During cold weather, drivers will start their car in the morning and let it heat up, before driving away. This amounts to a major rethink, where motorists were originally advised they should heat up the engine in advance, because of the carburettors.

Drivers were required to idle the car for a period until they reached a temperature where they could function. However, nowadays, the majority of cars are fuel injected and do not come with carburettors. Therefore, experts feel you do not have to wait for the car to heat up, and you can just drive off. The simple process of gently driving away can warm up the engine in no time, and no put too much strain on it before reaching a functioning temperature.

However, you should be aware idling over an extended period can lead to engine oil dilution. Ironically, some believe letting their car heat up slowly would reduce the stress on the engine, but, as a matter of fact, idling for too long can cause raw gasoline to seep into the oil, reducing its lubrication characteristics while heightening its wear and tear.

When it gets cold, and the car freezes over, a driver’s natural instinct is to rev up the engine and heat up the car before driving off. However, according to some experts, this could be doing more harm than good. So, you had better watch out.

Source: edinburghlive.co.uk