does your Bimmer need a warm-up?

[ultraviolet353]

I find that when my '94 318is sits overnight it ususally has to be driven for a few minutes before it warms up as perfomrs optimally. Is this normal? Does your Bimmer perform better once it is warmed up?

[thekid]

hmmm, it doesn't really perform better, but if you don't warm up your engine before really putting your foot down, it puts a lot of strain on the engine and increased wear. So let your engine warm up before putting your foot down, or else your engine will wear out much quicker. This means keep it benteath say 3k rpms until the needle is in the middle.

[funtoos]

right... i was reading the manual and they were saying that u shouildn't really idle your car to warm it up... when u turn it on just start driving but keep the rpms low... once your temp needle hits the center more or less (preferably its always less) then you can start doing your tricks (whatever they are)...

[dutchbmw]

definately, for a long life of fun.....

[Cruzin 323is]

ya WHATEVER... i got remote start for the winter, i'm not about to drive my car to wherever when its 20º outside...

[Turbodefrost]

Originally posted by funtoos@Aug 28 2004, 03:16 PM
right... i was reading the manual and they were saying that u shouildn't really idle your car to warm it up... when u turn it on just start driving but keep the rpms low... once your temp needle hits the center more or less (preferably its always less) then you can start doing your tricks (whatever they are)...

Really? That's good info to know, I've always thought it was good to let it idle for a few minutes in the beginning. Can anyone else confirm if that's true?

[bitcore]

There was a big debate about the idle issue a while back, last winter, with like, 5-6 people in the discussion.

I think most of us came to the conclusion that the major wear and tear is mainly caused by the expansion of the metal in the engine and the unlubricated parts grinding together as the engine's parts flex ever so slightly during the warmup process. The reason to drive the car instead of let it idle during warmup is because the engine will reach operating temp MUCH quicker than if it idles. To accelerate, you have to burn more fuel, which creates more heat, warming the engine up to operating temp faster. This is better than keeping the car out of gear and pressing the gas. If it's not under a load, the RPM's will go up much faster with just a little more extra gas. That's bad. If anything (if you have an automatic) put the car in gear and keep the break on and give it some gas. It'l heat up the engine and the torque converter (which isn't really good unless it's REALLY REALLY FREAKING COLD outside. if it's slippery, you can spin the wheels and loose controll also, so be careful.)
So, if you can, when the engine's warming up, shift a little earlier than you would normally so you put more fuel in the engine, but keep the RPM's down. You can do this with the automatics also, use the A\M button and shift gears manually.

The BMW engineers know what they are doing, so there's a reason they tell you to drive the car instead of let it idle around. These engines were designed to run under a load (IE: acceleration & keeping speed), not to sit there and turn over with no load whatsoever.

[zeidakiss]

yeah my 318i is slow at accelerating when it has been parked over night.