Posted on 02/26/2015 2:44:28 PM PST by rickmichaels
I feel guilt. I have committed excessive wear on all my vehicles.
Plug in block heater.
Bull. Driving a cold car is an assured way to ruin your gearbox early. EFI might be effective in keeping you from stalling but it also runs cold engine at 1,500 rpm at neutral which also produces too much torque for tranny to handle when you are pushing a brake at stoplights in a drive mode.
It is only worse on really cold days as I have never seen a car filled with transmission fluid suitable for really cold weather from factory. It would take you to drive 10 miles before it only warms up and starts to work properly, mechanical part of transmission would simply tear itself apart until that.
Drivers need to apply reasoning to the process. Outdoor temperature and how far you can drive at reduced speed need to be in the equation. Automatic transmissions are cooled by engine coolant. They are also warmed at start up by the same process. Slow, low load operation helps distribute the heat more evenly through the transmission.
I have a transmission temperature gauge for my vehicle which I pay close attention.
1-2 minutes is plenty to get the seats and steering wheel warm. The only time longer warm up is needed is when there is precipitation and you want a warmer windshield to prevent icing.
To be honest a problem might be heavily reduced by investing in a quality fully synthetic transmission fluid. It makes perfect sense if you live in a cold environment. Of course, most people won’t do it and they would ruin their cars following stupid advice.
Living in Southern California most of my life, I never understood the concept that some Cars come with a Heated Steering Wheel.
That is until I visited Michigan a few years back in the middle of Winter. I hopped in my rented Durango, wrapped my hands around the Steering Wheel and then I knew.
Remote Start is the enemy of the Envirowacks. Obama will probably outlaw the feature before he is done running the Country.
Heh, that’s a good idea too. I burn stuff whenever I can.
I idle all day because it’s usually cold and I keep things warm that need to be warm. I jump in and warm up too sometimes. I’m just doing my part to burn gas and diesel so that the economy keeps going heh.
Thank you for answering
I’m glad gas is 50 cents a gallon where you live.
I have a coat . It keeps me warm.
Hey, Liberals want gas prices high, you and I have to do our part to drive up that demand. That's how economy works ya know. Wait. But those also goes against their concern with the planet getting too hot. (Head explodes here).
Another benefit of running your truck all day? You can cook meals on the engine and manifold if you pack it in aluminum foil.
Higher prices benefit US and Canada a lot. Of course most people don’t understand this. Although, now with technology we have more flow than ever before too.
I used to have a 6.9 International diesel in a Ford truck that sounded like the pistons were swapping holes when I cold started it!
I had to let it warm up some.
The Cummins seem a lot happier cold starting.
90% of wear occurs during a cold engine start-up. That’s the whole point of using the lowest viscosity oil practical, and allowing time for every point to purge air. Also, the top end components close tolerances as they reach running temperature. A 60 second allowance before shifting into gear will pay future dividends.
Are you adding zinc additive to your motor oil to keep the push-rod engine happy? As overhead cam and roller lifters have become more prominent, the anti-wear high pressure additives have diminished in current oil formulations.
No, but I read about it and know I should. Thanks for the reminder!
Additives are basically a snake oil. They might have a placebo effect on you, but most likely to ruin mechanism in a long run. At best there would be none long term effect at all.
There is no need to degrade modern oils, they are way ahead than even a decade ago on all terms. If you got a proper engine oil you can be sure you can run your engine safely even in Antarctic. Transmission is a different case, you still need to be careful with it, but quality synthetic fluid is more so a must if you are in a cold winter.
Depends on your economic perspective. Higher prices = higher tax revenue on assumingly higher profits.
However, lower prices equals more liquidity for consumers that are already taxed. This is a higher number than will be recognized on the supply side as the gubmnt takes a chunk before it gets to Big Oil and then tankes another chunk on the profits that are left over.
Most would argue that our economy is substantially better off with more money in the hands of consumers than in the hands of big oil and government. NOW, that said, the oil industry does create lots of jobs directly and indirectly. The more they make the more they spend.... so the model goes. I submit, there is a curve where the goals intersect.
You bet there is, my own opinion is around 80-90 per barrel.
I think it is closer to about $50/barrel. We (and the oil industry) are trained and accustomed the high prices and easy profit. I am all about profit for everybody. But my business experience tells me that most industries and good companies benefit by some tight times. It's a reset that economizes operations and cleans out the waste. The oil industry needs a couple years at about $40/barrel. They'll figure out how to get where they need to be. Then as the price of goes of oil goes back up, the industry will be more efficient and stronger. Since I believe the independent companies are more efficient than OPEC affiliations, I think it is best for the private sector.
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