Warm Up Proceedure

[karmavore]

Is there anything wrong with letting the Esprit (or any car) warm up before driving it? It seems to me like it should be a good idea, but I remember when I was a kid hearing that it wasn't. I usually let the Esprit idle for 2-4 minutes before driving, and then keep the RPMs under 4K until the fluids have come up to temp.

Is there anything wrong starting car and letting it idle for an extended period of time?

Luke.

[judgea]

My 87 G-type does not run well until it slightly warms up. I read a long time ago that this was normal b/c of a valve that restricts the exhaust until warm temp. reached. Hope someone chimes in & refreshes my memory.

[lotusguy]

Hi,

Luke, it is advisable to let the car warm up before driving it, but not too long, just til the temp gauge reads 70 or so. This is primarily because your oil pump and waterpump are RPM dependent and you want to get full pressure and flow of each as soon as possible. Happy Motoring! ...Jim'85TE

[lotusguy]

judgea said:

My 87 G-type does not run well until it slightly warms up. I read a long time ago that this was normal b/c of a valve that restricts the exhaust until warm temp. reached. Hope someone chimes in & refreshes my memory.

Hi,

You're right about the valve, but not about it restricting the exhaust. Your '87 does not have the EBPV valve (Exhaust Back Pressure Valve) present on the >'89 cars. This EBPV stays closed on cold startup to keep the exhaust heat in the catalytic convertor to warm it to operating temperature more quickly.

Your system doesn't run optimally on startup because the Bosche EFI has a cold start system which enriches the mixture by cutting in an additional injector (called the cold start valve) which runs until a temp switch is energized by warm coolant (oxymoron?) and cuts it out. At this point, your A/F mixture returns to normal and car behaves better. Happy Motoring! ...Jim'85TE

[johnwatkins]

It's more important not to labour the engine until she's fully warm than it is to keep the revs down.

Labouring a cold engine causes a lot of bore & piston wear.

Cheers,

John W
'95 S4s

[karmavore]

johnwatkins said:

It's more important not to labour the engine until she's fully warm than it is to keep the revs down.

Define "laboring the engine" please?

[karmavore]

lotusguy said:

Hi, Luke, it is advisable to let the car warm up before driving it, but not too long, just til the temp gauge reads 70 or so.

Oil or water temp?

Luke.

[lotusguy]

karmavore said:

lotusguy said: Hi, Luke, it is advisable to let the car warm up before driving it, but not too long, just til the temp gauge reads 70 or so. Luke, You do not have an oil temp gauge as standard equipment, so that would be difficult to determine. If the water temp reaches 70 degrees, your oil temp has come up at least as high and will have circulated through the engine and fully charged the oil galleries. It's really all about the oil reaching temp and circulating thoroughly. Fully 60% (with some estimates exceeding 85%) of the wear to an engine in it's lifetime will occur during the startup cycle when the internals are not floating on a layer of pressurised oil. This is what makes pre-oiler systems so attractive. These use an electric pump (or air pressure for the external tank type) to fully pressurize the oil galleries and float the internals before you engage the starter. They significantly extend engine life. I am in the process, albeit slowly, of developing a pre-oiler system for the Esprit using off the shelf components. There is an excellent one on the market, but at $600USD, it is somewhat cost prohibitive. So far, mine is priced under $300. It will draw the oil from the sump and return it, under pressure to the oil gallery cap. The oil will be carried through Aeroquip lines through the motor/pump mounted to the subframe and into the gallery cap. I have only yet to source a relay/timer circuit so that it will also run on shutdown and provide oil flow over the turbo bearing to cool it and prevent coking. Maybe with all the electro-techies out there, someone would care to assist? Happy Motoring! ...Jim'85TE Oil or water temp? Luke.

[karmavore]

What's the temperature gauge above the oil pressure gauge if not oil?

Regardless, is it best practice to idle until the water temp hits about 70 before taking off?

Luke.

[lotusguy]

karmavore said:

What's the temperature gauge above the oil pressure gauge if not oil? Regardless, is it best practice to idle until the water temp hits about 70 before taking off? Luke.

Luke,

Guess I didn't realize the model year of your Esprit. Yes, you want to wait for 70 degree coolant temp. This insures proper oil temp and also insures that your ECU will be out of cold start mode. Happy Motoring! ...Jim'85TE

[karmavore]

Thanks again for the 1.000.000th time. I also routinely bypass the 2500 cat warm up procedure. Good idea too, right?

Luke.

[lotusguy]

karmavore said:

Thanks again for the 1.000.000th time. I also routinely bypass the 2500 cat warm up procedure. Good idea too, right? Luke.

No Harm there either. Happy Motoring! ...Jim'85TE