I depends on what the temperature is outside, how long the car has been shut off, and there's some other factors I'm sure.

 

less then 1 minute. I start the car, it idles around 1K rpm, i waid until it settles down to about 650 rpm before i go anywhere.

 

^ How cold does it get in the Bay Area? 'Cause in the winter time I know it takes a crap load longer than that for my car to get up to temp. :dunno:

 

It really depends on how you drive. if you just sit and wait without driving, it'll take forever.

if you start driving (also depnding how you drive), it'll warm up a lot faster.

there's a thing that you can do to check the oil temp on the car from the OBC. you can time it yourself, see how long it takes for the car's oil temp to reach normal operating temp.

 

I've never really timed it, but the oil temp gauge and water temp gauge both point to the middle after atleast 5 minutes of driving, sometimes 10-15. The "variable yellow line" thing on the tach goes down after just a few minutes. Sometimes if its a real cold day the oil temp will stay a little on the cold side.

 

The oil needs to reach it's normal operating temperature, which takes a lot longer than most of us realise. My experience is that it is between 5 and 10 minutes of driving at moderate speeds (less than 3000 rpm). Another way of measuring it would be to say that the engine needs to have done about 12000 to 15000 revs in total to be properly warm. If starting from a tempareture well below freezing, this could be increased by a third.

 

less then 1 minute. I start the car, it idles around 1K rpm, i waid until it settles down to about 650 rpm before i go anywhere.

you know you are supposed to just get in and drive at moderate speeds until it warms up right?

 

From most technical papers I have seen, most engines take about 20min of running to be fully warmed up. This is also how long you should run it before changing oil also.

 

Warming UP!

you know you are supposed to just get in and drive at moderate speeds until it warms up right?

Dude, :werd:

 

Usually .5 mile at most then I'm good. Although I will NOT push the car anywhere above 4k until 10 minutes after the needle has reached the middle cause water temperature takes a lot less time than oil :thumbup:

 

^ How cold does it get in the Bay Area? 'Cause in the winter time I know it takes a crap load longer than that for my car to get up to temp. :dunno:

I've only had the car for a few months, so i haven't seen it warm up in the winter, but it doesn't get all that cold here, but with my truck it definately took longer for it to warm up. I use to just play it by ear w/ my old truck, it was very distinctive when it was ready to go (It didn't have a tachometer to look at).

you know you are supposed to just get in and drive at moderate speeds until it warms up right?

:werd: ...So your saying that letting the car warm up until the revs settle down is bad... ...That's completely opposite of what i've ever heard, you let the car's revs settle down after the initial start, then drive easy on the car for the next 5-10 minutes while the rest of the engine warms up.

 

sounds like a lot of people are describing the coolant temp gauge which when at center has about 70F variation.

like someone said it's the oil temp not the coolant temp. in my m coupe i have a fairly good oil temp gauge (factory) and it take about 7-10mins for the oil temp to come up to normal operating temperature. I usually start the car and drive immediately but moderately and do not exceed 3000rpm until the oil is warm.

 

:werd: ...So your saying that letting the car warm up until the revs settle down is bad... ...That's completely opposite of what i've ever heard, you let the car's revs settle down after the initial start, then drive easy on the car for the next 5-10 minutes while the rest of the engine warms up.

Read the manual. BMW has been recommending not to let the car sit and warm up by itself since the E30 days. instead drive immediately but not aggressively.

 

SB22 = ...So your saying that letting the car warm up until the revs settle down is bad... ...That's completely opposite of what i've ever heard, you let the car's revs settle down after the initial start, then drive easy on the car for the next 5-10 minutes while the rest of the engine warms up.[/QUOTE]



Per BMW Owner's Manual: "Do not allow the engine to warm up by leaving it running while the vehicle remains stationary. Instead, begin driving "immediately" at a moderate engine speed"!!!

 

What seciton are you guys reading this? I looked through the whole "Car Care" section and didn't see anything of the sort, and i also browsed through most of the other sections. I've also read through the whole manual when i first got the car. I'm not arguing, just seems wierd that it would be bad for the car...and i can't find what your talking about anywhere in the manual.

I seriously only let it sit for about 30 seconds or so...doesn't seem like a huge problem...

 

it will take about 10- 15 mins for a car to warm up completely....but u shouldn't let the car idle for warm up purpose....thats bad for engine....emission...and milage

best way to warm up ur car is drive under 3k and be gentle

 

Found it, it was in the Controls section. I think they just mean, dont let the car sit there for 10 minutes until the engine is fully warmed up. I'm talking about 30 seconds; seems odd that your's supose to just start, put it in gear, and drive off within 5 seconds before the engine even has time to settle in after the intial cold startup.

Like i said, i'm probably wrong, just making it clear, i'm not actually letting the engine "warm up" while stationary.

 

Found it, it was in the Controls section. I think they just mean, dont let the car sit there for 10 minutes until the engine is fully warmed up. I'm talking about 30 seconds; seems odd that your's supose to just start, put it in gear, and drive off within 5 seconds before the engine even has time to settle in after the intial cold startup.

Like i said, i'm probably wrong, just making it clear, i'm not actually letting the engine "warm up" while stationary.

i realize it's weird bro, but that's just the way it is. no need to fight it. if you have faith in german engineering then you should have faith in their advice. just because it's not the norm doesn't mean it's wrong. and when they say immediately, i'm pretty sure they mean "the sooner the better." sooooooo if you start driving immediately, that is best.

 

little off topic...sorry, but has anyone installed a remote starter to their bimmer? and if they did works good? worth it? what brand?

 

i live in the NE and on a winter morn with a 10deg morn i turn on the car go to work and in 3-4 blocks the neddle is almost centered and i got good heat from the vents and butt is gettign toasty warm from th seat heaters

 

Once the radiator temp is running at the operation tempuature, I usually wait about another mile or 2-3 mins then. You can feel when the car is warmed and when it's not.

 

Usually .5 mile at most then I'm good. Although I will NOT push the car anywhere above 4k until 10 minutes after the needle has reached the middle cause water temperature takes a lot less time than oil :thumbup:

:bow: That is exactly what I wanted to know

 

It is not just the engine that needs to warm up. Your transmission, suspension, etc should all warm up. I give about 10 minutes for summer, 15-20 minutes during winter.