It's not wise to warm your car up before driving it. It wastes gas and damages the vehicle.
Just thinking about climbing into your car these cold mornings is enough to make you shiver and fantasize about getting into a warm car and then simply driving away. That's what a lot of people do. They get in their car and sit there while it "warms up" before driving off into the cold morning.
But that's not a good thing to do.
Among other things, you're wasting gas. The Department of Energy explains: "Avoid idling. Think about it — idling gets you 0 miles per gallon. The best way to warm up a vehicle is to drive it. No more than 30 seconds of idling on winter days is needed. Anything more simply wastes fuel and increases emissions.”
Wasting gas means wasting money and increasing pollution. But that's not the only reason to avoid warming up your car: "Idling for too long damages a car’s engine parts and causes excessive wear. This includes damage and wear to the spark plugs, cylinders, and exhaust system. In its statement, the EPA states: 'Contrary to popular belief, idling isn’t an effective way to warm up most car engines. Today’s automobile manufacturers recommend driving off right away and urge that drivers wait no more than 30 seconds to begin driving, even on the coldest days.'
"The general consensus is warming up a car in cold weather for a brief time is OK, but if done for too long, it’s harmful. In cold weather, engine oil and other fluids become thick and sludgy. However, for modern cars, 30 seconds is enough to make the engine oil and other fluids more viscous, enabling a car to run effectively. As far as warming up the cabin, it will warm up much more quickly once you start driving."
If you've been warming your car up and are having car trouble, then it's time to have the York car care specialists at the Meineke Car Care Center on South Queen Street take a look. If that is inconvenient, try one of Meineke Car Care's 12 0ther locations in south central Pennsylvania:
- Meineke Car Care Center - Pleasant View Road
331 Pleasant View Rd, New Cumberland, PA 17070 - Meineke Car Care Center - Rodney Road
1775 Rodney Road, York, PA 17408 - Meineke Car Care Center - South Queen Street
855 South Queen Street, York, PA 17403 - Meineke Car Care Center - 2nd Street
201 N. 2nd Street, New Freedom, PA 17349 - Meineke Car Care Center - Baltimore Street
871 Baltimore Street, Hanover, PA 17331 - Meineke Car Care Center - Carlisle Pike
6510 Carlisle Pike, Mechanicsburg, PA 17050 - Meineke Car Care Center - Carlisle Street
1125 Carlisle Street, Hanover, PA 17331 - Meineke Car Care Center - East Chocolate Ave
1401 East Chocolate Avenue, Hershey, PA 17033 - Meineke Car Care Center - Gettysburg Road
2236 Gettysburg Rd, Camp Hill, PA 17011 - Meineke Car Care Center - Jonestown Road
4509 Jonestown Road, Harrisburg, PA 17109 - Meineke Car Care Center - Manheim Pike
1220 Manheim Pike, Lancaster, PA 17601 - Meineke Car Care Center - Market Street
2301 E Market Street, York, PA 17402 - Meineke Car Care Center - Paxton Street
3098 Paxton Street, Harrisburg, PA 17111
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