Let’s talk about an internal combustion engine warming up – whether it is needed, and about the optimal driving mode and gear selection.
Engine Warming Up
The engine warming up before the trip was normal at any time of the year in the era of carbureted cars.
When injectors replaced carburetors in vehicles, the need to warm up the engine at idle disappeared because injection systems work smoothly regardless of the ICE’s temperature.
In other words, it is recommended to start the engine and go straight away, and the engine heats up while driving. Such recommendations help save fuel and avoid excessive emissions, but they do not contribute to the health of the internal combustion engine.
Its parts consist of metal/alloys which expand when heated. Injected engines are designed in such a way that the optimal operating mode for them is a full warm-up and reaching operating temperatures.
Only in this mode, the powertrain can be loaded, because after warming up, gaps return to normal, engine oil liquefies, etc.
Some engine parts warm up faster and others later. So, it’s undesirable to increase the internal combustion engine load without preheating, especially in winter, as well as to idle the engine for a long time.
Well, what is the compromise? – You should idle your car to warm up without waiting for the ICE to reach operating temperatures. After the arrow of the coolant temperature gauge began to rise, you can start driving.
However, before reaching the operating temperature, you should not load the engine, raise the speed above 1/3 of the maximum (about 2,000-2,500 rpm), move in higher gears, use engine braking, accelerate sharply, etc. Riding until fully warmed up should be calm and smooth.
Driving Mode and Gear Selection
Now let’s talk about rpm and gear selection on vehicles with manual transmission or those models where automatic transmission allows the driver to operate the gearbox in manual mode.
First of all, any engine does not “like” extremes – too high or low rpm. If the engine is constantly turned to cutoff or closer to the red zone, the loads on all its nodes will be maximum.
This won’t be good for the engine’s health. At low rpm, the pressure in the lubrication system is low. In this case, the driver often uses the engine in tight driving mode.
This mode means that the car is moving, for example, uphill, in high gear and low revs. To maintain a set pace, the driver does not shift to a lower speed, but simply presses harder on the gas pedal. At this moment, detonation occurs in the internal combustion engine, you can hear the knock of “fingers”, etc.
It is important to remember that the specified driving style at the tightness and at low revs also has a very strong impact on the internal combustion engine resource.
To prolong the life of any engine, it is optimal to keep the tachometer needle in the middle range, switching to the desired gear in a timely manner, depending on road conditions, speed, engine loads, and other individual factors.
