Do you let your car warm up before driving?

I've always heard that it's a good idea to let your car warm up before driving. Is this true or am I just wasting gas?

i voted no because i dont, but it is true that it is better to let it warm up for a minute.

if i dont let it warm up i feel like im runnin on my car with low oil due to the oil not covering the camshaft after its parked overnight since its all dripped to the bottom... maybe this is not even the case tho

howstuffworks.com stated with modern fuel injection of today, most cars, even in the winter, need only 30 seconds to warm up. after that, its actually best to drive easy until normal operating temperatures opposed to sitting there letting it idle. that said, yes i usually let it warm up for a few seconds to 30 seconds even in the summer. in the winterthough, i usually letit warm up until its warm inside. yes its bad for gas and the environment, but i hate driving cold.

You shouldnt let it warm for more than 30 seconds.
Why?  When you let it idle, (ecspecially on cold days) the valves are not are their right size because they are cold.  This causes more wear, and since it takes longer to warm up when the car is idling it there is more wear and tear.  But that does not mean to floor it when its cold, that is the most abusive thing you can do to it.  Simply start it, sit for 15 seconds, then drive normally.  Also, when you car is up to temperature, that does not mean the oil temp unless you have a gauge for that.  Oil takes even longer to warm up.  But like everything...its all up to you're own decision.

i let mine warm up for way too long in the winter, remote start+ laziness=let it warm up untill its warm. 

it is however a bad idea to just start it and drive, like in the movies when they start their car and immediatly rev it up to redline.............terrible idea.

Great responses guys. I usually let my car warm up until the RPM drops below 1k. I'll start considering taking less time for it to warm up after I read up on it. Also how much time will it be okay to start going to higher RPMs? I usually go up to 4-5k when I'm gettin on the freeway which is only a mile from my place, which takes about 5mins with red lights.

I would think if the car is at operating temp (almost to the halfway mark in both of my Accords) you would be fine to go up into the 4-5k range.
I actually started to let both of mine warm up in the morning because of something I read on here.  Now I'm confused

In the servie manual it says the accord doesnt really need more then 10 seconds in the cold to warm up. But its been a while since i read the thing. But iam postive it says something abvout this in the manual.

I dont for more than a few seconds...15, 20 or so.  Waste of fuel...
 
Something to consider when letting it warm up for al ong period of time....while the engine may be at operating temp, the driveline isnt, cause it hasnt moved yet.  Just because the temp gauge is at half mast doesnt mean the car is ready to go strong.  On my M3 (RIP), the tach lights would go out as the car warmed up, telling you how much you could rev it until it warmed up.  It was key with that car to not let it warm up, cause the tach lights were only tied into the engine temp, but the driveline is just as important.

When I start the car manually, I only let it run for about 30 seconds before moving it.  These cars really don't warm up until moved, otherwise it takes a while.  When I get to the park-&-ride after work, I usually auto-start the car as the bus pulls in to help it warm a little more since pulling out of the lot is very dangerous and I need power when I hit the gas.  To aid in warming it up, I usually keep it in first gear through the lot and after the 3 way merge of cars leaving, I usually have the temp 2-3 lines above the C which is enough.  In the winter, I auto-start and warm up for 5-10 minutes ..... bad, I know, but that's the price of the luxury!

Warm up for 10 seconds, then easy does it on the road till normal operating temp.

OK so I'm gonna stop warming my cars up.  I only started the process about 2 weeks ago due to a thread I read on here.  I have no doubt my MPG numbers will increase again after the mediocre 28mpg I've been getting recently.

I would reduce my warm up time to 30sec but I don't like the idea of puttin my car into gear at almost 1.5k rpm.

unless you have a carb...that shouldnt happen...idle problem?  do the ole' tap.

By the time my seatbelt is buckled and I've rolled out of the garage a good 30sec. has gone by.  But the engine isn't pushed 'til it's at normal operating temps. 
 
Even tho' the oils drained into the oil pan overnight, I believe there's still a film of oil on the moving parts, and it doesn't take long for oil to get pumped back through the engine.  The problem of cold-engine driving has more to do than just the oil.  Metal expands when warm, and so the tolerances when cold are greater, another reason to treat the engine nice 'til warm.
 
The brakes deserve a good warm-up too, with easy stops 'til they heat up.  A rotor that's 0° that brakes hard gets way too hot way too fast.
 
Then there's the idea of driving long enough for the exhaust to fully heat up to burn off any moisture/water that's inside of the pipes.  Short trips in any kind of weather is hard for the exhaust.  Unless your system is all stainless that is.

i dont let my car warm up.
i just get in and go.
idk if this is good tho, cuz i do a LOT of short trips.
basically this is my schedule:


3 mile drive to school.
--one hour later--
3 mile drive from school to a class at another school
--one hour later--
3 mile drive back to the original school
--one hour later--
3 miles back home


basically thats it. then the occasional trips to the gas station, grocery store, wherever.
i have yet to take a trip of any decent distance in my car, and ive had it for about 2 months.

prolly not the best thing for the vehicle...

quote:

unless you have a carb...that shouldnt happen...idle problem? do the ole' tap.

Not and idle problem just start up rpm is high. Goes up to 1.75k then drops to 1.5k within about 5-10sec. After about 4mins of warm up it'll drop to 750 rpm.

If I need to clear ice & snow off the windows, that's all the longer I let it idle.
 

quote:

ORIGINAL: superballz00
Not and idle problem just start up rpm is high. Goes up to 1.75k then drops to 1.5k within about 5-10sec. After about 4mins of warm up it'll drop to 750 rpm.

Same thing with mine, but it will also drop down to a normal idle speed for me if I put it in gear.
I cant figure out whats wrong with it, but Its not that big an issue for me.

quote:

ORIGINAL: 19Accord97

You shouldnt let it warm for more than 30 seconds.
Why?  When you let it idle, (ecspecially on cold days) the valves are not are their right size because they are cold.  This causes more wear, and since it takes longer to warm up when the car is idling it there is more wear and tear.  But that does not mean to floor it when its cold, that is the most abusive thing you can do to it.  Simply start it, sit for 15 seconds, then drive normally.  Also, when you car is up to temperature, that does not mean the oil temp unless you have a gauge for that.  Oil takes even longer to warm up.  But like everything...its all up to you're own decision.

taken from howstuffworks.com:

"Don't warm up your vehicle for more than 30 seconds. This is a tough one, especially for us here at Consumer Guide®, where Chicago's frigid winters are a way of life. Thanks to technology, however, most modern fuel-injected cars only really need 30 seconds to warm, and hot air can start blasting into the cabin very shortly thereafter.  "

I warm mine up til the rpms go under 1k..New motor..Live on small hill also

I forgot to say how much I love my block heater.  That was the first accessory I put on the car.  I can tell it works by watching the tach.  Even on the coldest mornings, the high-idle is the same as a summer start.  It's nice having the fast heat output, but I did it mainly for engine longevity, thinking cold winter startups are one of the hardest things on an engine.

how tough is it to install?  i may get one...gets rather cold here in the winter at night....