Why warm up the engine?
All engine parts warm up at different rates. First of all, the piston, cylinders, block, head, antifreeze, oil, neutralizer, etc. are heated. In this list, special attention should be paid to motor oil.
For particularly impatient drivers
You should remember what happens when various engine parts warm up quickly and unevenly. The working gap between the piston and cylinder is some hundredths of a millimeter. When, after a cold start, you let the engine warm up at idle for 10 minutes, the piston and thick-walled cylinder have time to warm up evenly.
Uniform heating will allow
maintain the working gap between all parts of the piston group, the engine oil will be able to quietly circulate through the gaps and oil channels, the oil in the gearbox and other process fluids will warm up.
How to reduce warm-up time and reduce engine wear
Hello, Car Wash! I have a pressing question: how to start the engine in cold weather? I heard from friends about some kind of car blankets for the engine that prevent the car from quickly cooling down in cold weather. Tell us more about them and tell us if they are really that good. And are there any other tricks for successfully starting the engine in cold weather? Anatoly Chistenkov.
Not long ago, special blankets appeared on the car accessories market to help keep the engine warm. According to the manufacturers of these special equipment, the use of their product saves fuel consumption, reduces warm-up time and reduces engine wear. The blanket can be installed without any problems and does not require regular dismantling. In principle, this is an improved analogue of all kinds of homemade engine covers, among which you can find both felt capes and old overcoats.
It is difficult to say to what extent the stated improvements in fuel economy and engine wear correspond to reality; it all depends on the quality of the blanket, and, unfortunately, it varies. Today it can be purchased as a truly high-quality item (tested with one friend, he did not skimp when buying a blanket, and he got a very good product; in frosts of 24 ° C and below, the car was stopped for more than 3 hours, as a result the engine temperature fell very slightly), and a cheap fake, which will also be dangerous for use, because the materials used for its production can release substances harmful to health when heated. Car blankets come in only three sizes; when purchasing, it is important to know approximately the dimensions of the engine and choose the appropriate one, otherwise the effect of use may not follow. The price for it ranges from 1.5 to 2 thousand rubles. Do not consider it an advertisement, but many praise the insulation produced in the glorious city of Chelyabinsk. But, in my opinion, a blanket alone cannot be a panacea for engine freezing; for the proper effect, I would recommend taking care of insulating the engine not only from above, but also from below and from the front. Thermal insulation materials are installed on the lower engine protection and in the space between the radiator and the front grille. Those who like to save money use ordinary cardboard as a layer in front of the radiator, which, in principle, does no harm. Those drivers who prefer high-quality equipment use special insulation, which is a heat-insulating material covered with leatherette, with special valves that prevent unexpected overheating of the engine. In general, today everyone has the opportunity to purchase ready-made thermal insulation kits; all that remains is to strengthen them in the right places and the fierce “General Frost” will not reach the car engine.
Now regarding the launch. The main problem of driving in winter has been and remains a cold engine start. The consequences of this action are sometimes very sad; according to researchers, idling an unheated engine increases its wear tenfold. Taking this information into account, I would recommend that after starting, you do not wait for the temperature sensor needle to reach operating mode, but start off a little earlier, when the engine speed drops to about 1000, and drive with minimal voltage on the engine. This will not only reduce wear, but also reduce the amount of fuel consumed. Before starting the engine, in order to “wake up” the battery, you need to turn on the headlights and turn the ignition key to the pre-start check position; after 10-15 seconds you can start the car. For cars with a manual transmission, many experts advise starting the engine with the clutch pedal depressed and then releasing it slowly and smoothly. This will allow the box to warm up. With the engine running and the clutch depressed, before driving, you can carefully shift the gear lever to different positions. But you shouldn’t turn a frozen steering wheel in different directions; you can seriously damage the control system; it will warm up quickly as soon as the car starts moving. When warming up the car, turn off the interior heating, so the process will go much faster, and to quickly heat the interior, in addition to the stove, turn on the air recirculation, but not for long, otherwise the windows will begin to fog up. Under no circumstances should you artificially increase the speed with the gas pedal at idle in order to warm it up faster. The temperature will indeed creep up, but much more slowly than the engine wear will increase.
All of the above are additional means in the fight against the cold; at non-critical temperatures, a competent car enthusiast can easily do without them. To do this, before the onset of winter, you need to prepare the car for frost, check all technical fluids, the engine starting system and the battery. You need to change everything you need in advance, without waiting for, for example, the same battery to run out of power; it is better to check its charge level and, in case of unsatisfactory performance, replace it with a new one. The main thing to remember is that the machine is a sensitive and finely tuned mechanism that requires constant care and attention. There will be due attention, and the car will respond to the owner with reliable and uninterrupted operation.
What happens if you don't warm up the engine?
If you hit the road after 2 minutes
after starting in winter, if you increase the speed to 3000, or even higher, there is a risk of lifting up the soft piston skirts. Under load, the aluminum piston heats up much faster, unlike a massive cast iron liner, and thanks to the laws of physics and the expansion coefficient, the gap between the piston and cylinder is reduced to zero, the oil film breaks, scuffing appears over time, accelerated wear of the liners, camshaft, crankshaft and others engine parts.
On first cold start
on engines with mileage over 150,000, 200,000 km, there is a risk of piston rings sticking, a complete loss of compression and, as a result, major repairs. Believe me, strange as it is, there are many people who do not want to warm up their car all night in winter and every morning begins with “Will it start or won’t it start?” In the best case, they will charge the battery, warm up and start the car, in the worst case, they will fill the spark plugs, wash off the oily film from the cylinders and end up on the capital.
Thick oil
It leaks very poorly through the gaps and channels in the lubrication system, the engine experiences oil starvation. In addition to the thick oil in the frozen crankcase, there are other technological fluids for the brake system, power steering and automatic transmission. We recommend thinking not about how to quickly warm up the car, but about how to warm it up properly.
How to properly warm up a car
First of all, you need to answer the question. Are you ready to deal with serious damage?
which may arise in the process of saving fuel during night and morning 10 minute warm-ups? If not, read about how to properly warm up your car in winter.
- during winter frosts, use autostart
every 2-4 hours at night; - insulate the engine compartment
with a car blanket, it will help retain heat during long-term parking; - shut off the heater radiator to exclude some of the liquid from circulation in the cooling system, this is important for old domestic cars;
- cover the radiator grille
with cardboard or a special cover, the engine will lose heat less intensely, especially while driving on the highway; - during warm-up, set the blowing speed
to the minimum value; - warm up the car using the automatic transmission
in the following way - after 7 minutes of engine operation, switch the automatic transmission selector to position D for 1 minute, then to position R, repeat several times; - install liquid or electric preheating
of the engine; - do not use liquids for a quick start
, monitor the condition of the car, change spark plugs, charge the battery,
the consequences of use are below in the video
; - when hot air blows from the stove, do not direct its flow onto the windshield
, it may crack, wait until the interior warms up or turn on the airflow at the very beginning of the start-up.
A cold engine should be properly warmed up for the first 10 minutes only at idle speed, as it experiences extreme loads and at first runs almost dry.
Activate autostart mode based on temperature
This function will work if certain conditions are met:
- if there is a temperature sensor;
- from the place of its installation;
- serviceability of the sensor itself.
Activated by long pressing button 3 (star) until a sound signal appears from the key fob - it should beep once. The leftmost icon (1) at the bottom of the screen will blink on the display. By short pressing button 3, we move through the menu to the third position from the left (square 3) with the thermometer symbol. After making sure that the desired function is activated, press button No. 1 on the case to activate this mode (this mode is turned off by pressing button 2 on the case), and in place of the clock readings a critical value of the engine temperature will appear after which it will autostart.
After the temperature value has been displayed, there is no need to press anything - after 8-10 seconds the remote control itself will beep and the clock will appear on the display again, and the third icon (with a thermometer) will remain dark. The state of this icon shows whether the autorun mode is running based on temperature: dark - the mode is active, light - reset.
What determines the speed of warming up?
Engine capacity
— it is obvious that a 1.5 liter engine produces several times less heat than a 3 liter engine.
Energy efficiency
— a diesel engine will warm up further than a conventional aspirated one. Diesel engines warm up more slowly due to the fact that most of the energy of the burned fuel is converted into useful work.
Manual measures
— if an additional liquid or electric heating system is installed, you insulate the car for the winter, eliminating points of heat loss.
How to speed up warm-up
A simple and banal list consisting of 4 recommendations.
- insulate the car before the harsh winter;
- install an electric preheater;
- install a liquid preheater;
- enable autorun every 2-4 hours.
When the thermometer needle drops below 20 degrees
, it is recommended to use the autostart function every 2-4 hours; trying to start the engine at this temperature is equivalent to 1000 +/- km. mileage You can get pre-start heaters, in which case you won’t need automatic heating.
Description of the capabilities of the Starline A91 alarm key fob
Self-diagnosis and indication of operating modes:
- Automatic monitoring of security sensors with disabling faulty ones and reporting this
- Indication of alarm status by LED and on the key fob display
- Indication of the reasons for alarm activation in 9 security zones
- Indication of a faulty zone when the security mode is turned on
- Indication of the fact that the alarm has been triggered by sound signals
- LED indication of serviceability of limit switches
Alarm service functions:
- Silent security mode
- Security mode with engine running
- Silent activation/deactivation of security mode
- Turning on/off security mode without a key fob
- Bypassing the door area for the duration of the interior light extinguishing delay
- Automatic return to security mode in case of accidental shutdown
- Remote disabling of sensors by level in security mode
- Remote control central locking
- Central locking control from the ignition switch
- Two-step door unlocking
- Double-pulse door unlocking
- Possibility of implementing the “comfort” function
- 4 additional control channels
- Car interior lighting control
- Panic mode
- Car search mode
- Service mode
- Call mode from car
- Protection against accidental pressing of key fob buttons
- Sound and vibration modes of operation of the key fob with feedback
- Separate temperature display in the cabin and under the hood of the car
- Energy saving mode of key fob with liquid crystal display
- Remote programming of new and erasing lost key fobs
- Remote programming of alarm modes and functions
- Quick reset of programmable functions to factory settings
- Ability to work with GSM modules StarLine M20 and StarLine M30
- Current time display, alarm clock, timer
