That's why I moved to a new house with a garage. My truck was always parked outside at our last house because it wouldn't fit in the garage. I would let it run then only while I was scraping the windows off with an ice scraper. If I waited for the truck to warm up enough to clear the windshield on its own I would have had to start the truck 45 minutes before I went to work.

 

Safety first! I do let my truck warm up if I have to scrape the windows.

That is also why I think a one year old truck with 30K is a cream puff. If they drive that many miles in one year, they're not getting many cold starts in.

 

Another myth is turning off the engine to save gas to go in the convienence shop to get coffee... if you turn the engine off and back on, you'll burn more gas because the engine goes through it's warmup cycle again even it's just for a minute or two -- the engine runs rich, meaning it is dumping more raw fuel in until it reaches it's stoichiometric combustion ratio.

If I'm out, I rarely turn the truck off... even if I go shopping in Wal*mart...

 

I thought was true, but I didn't know for sure.

 

I see your point, but at what time frame are you really saving gas by keeping it running vs restarting it...1min...5min?

 

The main reason I let mine warm up is to let the oil get circulated. I don't really wanna start it and take it to 1500-2000 rpms when it's cold.

 

In the instance you refer to here, it is more of a lubrication issue than fuel. Killing and engine for 5 minutes or so at a time, causes dry starts on hot parts that have no oil on them for a second or two untill the oil pump gets the oil moving. Unless you do it frequently, it's not a huge deal. But if you dry start several times daily. The hot starts take a toll on the wear inside the engine.

 

Myth: Dishwashing and laundry detergents make a good car wash.

Reality: Detergent can strip off a car's wax finish. Instead, use a car-wash liquid, which is formulated to clean without removing w


who honestly believed that?

 

The powered laundry detergents have abrasives and fillers in them such as ground up peanut shells(as one example) and it will casue tiny scratches in your clearcoat and or wax. I think the liquid one just have harsh detergents.
I use dish washing liquid quite often myself.

 

'A "cold start" is a "dry start".'

Also note:

'Q. When I start my engine, I let it warm up slowly by idling before I drive away. Doesn't that solve the problem?

A. No. The only way to totally eliminate "dry start" or "cold start" wear is to achieve oil pressure and lubrication before start-up. '

 

I'm actually refering to cranking one dozens of times a day, it is better to leave them running.

I have several delivery cars, and the engine lasts longer if we do not turn them off and on when they are away from the hub.

Yes a cold start is a dry start.

 

look at your hood in direct sunlight or under florescent lights and tell me what you see around the reflection of the light source...

my prediction will be swirl marks in a diminishing clear-coat...

 

i change my oil at 2500 because it takes me about 4 months to get there..and thats enough seeing as i make about 80% short trips.

 

It takes me about 4 weeks to get to 2500 I's usually around a month to month and a half when I change my oil.

 

my work is about 4 miles away from my house