Warm Up Oil
Thread Starter
Instructor
Joined: May 2005
Posts: 105
Likes: 1
From: Atlanta GA
Warm Up Oil
I've been babying my car until it "get's up to temp", but my Dad and I just had a conversation about what that meant. He's a former pilot and says that aircraft all-aluminum engines are considered fully warm at 180° and flyable (with associated full throttle operation) at about 80°. I had been holding my rpms down until I reached about 200°.
What's the collective wisdom as to when you are fully warm and can open up the engine some?
What's the collective wisdom as to when you are fully warm and can open up the engine some?
Melting Slicks
Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 3,375
Likes: 1
From: Northern CA
Originally Posted by LeeWB3
I've been babying my car until it "get's up to temp", but my Dad and I just had a conversation about what that meant. He's a former pilot and says that aircraft all-aluminum engines are considered fully warm at 180° and flyable (with associated full throttle operation) at about 80°. I had been holding my rpms down until I reached about 200°.
What's the collective wisdom as to when you are fully warm and can open up the engine some?
What's the collective wisdom as to when you are fully warm and can open up the engine some?
It's largely a feel good number. My personal preferance is 140F for full throttle if there's a
reason, 160F for full throtle just for fun.
Maybe this will help you decide. Roughly every 15F drop in oil temperature, the oil acts likes it's one SAE grade thicker. So, SAE 30 oil at 150F has the same actual viscosity as an SAE 50 weight would at 180F. At 135F SAE 30 has about the same viscosity as an SAE 60 at 180F. Those are real rough numbers, plot a viscosity graph for your specific oil and compare if you want closer numbers.
Instructor
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 223
Likes: 0
From: Auburn WA
I don't know for sure, but I think that our Mobil 1 is a little thinner at say, 120 degrees, than is dino oil. So maybe we're getting better lubrication earlier, and can give her a little gas earlier.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 5,611
Likes: 5
From: Thousand Oaks California
I like to see my oil temp over 212 degrees F. I have noticed if I baby it, it takes a very long time to get over this temp. If I drive a little more agressive, it get over 212 fairly quickly.
For me, I take it easy until oil temp gets to 180 degrees F.
For me, I take it easy until oil temp gets to 180 degrees F.
Burning Brakes
Joined: May 2004
Posts: 1,080
Likes: 2
Before I bought my C6 vert I was thinking about getting a 04 ragtop viper. There was a really nice new one 200 miles away from me. Well before going to look at that one (cos I hadn't really even looked at these cars closely) I went to check out and test drive the same model at a used car lot just 20 miles from away. It was a cold afternoon, and this bright red viper with 4,300 miles on the clock had been sitting idle for about a day or so at least. The helpful young man (sales associate)
fired up this car with me in the passenger seat and as soon as the car started he absolutely floored the gas peddle up and down up and down to the point where I think the rev limiter was kicking in! He then went on to say "best to warm her up a bit and get the juices flowing before we take it out"
fired up this car with me in the passenger seat and as soon as the car started he absolutely floored the gas peddle up and down up and down to the point where I think the rev limiter was kicking in! He then went on to say "best to warm her up a bit and get the juices flowing before we take it out"
Corvette Stories
The Best of Corvette for Corvette Enthusiasts
Every 2027 Corvette Engine Explained
Joe Kucinski
Designer Imagines A Corvette That Looks More Like a Corvette Than the Corvette
Verdad Gallardo
10 Ugly Corvettes That We Still Kinda Love
Joe Kucinski
Top 10 Most Expensive Corvettes Ever Sold on Bring A Trailer
Brett Foote
10 Things Every Corvette Owner Needs (2026 Edition)
Michael S. Palmer
8 Most "Only Corvette Owners Understand" Quirks and Problems
Pouria Savadkouei
10 Reasons the C6 Z06 is Still A Performance Benchmark After 20 Years
Joe Kucinski
How Much Horsepower Every Corvette Engine "LOST" in 1972
Joe Kucinski
Top 10 DOs and DON'Ts for Protecting Your Convertible Top!
Michael S. Palmer
Team Owner
Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 25,025
Likes: 2,716
From: Far NW 'burbs of Chicago
St. Jude Donor '13
Someone gave a good post about using 180'F oil temp as the point when you can drive without babying the engine, but i don't recall the setails.
180' on the oil also means that the water has been up to 190' for a couple of minutes and the tranny temp will be over 100'.
180' on the oil also means that the water has been up to 190' for a couple of minutes and the tranny temp will be over 100'.
Team Owner
Joined: Feb 2000
Posts: 53,535
Likes: 77
From: Arizona
Originally Posted by BigJoe
I drive right off after I start it but I drive it like its still in its 500 mile break-in until I get 10-15 minutes from home.
But you can baby it up to operating temp if you want the motor to last longer than you do!
Intermediate
Joined: Sep 2005
Posts: 48
Likes: 0
From: Brandon Mississippi
oil temp
I was always taught to let any car warm up before driving. I let mine get to 150 before I pull it out of the garage.I then drive slowly thru the subdividion to warm up the fluids before Hitting the road.My neighbor in his 79 Trans am cranks it hammers it 2 or 3 times and off he goes.
CRAZFST
Joined: Oct 2004
Posts: 529
Likes: 0
From: Lawrence, KS
Synthetic oils like Mobil 1 maintain a fairly good residual oil film due to their high film shear strength. Decent lubrication remains after shutdown and due to the low cold viscosity of synthetics it retains great pumpability to even very low temps unlike dino oil. The old rules do not apply if you use a synthetic. Synthetics were developed to eliminate most of the startup wear, loss of lubrication due to low cold flowability that mixed component dino oils exhibit. Once your oil pressure is up to normal, engine wear is negligible regardless. There really is no advantage to long warm ups. Really, you are just wasting fuel. (One caution, don't try this with dino oils.) This is why you should only use a synthetic like mobil 1. Great simple discussion of this topic HERE He also has a full motor oil online book with the technical discussions for you scientificly minded out there : http://www.themotoroilsite.com/forum...=ST&f=29&t=365 (must join 1st -free)
Last edited by drtli; Jan 8, 2006 at 04:02 PM.
Drifting
Joined: Jul 2005
Posts: 1,533
Likes: 0
From: az
Originally Posted by drtli
Synthetic oils like Mobil 1 maintain a fairly good residual oil film due to their high film shear strength. Decent lubrication remains after shutdown and due to the low cold viscosity of synthetics it retains great pumpability to even very low temps unlike dino oil. The old rules do not apply if you use a synthetic. Synthetics were developed to eliminate most of the startup wear, loss of lubrication due to low cold flowability that mixed component dino oils exhibit. Once your oil pressure is up to normal, engine wear is negligible regardless. There really is no advantage to long warm ups. Really, you are just wasting fuel. (One caution, don't try this with dino oils.) This is why you should only use a synthetic like mobil 1. Great simple discussion of this topic HERE He also has a full motor oil online book with the technical discussions for you scientificly minded out there : http://www.themotoroilsite.com/forum...=ST&f=29&t=365 (must join 1st -free)
oil temp 140 for me
Team Owner
Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 25,025
Likes: 2,716
From: Far NW 'burbs of Chicago
St. Jude Donor '13
Synthetic oil DOES do a better job of lubricating, especially at temp extremes (high or low). But I like to get everything up to normal temp before stomping on it so that all the dimensions ans clearances are where the designers wanted them.
Race Director
Joined: Oct 2004
Posts: 10,089
Likes: 14
Originally Posted by Gearhead Jim
Synthetic oil DOES do a better job of lubricating, especially at temp extremes (high or low). But I like to get everything up to normal temp before stomping on it so that all the dimensions ans clearances are where the designers wanted them.
In that regard, normal water temp is more important to watch than oil temp. By the time I've gone 3 or 4 miles, water temp is up and I feel free to get on it.
Team Owner
Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 25,025
Likes: 2,716
From: Far NW 'burbs of Chicago
St. Jude Donor '13
shopdog-
Where do you live? In the frozed wasteland of northern Illinois, I can drive clear into town before my cars hit normal water temp!
Of course, the oil takes even longer.
Since the Z51 cars have an in-radiator oil cooler, could that actually function as an oil HEATER in winter, just like an auto trans "cooler" does?
Where do you live? In the frozed wasteland of northern Illinois, I can drive clear into town before my cars hit normal water temp!
Of course, the oil takes even longer.
Since the Z51 cars have an in-radiator oil cooler, could that actually function as an oil HEATER in winter, just like an auto trans "cooler" does?