any soot deposits in the combustion chambers.

[Fetch]

It's already warm here

haha, nice.

[pingu]

You're best off warming up the engine as quickly as possible (while keeping the revs suitably low) so that all the components expand to their proper sizes as quickly as possible.

Idling the engine will make it warm up more slowly than necessary (with the result that the parts will take longer to reach their proper sizes). So start the engine and just drive off - don't faff around waiting till it's above blue - you'll do more harm than good.

[///M-Power 3\\\]

In general i keep it under 4,000 for the first 20 minutes. After that 7,300 cause that where my limiter kicks in. And as far as frequency goes almost never does a day go by that i don't go past 7,000 rpm at least a few times.
I have 60k miles like this on the rebuild with perfect compression across the board and no oil burning. BTW this is in my E36, In the E34 I don't beat on it b/c of the auto, but the 20 minute rule also applies



That's right folks it's another one of my 'I might have OCD' threads...

Do you have routine rpms you use while your car's engine temp is not optimal?
I know I do.

Indulge in my routine:
-After starting engine: My driveway is ~100ft: 2,000 RPM limit.
-While engine is in the tiny blue zone: 2,500 RPM limit
-Engine is out of blue zone: 3,000 RPM limit
-Over 1/4 warmed up: 3,500 RPM limit
-Engine is just at operating temp: 4,000 RPM limit
-Before I'll go over 4,000-4,500 RPM I will drive awhile further at operating temp, to allow: engine oil, trans oil, differential oil, etc to get more up to temp.

So am I weird? Also, could I be doing something bad here???? Yikes!

[bigtisas]

I wait 30 sec. WHile I wait, I put on my sunglass, select the song from the mp3 player and light up a cigarette. Then it's good to go.

[winfred]

i try not to bounce it off the rev limiter before i get out of the driveway but after that it's balls out :D

[brosher]

I don't let it idle unless I have to scrape snow/ice. I try and keep it below 2k the first time through the gears. Sometimes I can't help it though because I pull out onto a busy road and need to fit into a small gap. By the time I hit the first light the car is warmed up.

[SnakeyesTx]

7k all the way, from the minute the key is turned till the second I turn it off! Hold the brake, drop it into reverse, boil the tires, mid roll drop it into drive for some driveway dorrrriftooooooo!

Anyway... was there a technical reason with that bulletin thing you posted earlier about not warming up at idle?

[Alexlind123]

Oil temperature is more important than coolant temperature in this situation.

[Jon K]

My car limits at 3500 rpm until coolant reaches 165 degrees and cuts spark if I try and go past - it catches people off guard sometimes.

I also have a valet mode that limited rpm to 1500 for moving the car around parking lots. Not that I valet this thing, but just in case.

[Paul in NZ]

I start and let it idle for the time it takes me to put on my seat belt and get settled in.For no good reason i dont move until the SI lights go out,then i am away i dont rev it out but i am also light on the throttle.Its a hard start for the old girl cos its out of the garage and straight away its uphill.That first rev up in first makes me wince....But i have 5w synthetic back up.:)

[BillionPa]

30s delay before shifting out of park regardless of operating temp.

3 min delay before shifting out of park after startup if car is cold.

if needle is against the stop in the blue, car stays in park.
if needle is in the blue (after 3 mins) no sport mode, gentle acceleration (approx 2000RPMS max)
after needle is out of blue, but before 1/3 temp, 3500RPM max
after 1/3 mark (a quarter between quarter mark and op temp) anything is game, although i usually keep it under 4K anyway to be nice to the auto trans.

[rickm]

I fire it up and let it idle while I scrape the ice from the windows. Then I hop in, turn on XM, then go. I have a 1 mile drive to the interstate, then it's a quiet drive in (I live 3 miles from work and live in a small town). If it's uber cold out I'll take the long way into work IF I'm going to be driving that day (I have a state car for work but sometimes I drive my own car).

[zmuff]

I just start it up and idle for a few seconds for oil pressure, and drive away. I NEVER go over 3000 rpm until warm, although when it finally warm, I do hit 6000 rpm on a fairly regular basis (daily). There's not not much power over that anyway, and I have lots of miles. I've never hit the rev limiter...I think it's 6800 with the JC chip.

[mikell]

I live on a small street that's about 1/2 mile long, so I keep it under 2000 rpm (25 mph) until I get out of the drive and to the end of the street. By then the needle is nearly up to full warm, even on what passes for a cold day in SE Tex, then it's go after that.

[OneBeLow]

Oil temperature is more important than coolant temperature in this situation.

exactly, I dont go beyond 2k before my oil temp reaches 160-180, at start up I idle for 3-5mins. It usually takes a good 15 min until that oil temp is reached, so FYI guys with the big 6's your oil temp takes a while to warm up.

The M has an oil temp guage where your fuel consumptionn guage is.

[filip00]

yes :D
first two mins, i try not to go over 2500rpm.
until my temp reaches the middle, i drive it till 3000rpms. after the temp goes in the middle, i drive it till 4000rpms.

i go to 6000 only when i wanna race, and for that, i ensure my oil temp is good.

[Fetch]

exactly, I dont go beyond 2k before my oil temp reaches 160-180, at start up I idle for 3-5mins. It usually takes a good 15 min until that oil temp is reached, so FYI guys with the big 6's your oil temp takes a while to warm up.

The M has an oil temp guage where your fuel consumptionn guage is.

Man, I want to get an oil temp gauge for my M60, I can only guess it takes at least 15 min to warm up all 8 quarts!

[632 Regal]

my auto box wont shift til 3000 rpms from work, which sucks. Have to go 65mph for 3rd gear to shift to drop the rpms...

[MPD47]

On an M20? No, certainly no warmup procedure. On the other engines, I try not to break 3000rpm till I see gauges come up to "normal".

[Ross]

Why the exception for an M20?

[MPD47]

Because I've beat a few M20's within an inch of their lives and back again. I've run one on recycled oil, one with a blown waterpump, etc, etc. I let one overheat for about 80 miles one day before it finally hydrolocked on what oil I had let it have that month when the head warped. Plus they are a dime a dozen. I *might* take care of my most recent one, depends on what kind of condition it's in. Or I might turbo it and just blow it up, or I might treat it like I always do. We'll see ;)

In short, M20's take a lot of abuse and are a dime a dozen.

[califblue]

I treat my Red Bitch Like the Red Whore she is...1 mile under 2500 in 4th at 25 mph( residential zone ) then what ever happens happens.
P.S you car is already broken in and if you are using any kind of oil you are good to go my.02 . all my motorcycles & VW THING get the same treatment and they are Air Cooled

[Ross]

Allrighty then. Remind me never to loan you my car.

[MPD47]

:D

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uP64_1qiyU0

There is the last car I borrowed from a friend. Took it on AKA Rally.

[Incantation]

yes i got one.

just so you know, the water temperature gauge has nothing to do with the oil temperature.. and that while your engine may be reading warm, the oil will not be operating at it's most effective temperature.. common mistake.

taking it easy and having your high attention to the motor while warming it up is obviously a good thing though. and driving for a while after while the water temp is at normal is pretty much enough to get it where u want it to be

[OneBeLow]

Man, I want to get an oil temp gauge for my M60, I can only guess it takes at least 15 min to warm up all 8 quarts!


you would be amazed at how long it takes, seriously, it takes a good 15-20min of driving time before I reach optimum oil temps at 185-190, but maybe that's because I dont rev the engine over 2-2.5 rpms until then.

[mzarifkar]

Because i am a firefighter i need to get to the station which is .7 miles away fast. Depending on the call i treat the car differently.
I usually jump in, start, fasten belts, check brake and steering quickly, turn on blue lights, then try not to go too fast down the hill.
In extreme cold 10f and below i will let it sit little bit longer, its hard to. then usually ill endup reading whatever we got paged out for again while the car is slowly creeping.

Its the best when the engine was just turned off because then i tend to lay down rubber :p

[The Bigfella]

you would be amazed at how long it takes, seriously, it takes a good 15-20min of driving time before I reach optimum oil temps at 185-190, but maybe that's because I dont rev the engine over 2-2.5 rpms until then.

The M5 manual says (IIRC) don't go over 4000 until past 50C - I've tended to keep it under 3000 until I get the oil temp up and generally go a fair way nder 2000. I noticed that it takes about double the distance for the oil temp to come up to spec compared to the water temp guage - whic of course is behind the thermostat. My warm up improved when I put a new thermostat in.