Thrashing from cold.

[Raize]

If I only intend to keep a car for 1 year is there really any reason I shouldn't do this when I know the engine is in good nick and the car is being run on "bangernomics" principle?

[The Nur]

You may do detrimental damage to it before the year is up? Selling a car that smokes like fk can be difficult? Many other reasons?

Not that it matters though. If it is that shoddy and you're the last owner anyway then do what you want with it, it's your car

eta: a friend once tried to blow up a fiesta (or a Corsa, I can't remember) engine by putting it in neutral and dropping a brick on the throttle. Took ages.

[BritishRacinGrin]

You won't kill it, not unless it's already in it's death throes. Thrash away. Beware of becoming a noise nuisance to your neighbours though, and don't forget it isn't just the engine which takes a while to 'warm up'- it's also the tyres, brakes and critically the driver.

[TonyRPH]

A good few years ago, I put a nice crack in a piston, caused by revving an engine from cold. I was left with the delightful sound of piston slap.

Why would you want / need to thrash it from cold anyway?

[itcaptainslow]

Raize said:

If I only intend to keep a car for 1 year is there really any reason I shouldn't do this when I know the engine is in good nick and the car is being run on "bangernomics" principle?

Wouldn't you be a bit cocked off if you bought a car and found the previous owner had followed the same school of thought?

"Not mine, so not my problem anymore"

[HaloGen8]

I understand the sensible replies and I guess none of us do cane our cars until they are up to operating temperature but I'm sure like the OP is asking.....What if?...

If ultimately his car is going to be binned in within a year to the scrapyard then it can be used and abused as he sees fit.

[Tickle]

Why would anyone ever be in such a rush to 'thrash' their car from cold? excluding any emergency situations.

Edited by Tickle on Saturday 26th April 12:14

[sebhaque]

There's nothing stopping you from doing as such but given it's a shed I would be reluctant to thrash the engine from cold. More to go wrong, at least if anything you're confident it'll start first time and get you to where you're going (even if a door falls off or something).

[Shurv]

Having such a lack of mechanical sympathy marks you out as a bit of a dickwad. I can't understand why you'd want to do it other than to prove my theory,and in some sad way think it's funny. In the end, it's your car, you treat it how you wish. I always follow the theory that if you look after your car, it will look after you. Treat yours how you plan to and see how you feel when it blows up 50 miles from home.

[zeduffman]

It's not really bangernomics if you set out to be as mechanically unsympathetic as possible...

[WinstonWolf]

Raize said:

If I only intend to keep a car for 1 year is there really any reason I shouldn't do this when I know the engine is in good nick and the car is being run on "bangernomics" principle?

Yup, warming up serves two purposes, it gives the oil time to reach all the parts of the engine and more importantly it allows components to expand to their correct operating clearance. Thrashing from cold is more likely to increase metal on metal contact which will increase the wear.
You might get away with it but it reduces the chances of your engine not lasting.

I'm assuming you live in a NSL zone?

[Heaveho]

Raize said:

If I only intend to keep a car for 1 year is there really any reason I shouldn't do this when I know the engine is in good nick and the car is being run on "bangernomics" principle?

Common sense? If you need the reasons for not doing it explaining to you, you're almost too stupid to own and drive a car. Hopefully, if you insist on continuing to do it, it'll likely blow up in your ownership sooner rather than later, and not the poor sod who ends up with it afterwards.

Hope this helps.

[TonyRPH]

WinstonWolf said:

<snip>

I'm assuming you live in a NSL zone?

Even if the OP does live in an NSL zone, surely the vehicle wouldn't need to be thrashed that hard to get up to 60 anyway?

[Bennet]

Raize said:

If I only intend to keep a car for 1 year is there really any reason I shouldn't do this when I know the engine is in good nick and the car is being run on "bangernomics" principle?

It grates on me that you would treat an engine like this, even if you are the last owner.

Please don't sell it to anyone afterward unless you're going to tell them you've been doing this.

[PaulJ37]

Maybe the OP could explain to us his reason for wanting to? If you simply have to thrash it but dont need to go far enough to let the system reach its operating temperature then you should just walk.

[Chicane-UK]

Just couldn't bring myself to do it, even on a snotter. Mechanical sympathy is so deeply ingrained in me now from owning cars I actually care about!

[scdan4]

I used to live right by a roundabout on an unpoliced ringroad and at that time commuted on a motorbike. I was also younger and more enthusiastic

Most mornings the bike would be doing 100mph within 2 minutes of being started from stone cold. About once a week it would be doing considerably faster. It took about a year of ever increasing smoke and oil consumption before the engine was declared dead - it just gradually expired

A couple of years ago I had a boss with a pretty new golf. His party trick leaving work was to start it in gear with the clutch down and as soon as the engine caught launch it as fast as he could. His crank snapped one day (made a hell of a bang!)

So no, it's not very good for the engine. But, if its a stter yours, if you're not bothering anyone else, why the hell not. Just don't complain if one day it goes "yeurgh, um, NO"

[Raize]

PaulJ37 said:

Maybe the OP could explain to us his reason for wanting to? If you simply have to thrash it but dont need to go far enough to let the system reach its operating temperature then you should just walk.

I live in the country and the first 5 miles of my commute is fun B-road and unclassified road. The remaining 10 miles is boring A-road. Unfortunately the engine just comes up to temperature when getting on to the boring A-road.

[ShampooEfficient]

Raize said:

I live in the country and the first 5 miles of my commute is fun B-road and unclassified road. The remaining 10 miles is boring A-road. Unfortunately the engine just comes up to temperature when getting on to the boring A-road.

What car? Mine get up to temp within a couple of miles, worth swapping the thermostat?

[sparks_E39]

Up to you. Don't complain when it dies on you 15 miles from home in the middle of nowhere though.