Usually in the cold weather I'll let my car warm up for about 5 minutes. One day I had run it to the store and let it sit for a couple hours, then started it and just drove off with the "C" indicator on - mind you, I babied it. Do you think not giving it a minute or so to warm up did any damage?

 

No problem at all. In fact, it may well be better for the engine to be warmed up with moderate driving than by sitting and idling; it gets up to operating temperature more quickly. It is probably good to avoid really pushing things when it's not yet warmed up, but ordinary driving is just fine.

You can look up the answers to questions like this in the owner's manual, too. The only thing it mentions (at least for my 2012) is that the light staying on once the engine warms up indicates some sort of a cooling system fault that should be checked and corrected. There's no mention at all of avoiding driving until the engine has warmed up.

(Of course, it's less comfortable for the driver to start out before the car interior warms up, but that's a different issue altogether.)

 

When the C indicator light goes off the water temp is 125 degrees. I usually start the car wait a minute or less and go. If its really cold below 30 degrees I wait until the first rpm drop from 1500 rpm's and then drive slowly to moderately giving the motor time to warm up. The ecu will protect the motor so really nothing to worry about. It also takes the motor 15 minutes driving to get fully warmed up at 30 degrees. That is to get the motor up to 180/190 depending on the car.

 

i just warm it up for 30 min every morning unlesss im in a rush then i let it warm up for 5 min or if major rush put in drive lift brake slow and drive slow for alil then haul ass lol

 

The only time I idle my car or more than a minute in the cold is if I can't see out the front window and i'm waiting for the defroster to kick in.

I just avoid full throttle while i'm driving with the "C" light on for no other reason than "it sounds like the right thing to do".

 

You warm it up for 30 MINUTES? Wow. I don't think this is terribly good for the car, plus the aluminum block is "warm" after 5-10 minutes or so

I don't think a few minutes of warming up is that bad, although I do think warming it in gentle driving is best.

The only thing I would add is, regardless of temp, it's probably good to get oil circulating a little before driving off. 30 seconds would be more than enough for this to start happening.

But again, if you don't do this, will you really see a difference in longevity? Maybe, but it'd be hard to pin down the difference to warming it up or not. There was a poster a while ago who was complaining that her car was performing poorly - her typical driving habit was 10 minutes idling (warmup) then 5 minutes actual drive time. An extreme case like this, I think you WOULD say that the behaviour was the cause of some trouble.

 

As was said, it's best to wait for the rpms to drop a bit then start driving it gently... Letting it sit and warm up is actually hard on the cylinder walls, and driving it helps to minimize that... Bitog has quite a bit written up about this...

 

I hadn't let mine warm up and a couple of times the car stalled. Could it be because I did not let the engine warm or a bigger problem? I hadn't let it warm up in the past but lately i've noticed that when turning out, if I try to make my turn and gas to avoid oncoming traffic.. it feels like the car is coughing not a smooth acceleration. One time I gased and the car wasn't accelerating.. i had to let go of the gas and re-gassed.

 

It's not the engine failing to warm up, but something else. Common possibilities include such things as needing to have the valves adjusted, bad coil packs, worn spark plugs, a faulty MAP sensor, and probably a few other things as well.

You might not get quite the level of performance that you would once everything has warmed up (shifting will be slower, etc.), but you should be able to move and drive without trouble.

 

valve adjustment maybe

 

what valves need to be adjusted and is it something easy? Or do I need to take it in?

 

I agree with most posters here that idling is not necessary for the engine; and its harmful for the environment! I only do it when I need to scrape ice off the car (even then, if you are home, a pot of warm water works wonders). The only precaution I usually take is to turn off the cabin heater before starting the car, and wait until the cold engine light goes out (normally a few minutes), to start the cabin heater. I don't know that this really makes a difference, but it makes sense.

 

well i have a 2008 honda fit great car ! love it alot ! but its been -30 a few times in edmonton. And the battery dies ! been reading fourms all morning and before i go buy a new batery what kinda should a i buy and i have almost been putting a battery charger on it at night! so i dont know what to do with the cold weather and the fit someone can help that would be great! Its been kinda pissing me off i would nights too and stays outside for only 8 hours and the batterys dead on it!

 

One thing I learned the hard way is to not blast the defroster until the car has warmed up a bit. The heat on the cold windshield could cause a crack to form, especially if there is already a small pit in the glass. I had it happen on my GE and also my daughter on her GD.

 

I give it at least 2-3 minutes of warm up time. Until it feels 'fluid', cause when it's cold you can feel it running 'dry'.