Unless you plan on living in a climate where it's below zero every night(zero as in zero, NOT freezing) then it's not needed. Being in Texas you won't see cold enough temperatures to warrant any specialized cold weather mods.
Vortec 350 V8 Engine ???'s
- Thread starter SCOTT_99
- Start date
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Unless you plan on living in a climate where it's below zero every night(zero as in zero, NOT freezing) then it's not needed. Being in Texas you won't see cold enough temperatures to warrant any specialized cold weather mods.
You have oil pressure before the engine even fires. 5wXX oil is still plenty viscous even at temperatures well below freezing.
Myth #1: The engine should be warmed up before driving. Reality: Idling is not an effective way to warm up your vehicle, even in cold weather. The best way to do this is to drive the vehicle. With today's modern engines, you need no more than 30 seconds of idling on winter days before driving away.
Myth #2: Idling is good for your engine. Reality: Excessive idling can actually damage your engine components, including cylinders, spark plugs, and exhaust systems. Fuel is only partially combusted when idling because an engine does not operate at its peak temperature. This leads to the build up of fuel residues on cylinder walls that can damage engine components and increase fuel consumption.
Myth #2: Idling is good for your engine. Reality: Excessive idling can actually damage your engine components, including cylinders, spark plugs, and exhaust systems. Fuel is only partially combusted when idling because an engine does not operate at its peak temperature. This leads to the build up of fuel residues on cylinder walls that can damage engine components and increase fuel consumption.
tattooed4life
HMFIC
You want the oil to thin out and lube all the moving parts. Let it warm up til your Rpm's drop to a normal level and your temp gauge shows it warm.Majority of engine wear is right at start up when there is metal on metal contact until fluids start flowing.
This isn't necessary nowadays. Unless it's -10*F the oil is plenty thin at startup, and like was stated, less than a minute of warm up time is all that's needed. It makes no sense to let a vehicle idle for a half hour on a cold morning until it's at operating temp.
tattooed4life
HMFIC
I have yet to have engine failure in any of my personal vehicles or work trucks by doing this, been doing this since I got my first truck and I'll do it with the last one I own.
it just puts excess wear, ass soon as you see oil pressure is when everything is being lubes, the metal to metal your talking about is that half a second to second of no oil pressure on startup, which occurs if you let it sit or not. it just puts more wear on things for no purpose.
Your gas engine should be fine with a regular tuneup. Diesels sometimes need block heaters but certainly not in Texas.
My 99 5.7 did come with a blockheater but thats because it was a new hampshire truck where it can get extremely cold for long periods.
My 99 5.7 did come with a blockheater but thats because it was a new hampshire truck where it can get extremely cold for long periods.
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