So do you and what is your reasoning?

 

i dont live up north but your actually not supposed to leave it running because the car warms up faster if you just drive it.

 

I like my car warm when I get in it I don't mind the wasted gas much, if I did I'd drive a Prius.

 

10 min before work is over I hit the remote start. This lets the seat heat up before I get in. Cold ,stiff leather cracks much more easily than warm leather.

 

Thats the main reason i do it when i can. HATE cold leather


I use to think it was safer for the car IE hurts it more driving right away when it's 10 out. But first mile or two i just take it easy. Don't push the car until it's warmed up

 

I let my car run for at least 2 minutes before putting it into drive, every time I start up.

 

Reason? Just a habit?

 

From second hand knowledge, you are not technically supposed to let your car warm up, as stated before. I personally have to because I find that my 6MT is almost impossible to drive when it is cold out (Anything below 30 degrees). My clutch pedal sticks, squeaks and is an absolute nightmare to drive. I have dried greasing the assembly and took it to the dealer, it is just the way it is. As a result, I let it warm up a good 15 minutes before I attempt to drive it. Even with warming up the oil/engine, the drivetrain and the other components still need to warm up so I do not push the car for another 20 minutes after driving. This is just my take on it though.

 

Why? Warms up quicker driving right away?

 

When I first start my car, it idles a bit high. I let it run for a minute and once the RPMs drop, I take off.

 

BTW... I just found it in the manual. They state that you should let the car warm up for at least 30 seconds without racing the engine before driving away

 

I always warm the car up in the winter, at least several minutes.

 

I remote start it a minute or two before I head out. One thing ppl forget is that just because you let your car idle for a few minutes and the engine temp gauge looks fine does not mean you can race out of your driveway... the transmission has not been engaged and it takes a few minutes of easy driving for the trans to reach operational temp as well.

 

That's in the manual as well...

RTFM people!

 

From the manual...

4. Warm-up
Allow the engine to idle for at least 30 seconds after starting. Do not race the engine while warming it up.
Drive at moderate speed for a short distance first, especially in cold weather. In
cold weather, keep the engine running for a minimum of 2 - 3 minutes before
shutting it off. Starting and stopping the engine over a short period of time
may make the vehicle more difficult to start.