warming up

[davehoos]

early skylines use an oil temp switch to cancel the overdrive[no overdrive no lockup].

i think it an on-off idea.at around 40cel.

later full electronic boxes have a fluid temp sencor [variable] and a overheat fluid switch,about 140-150 cel..

the engine in mine is normally warms ok but the radiator takes a while to hold the heat.If i was i city traffic it might be a lot quicker.

[VLRB20DET]

i used to get up at 4am to go to work, i used to let it idle for like 2 minutes, not good reving a cold engine, plus it doesnt hurt to let the oil circulate for a minute or 2, expecially when its like 2 or 3 deg when its a frost outside

[TIMMMAYYY]

I start the car, wait for hte lifter ticking noise to go away and then drive off

[sherlock_nzl]

thanks guys for the enthusiastic replies, i do appreciate them, i think i'd take less time to warm up my car from now on, but i still feel that starting the car and driving off is going to do mechanical harm. don't forget, it's a 10 year old car, and it's winter.  

maybe i'll time the warm up a little under 5mins. and keep my turbo timer on for 1-2mins after the first start up.

cheers! and happy driving!

I dont know if I am just reading you wrong but you say you keep your turbo timer on for 1-2min after the first start up,................the turbo timer is for your turbo to cool down after a hard run......................After you turn the key off your engine will run for another 2 min....................Very sorry if I have missunderstood you

Cheers

[pinoi_boi_r33]

i usually let mine warm up for about 2 or 3 mins but i cannot really take it easy within the first few minutes. This is coz i drive to uni everyday and i live pretty close to the freeway so when i get on it i go 100 kmswithin about 5 mins of moving off from garage so what should i do? Wake up earlier and to a couple of laps of my block? Lol i don't have any time whatsoever. I guess i will just have to live with the wear on tranny not hurting the engine too much, my synchros on the box are already on the way out (ouch) but i believe that is mostly due to single clutch downshifts that aren't always 100%.

ah well,

Rom.

[ecenshu]

Highway cruising shouldn't be too much of a problem for wear only if you dont load the engine ie: keep revs down(but not in too tall a gear!)

[Yotis]

A n00b question.. what is the normal operating temperature for R34? on the standard oil gauge read out?

[NismoR34]

A n00b question.. what is the normal operating temperature for R34? on the standard oil gauge read out?

Should be around 90 degrees on mild driving ie. normal driving / cruising [8 o'clock]. That's the first line after 70 degrees [7 o'clock].

A bit of harder driving will see it half way between the 90 and 110 lines, so 100 odd degrees, then after 17 runs at heathcote drags - about 110 - the middle line [9 o'clock]

My other halfs car runs a little warmer than mine [same car 34 gtt] it sits about 2mm higher during the same driving but could just be a gauge difference!

Cheers.

[pinoi_boi_r33]

ecenshu: Highway cruising shouldn't be too much of a problem for wear only if you dont load the engine ie: keep revs down(but not in too tall a gear!)

what do u mean dude? in fifth at 100km/hr is about 2600 rpm whilst that is low engine speed its fifth gear, but 100km/hr in fourth is getting the revs up a little more? What i am thinking of doing is either take a longer way to the freeway (max 60km/hr, but even thats 4th) or going on freeway as usual but stay just under 80km/hr in fourth (but what about revs?) for the first couple of kays and piss a fair few ppl off in process, someone plz help me out.

rom.

[ecenshu]

Highway cruising: when on flat ground and at speed the only load the engine is given is the force required to overcome frictional losses in the car and to overcome aerodynamic drag...so its similar to idling the car albeit with a slightly larger load on the engine. If you are worried about cruising on the highway while warming up the engine. I suggest every minute or so, vary your engine revs...either dropping a gear or just raising revs.

The load on the highway shouldn't be too much of a worry compared to climbing a hill in a high gear. Just don't sit at the same revs for too long.

[pinoi_boi_r33]

cheers buddy and thanks for da advice.

yeah i might just drop to fourth a coupla times or put in neutral and rev it a bit.

[The Dan]

[The Dan]

What everyone is saying has some element of truth.

Being a Mechanic myself I know the answer to your question.

NOW EVERYONE PIPE DOWN AND LISTEN.....

When your car is totally cold. ie. temp guage reads nothing ,

Let the car idle for around 4-4.5 minutes before driving off

On warm-down you should always let it sit for at least 1 minute before shutting off...Unless you have been HARD boosting, then leave it for 2-2.5 minutes.

If you just drive around the corner you can just switch it off straight away, no warm-down necessary.

NOW....I will explain...70 Percent, YES 70% of engine wear occurs in the first 11 minutes of driving...you should always pre-heat your engine so that the Thermostat begins to function and the oil temperature and pressure both start to get close to normal.

Yes there is such thing as Bore glazing but we're talking like 30 minutes here.

Idling for long periods is not advised as the heat build up under your bonnet will cause your electrical connections to become brittle.

The reason for warm-down procedure is because while you are boosting there is oil pouring over your turbo bearings and shaft to cool it down. This oil, while boosting, froths up because of the rapid cycle of the turbine wheel (around 200 000 rpm), you need to let the car warm down so that fresh oil can be flushed over the bearings. Otherwise the frothy oil can harden causing a gluggy film over the bearings and shaft of the turbo which, in time, will cause turbo malfunction ie..blown no more.

Also it is good practice to warm down your N/A car because it allows the fuel, oil and water pressures/temperatures to return to a safe level for switching off.

HOPE THIS HAS BEEN OF ASSISTANCE...SORRY TO ANYONE IF I HAVE OFFENDED YOUR INTELLIGENCE.

[Edge]

Where are you getting you information?

The oil does work you know against friction when both cold and hot - just make sure you have the recommended 7w40 or even better 10w40 pure synthetic motor oil - redline.

Apart from friction then...

The wear is caused by acids which crstalize overnight in the head around valves etc.

All you need to do to get the very best long life you can expect is idle the engine for 15 seconds before putting it in gear.

This does two things - flushes the oil through the engine and gives the acid crystals a chance to vaporise before revving.

Keep it simple!

So no reason to wait till engine warms up before moving off.

The reason for driving gently after a cold start is the differing expansion rates of various parts of the engine. Not known to be a problem with RBs though.

Warm down is another story. The turbo gets mighty hot when you are boosting and should be given time off boost for the oil to circulate so as to prevent the oil burning, and to prevent the housing from contracting onto the turbine too fast on a freezing cold day.

Finally make sure you use proper motor oil with detergents in it and not race oil, unless you change you oil ever 200km instead of 10,000km. Its not the friction we are scared of, its the combustion byproducts that get in the oil that mainly cause engine wear.

[Revhead]

One thing that I don't think has been mentioned yet - although the oil pump does begin pumping the moment the engine cranks over, that doesn't mean that the whole engine is instantly lubricated. It takes a little time (only a few seconds) for the oil to make its way into the turbo/s, head, lifters if hydraulic, etc.

I normally start my car, let it settle to a high idle (usually ~10 sec), then reverse it out of the garage. It usually takes a minute or two to shut the garage and lock the house, then I drive very sedately until the temp guage starts to move. Once the needle is on the guage instead of below it I'll let the turbo spool lightly. Once the gauge sits at normal operating temp I'll use anything up to half throttle - water temp does not necessarily equate to engine/oil temp. Once it's been indicating operating temp for a while (maybe 10 mins) it's normally right to fang.

[NismoR34]

Once the gauge sits at normal operating temp I'll use anything up to half throttle - water temp does not necessarily equate to engine/oil temp. Once it's been indicating operating temp for a while (maybe 10 mins) it's normally right to fang.

This is where the factory Oil Temp gauge on mine comes in handy

Coolant temp only takes a few minutes to reach operating temp but Oil can take 10-15 minutes or more in the colder months!

[Revhead]

Aah shaddap ya flash bastard

[h8t_copsr32]

i just bought a used r32 gtst single turbo i have a 3230 standard on it and i want to get a good turbo with good bost but i want to imporve the acceleration but not too much that it rips the steering wheel from my hands would anyone know of any??????

life is short

so are treds

[FATGTS-R]

"i just bought a used r32 gtst single turbo i have a 3230 standard on it and i want to get a good turbo with good bost but i want to imporve the acceleration but not too much that it rips the steering wheel from my hands would anyone know of any??????

life is short

so are treds"

ummm...

Sorry dude, you must of got mixed up between the " warming up " thread in the MAINTENANCE section and the " what turbo should I buy" thread you were thinking of making in the GENERAL or FORCED INDUCTION section.

Easy mistake, I do it all the time.

[qikGTR]

Its also important to note that just because your water temp has reached operating temp, the oil temp may take another 10/15 mins to reach optimal running temperature.

So when your water temp guage shows the eninge has fullt warmed up, it will take another 10 mins or so to be fine for taking it aorund the track or whatever.

Im sure that the people with oil temp guages in their car will agree with me on this one. :aroused: