Idling and Other Questions

[egomes]

Question #1
My V8 owner's manual mentions that the V8 does not need much warm up time
before driving. The gauges do not have any Blue(still cold) or Red(Too Hot)
indicators anymore like my 89SE. I've been allowing the engine to warm up till
about 60degrees prior to driving. What should be my warm up time for on outside
temp of 45F (inside garage is at 58f) before driving off?

Question #2
I read an article on Car&Driver regarding armature bracket racing. It mentioned
that it was recommended that cars stay running "idling" throughout the day for
better consistency with running time. Now... I know it's not good for cars to stay
idle for too long but what about Esprits? Hypothetically speaking, what would
happen if one's Esprit stayed on for several hours idling? What would go wrong
first...I'm not too sure on the mechanical issues that would arise if this
would take place? Humor me here

I'm also asking this because my Esprit sees about 3-4 days of BAD traffic a month when I visit my folks on the weekends. I sometimes stay idling for about 15 minutes while the fans go on then off...on then off....on then off... You get the point.

THanks guys,

Ed-
2000V8

[ErnestM]

... I sometimes stay idling for about 15 minutes while the fans go on then off...on then off....on then off... You get the point.

THanks guys,

Ed-
2000V8

Don't have an answer to your questions, but would just like to point out the "most fun" thing about fans here in Florida. Hot day and you make a quick run. So quick of a run that the engine heats up but everything is just below the "fan thresh-hold". When you turn off the car - no fans. You run inside for a quick, er, beverage and when you come back out the heat during the day has cooked everything up to the point that the fans come on by themselves.

First time mine did this I was actually unscrewing the cap to one of the tires to check the pressure. I nearly shat myself...

ErnestM
'98 V8

[lotusguy]

Question #1
My V8 owner's manual mentions that the V8 does not need much warm up time
before driving. The gauges do not have any Blue(still cold) or Red(Too Hot)
indicators anymore like my 89SE. I've been allowing the engine to warm up till
about 60degrees prior to driving. What should be my warm up time for on outside
temp of 45F (inside garage is at 58f) before driving off?

Question #2
I read an article on Car&Driver regarding armature bracket racing. It mentioned
that it was recommended that cars stay running "idling" throughout the day for
better consistency with running time. Now... I know it's not good for cars to stay
idle for too long but what about Esprits? Hypothetically speaking, what would
happen if one's Esprit stayed on for several hours idling? What would go wrong
first...I'm not too sure on the mechanical issues that would arise if this
would take place? Humor me here

I'm also asking this because my Esprit sees about 3-4 days of BAD traffic a month when I visit my folks on the weekends. I sometimes stay idling for about 15 minutes while the fans go on then off...on then off....on then off... You get the point.

THanks guys,

Ed-
2000V8

[lotusguy]

Question #1
My V8 owner's manual mentions that the V8 does not need much warm up time
before driving. The gauges do not have any Blue(still cold) or Red(Too Hot)
indicators anymore like my 89SE. I've been allowing the engine to warm up till
about 60degrees prior to driving. What should be my warm up time for on outside
temp of 45F (inside garage is at 58f) before driving off?

Question #2
I read an article on Car&Driver regarding armature bracket racing. It mentioned
that it was recommended that cars stay running "idling" throughout the day for
better consistency with running time. Now... I know it's not good for cars to stay
idle for too long but what about Esprits? Hypothetically speaking, what would
happen if one's Esprit stayed on for several hours idling? What would go wrong
first...I'm not too sure on the mechanical issues that would arise if this
would take place? Humor me here

I'm also asking this because my Esprit sees about 3-4 days of BAD traffic a month when I visit my folks on the weekends. I sometimes stay idling for about 15 minutes while the fans go on then off...on then off....on then off... You get the point.

THanks guys,

Ed-
2000V8

Ed,

Sorry for the previous post, hit the wrong button. As far as your questions:

#1. Warm-up is about temperature, not time. The whole point is to allow the metal parts to heat and expand to their working temp. I always let mine warm up completely, but, granted this is perhaps extreme. After engine warm-up, I try to drive slowly the first couple miles to also warm up the transmission, which is rock cold 'til it's been driven regardless of your engine warm-up time.

#2, Excessive idling is discouraged because of the excess wear this can cause the engine. Your oil pump and water pump are crank speed dependent, so at idle, you may have the pressure, but not the flow, especially to the critical upper part of the engine. If you are in a long idle situation regularly, add a little more oil, no more than a 1/2 qt. This will allow more oil to remain at the top of the engine.

Or, add a pre-luber. I am in the process of creating a pre-luber for my Esprit which will charge the oil gallery prior to engine start and also run via an electric pump for up to 5 min. on engine shutdown to provide additional cooling to the turbo bearing. I am including an overide switch which will allow me to cut this pump in at any time providing full flow independently of crank speed. The whole thing will cost less than $200. Email me offlist if you'd like to learn more about it.

Hope this helps...Happy Motoring! Jim'85TE

[egomes]

Thanks Jim-

Now... I heard through other V8 owners that there is no need for a pre-luber anymore once you're in a 1997+ Esprit...true? I recall waiting about 2min after a long run with my 89SE and the warm up cycle was about 1.5 min long too. Whats strange is that my V8 manual specifically says to not wait long for warm up. It also says to not idle after a run.... That's totally opposite of my 89SE.

Ed-

[lotusguy]

egomes said: Thanks Jim-

Now... I heard through other V8 owners that there is no need for a pre-luber anymore once you're in a 1997+ Esprit...true? I recall waiting about 2min after a long run with my 89SE and the warm up cycle was about 1.5 min long too. Whats strange is that my V8 manual specifically says to not wait long for warm up. It also says to not idle after a run.... That's totally opposite of my 89SE.

Ed-

Ed,

You usually can't go wrong following the manufacturers advise, but I strongly suspect that their reasons are primarily related to achieving proper oil and coolant flow and perhaps emissions.

As far as the need for a pre-luber, all cars can make good use of them. The reason for this is that your critical bottom end components (crankshaft and conrods), don't actually ever touch their bearing shells, but rather are suspended, or 'floated' above them, supported by a thin layer of oil under pressure, (remember, you can't compress a liquid?). This is why oil pressure is so important a function that most cars have either an oil pressure gauge or 'idiot' light to monitor it.

Well, after engine shutdown, your pressure drops off to nothing after a very short while and your components come to rest on the bearing shells. When you restart, these components wear the shells 'til sufficient pressure and flow are supplied to 'float' them off again. Depending on the weight oil, the health of your oil pump and the ambient temperature, this can take up to a couple minutes, all the while the crank is turning and the conrods are reciprocating virtually unprotected. This is one reason that the shells are comprised of a laminate of soft metals, usually lead, copper or bronze, over steel to act as a lubricant of sorts.

With a pre-luber, you pressurize the oil gallery and 'float' these components prior to ever turning the engine over eliminating most, if not all, of the wear. Repeated tests, both by independents and manufacturers confirm that 85% of the wear an engine sustains during it's lifetime is upon start-ups. So, even your lawn mower engine would benefit from such a device. Happy Motoring! Jim '85TE