[wihaM5]

My whole life I have always been taught and practiced to turn your car on allow it to warm up before driving off. Especially in cold temperatures.
But I've heard others say that's complete bs and today I watched a YouTube video with this guy called the BMW Doctor lol I know. He claims that turning your car on leaving it to idle to warm up will destroy your seals and gaskets because the oil does not properly circulate while idling.
Can someone please clear this up and tell me I'm not destroying my n63 valve stem seals by warming my car up in the morning when it's 20 degrees outside.

[Hoa]

On a warm day, I start and drive immediately. On a really cold day, I sit for 20-30 seconds and then drive. I drive slow for about a mile then normal driving. Been doing that for almost 300K on my 535 and no problem

[wihaM5]

Originally Posted by Hoa

On a warm day, I start and drive immediately. On a really cold day, I sit for 20-30 seconds and then drive. I drive slow for about a mile then normal driving. Been doing that for almost 300K on my 535 and no problem

I usually wait until revs settle then go some days when it's really cold I may start let it sit for a minute or so then go. But is it true that at idle oil is not fully circulating possibly causing damage to seals and gaskets.

[Qsilver7]

This is covered in your owners manual...here's some examples from various BMW owners manuals (e38/e53/f06):

As the others have mentioned...in cold weather & the engine RPMs are high, I wait the 15-30 seconds or so for the revs to go back down, then drive off. Usually takes about the time to buckle up and turn on the heated seats and steering wheel and select if I'm going to listen to the radio or connect to something from my phone.

[wihaM5]

Originally Posted by Qsilver7

This is covered in your owners manual...here's some examples from various BMW owners manuals (e38/e53/f06):

Wow good information. I don't have an owners manual but I'm gonna download it now. Thanks

[Qsilver7]

Originally Posted by wihaM5

Wow good information. I don't have an owners manual but I'm gonna download it now. Thanks

...downloading a PDF version of the owners manual to a device you use all the time is an excellent idea...but also know that iDrive has a built-in version of the owners manual, too. You can also use the keyword search in the iDrive version.

And just for general knowledge or future reference...if you have the Voice Command/TALK button on the right side button pad on your steering wheel...you don't even have to delve down into iDrive to find the manual...you can simply tell your BMW to pull it up by saying "OWNERS MANUAL" after you hear the tone after pressing the button.

Depending on which steering wheel you have the Voice Command/Talk button is shown in the 2 pics below:

[TuckerE36]

N63TU here I let the RPM’s settle under 1k before driving very time, in cold conditions I drive very conservative until the oil temp comes to at least 180 degrees F before I give it a lot of throttle

[Surly73]

As said, owners manuals over decades have covered it. Don't idle, start driving.

"COLD" varies from person to person. I chuckle every time I read in a car forum about someone in the south idling their car for 5 minutes because it plunged down to 50F the night before.

Idling to warm up 1/ keeps the engine running "cold" for longer - more wear 2/ keeps the engine running "warm up program" for longer - more fuel dilution in the oil 3/ doesn't warm up anything else in the driveline, unless there is a heat exchanger with the transmission fluid. As soon as you drive off everything else is still stone cold 4/ wastes time, fuel, adds carbon foot print etc... 5/ doesn't work. I have never had a aluminum engine that actually warmed up idling in the *winter*. It can take the chill off but never reaches anything near operating temperature, especially with the heat on. Too much heat radiates from the aluminum block to the environment.

Start up, buckle up, check your mirrors, set the radio, wait for the garage door to close, and drive off conservatively. If it's fairly cold (like -15C, -20C or colder) usually there are some audible complaints from systems with thickened fluid - I'll give it 30 seconds then. Everything will warm up far faster under light load than sitting there idling.

My little quirk that I'm sure no one else probably does - since my E39 days I manually set the HVAC to a very low fan speed. The automatic vent program would blow a small amount of air over the windshield in winter seasons so my breath didn't fog it up, but the HVAC fan wasn't blasting away stealing every little bit of heat from the engine when it's trying to warm up.

Since my E90 days with the N52 and now with the N55, I actually have the HVAC system turned off for "short trips". On the N series engines the water pump doesn't even run if it doesn't have to. The exception is if there are potential visibility problems due to inside fogging, then I turn the fan to manual 1-3 segments (not AUTO). When I get some temp registering, if I'm going to be in the car for any distance then I set HVAC for AUTO and let it do its thing.

In just a couple of km my oil temperature is off the 70C peg (heat exchanger between coolant/oil). As a long-term out-of-warranty used-car car-guy, I'm pretty happy about that and it hasn't really been an inconvenience.

EDIT: I forgot to make it obvious - drive gently until oil temp comes up - no high revs, no heavy throttle except to avoid immediate danger. "High" and "Heavy" vary depending on just how cold it is, and what engine you have. ("gentle" on an S63 can move you a lot faster than "gentle" on a Corolla).

[Blue Angel]

Qsilver7 and Surly are 100% correct. Allowing an engine to idle when started cold is a leftover from the days of carbureted cars.

Since I've never actually owned a carbureted car I'm going on memory here, but I believe it was you had to let the car idle until the choke circuit on the carburetor switched off or the engine would not drive properly. The choke was a restriction in the air path that built extra manifold vacuum and drew in the additional fuel required to richen the mixture for proper combustion when cold.

It's good practice to not rev the engine very high until oil temps are up to normal simply because oil doesn't work best when cold. Oil is also very thick when cold, and this resistance to flow can cause high oil pressures if the engine speed is too high. Many engines feature an oil filter bypass valve that will allow unfiltered oil into the engine if revved too high with cold oil - just one more reason not to. This is why some M cars have engine rev limiters that are lower when cold and gradually increase with oil temperature.

As far as I know there's no immediate threat to any engine seals (valve seals included) from idling a cold engine. It's not impossible that valve seals could lack lubrication I guess, but that would be a massive oversight on the Engineering of an engine and not likely in my opinion.

BMW Doctor's channel seems to rely heavily on the clickbait approach - use a flashy thumbnail and a provocative statement/question in the title to lure people in. I'm sure there's some good content in his channel, but I'm immediately skeptical of anyone who relies on questionable marketing to sell themselves.

For example, how the heck would he know that valve seals in that particular engine are compromised by cold idling? Has he tested this? Set up experiments to prove his theory? Highly doubtful. He's probably using a bunch of anecdotal evidence to come to that conclusion, and that's not a scientifically sound approach.

[Unspec]

I just wait until the cold start RPM's settle down, e.g. 10-15 seconds, and then drive off. Usually need to get my android auto and music going anyhow, so it's time I would have spent idle anyhow.

[wihaM5]

Originally Posted by Qsilver7

...downloading a PDF version of the owners manual to a device you use all the time is an excellent idea...but also know that iDrive has a built-in version of the owners manual, too. You can also use the keyword search in the iDrive version.

And just for general knowledge or future reference...if you have the Voice Command/TALK button on the right side button pad on your steering wheel...you don't even have to delve down into iDrive to find the manual...you can simply tell your BMW to pull it up by saying "OWNERS MANUAL" after you hear the tone after pressing the button.

Depending on which steering wheel you have the Voice Command/Talk button is shown in the 2 pics below:

Wow and just when I thought I had all the idrive figured out. That's a awesome feature and yes I do have the command button on the steering wheel. Thanks great info

[wihaM5]

Originally Posted by Unspec

I just wait until the cold start RPM's settle down, e.g. 10-15 seconds, and then drive off. Usually need to get my android auto and music going anyhow, so it's time I would have spent idle anyhow.

I have now picked up that exact practice it's a good thing the car has not been left to idle for a long period of time. A handful maybe on cold days this winter so far do to no longer having a garage. I'm building a carport

[wihaM5]

Originally Posted by Surly73

As said, owners manuals over decades have covered it. Don't idle, start driving.

"COLD" varies from person to person. I chuckle every time I read in a car forum about someone in the south idling their car for 5 minutes because it plunged down to 50F the night before.

Idling to warm up 1/ keeps the engine running "cold" for longer - more wear 2/ keeps the engine running "warm up program" for longer - more fuel dilution in the oil 3/ doesn't warm up anything else in the driveline, unless there is a heat exchanger with the transmission fluid. As soon as you drive off everything else is still stone cold 4/ wastes time, fuel, adds carbon foot print etc... 5/ doesn't work. I have never had a aluminum engine that actually warmed up idling in the *winter*. It can take the chill off but never reaches anything near operating temperature, especially with the heat on. Too much heat radiates from the aluminum block to the environment.

Start up, buckle up, check your mirrors, set the radio, wait for the garage door to close, and drive off conservatively. If it's fairly cold (like -15C, -20C or colder) usually there are some audible complaints from systems with thickened fluid - I'll give it 30 seconds then. Everything will warm up far faster under light load than sitting there idling.

My little quirk that I'm sure no one else probably does - since my E39 days I manually set the HVAC to a very low fan speed. The automatic vent program would blow a small amount of air over the windshield in winter seasons so my breath didn't fog it up, but the HVAC fan wasn't blasting away stealing every little bit of heat from the engine when it's trying to warm up.

Since my E90 days with the N52 and now with the N55, I actually have the HVAC system turned off for "short trips". On the N series engines the water pump doesn't even run if it doesn't have to. The exception is if there are potential visibility problems due to inside fogging, then I turn the fan to manual 1-3 segments (not AUTO). When I get some temp registering, if I'm going to be in the car for any distance then I set HVAC for AUTO and let it do its thing.

In just a couple of km my oil temperature is off the 70C peg (heat exchanger between coolant/oil). As a long-term out-of-warranty used-car car-guy, I'm pretty happy about that and it hasn't really been an inconvenience.

EDIT: I forgot to make it obvious - drive gently until oil temp comes up - no high revs, no heavy throttle except to avoid immediate danger. "High" and "Heavy" vary depending on just how cold it is, and what engine you have. ("gentle" on an S63 can move you a lot faster than "gentle" on a Corolla).

Right ya you answered it to the fullest thanks ya I live by Cleveland it's cold here but ya I'm no longer gonna let it sit to warm. I guess it was something I was told or saw as a kid and always stayed in my head. Even though it was backed by no science except for carbureted motors. But I believe my n63 didn't receive to much unnecessary ware do to my poor practice. it wasn't many times this year that it's been in the 20s that I let her sit. Thank everyone for the guidance glad I asked.
I do find it kind of odd why would vehicle companies offer remote start for warming the car up if it causes unnecessary ware. My mom just got a brand new Volvo suv and it came with an app so she could remotely start her car while in the house or store prior to coming outside.

[Trian]

Originally Posted by wihaM5

.
I do find it kind of odd why would vehicle companies offer remote start for warming the car up if it causes unnecessary ware. My mom just got a brand new Volvo suv and it came with an app so she could remotely start her car while in the house or store prior to coming outside.

IMO, solely to warm up the interior of the car

[Blue Angel]

Originally Posted by Trian

IMO, solely to warm up the interior of the car

Just another feature to sell the car. The customer is always right, and most people think idling the car to warm it up is normal. A case where the Engineers would be facepalming while the marketing department is celebrating.

I just shake my head when I see my neighbors cars idling all the time. But hey, in the grand scheme of things gas is cheap and comfort is important! Lol

[Taylorguy74]

Originally Posted by TuckerE36

N63TU here I let the RPM’s settle under 1k before driving very time, in cold conditions I drive very conservative until the oil temp comes to at least 180 degrees F before I give it a lot of throttle

All my vehicles - this. Settle to idle, drive conservatively until up to temp. Zero issues, multiple hundreds of thousands of miles across Land Rovers, BMW, and Jaguars. LRs and Jags have always seemed to warm up more quickly than BMW. I've always understood to warm up all drivetrain bits together rather than warm an engine and then go.

[wihaM5]

Originally Posted by Blue Angel

Just another feature to sell the car. The customer is always right, and most people think idling the car to warm it up is normal. A case where the Engineers would be facepalming while the marketing department is celebrating.

I just shake my head when I see my neighbors cars idling all the time. But hey, in the grand scheme of things gas is cheap and comfort is important! Lol

Your spot on thanks for the help