Is Idling Your Engine Bad? Does Idling Hurt Your Engine?
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 5 ต.ค. 2017
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The seemingly light load on an engine while idling would seem to not be bad on it since it is putting relatively no load on the parts, but it can cause some unforeseen damage to the most expensive and important parts of the engine.
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Man, this video has opened my eyes to idling, especially since this my first time owning a truck with a CAT Engine 3406e. Thanks for the insight. Your vids are AWESOME!!!
Dose your engine smoke well it probly drinks and stays out late also
Better be careful if your engine is a ether head, they will make you broke before you know it.
What do you call a dear with no eyes?? I have no eye dear.
Thanks!
Lmao he looks high as a mother......
Best comment ever
Just bought my first vw diesel. Your videos are EXTREMELY informative.
Dig the mk2 profile pic 👍
Wow... this is a golden medal comment when it comes from the prime minister (president) of Canada !!!
We had toyota fleet vans that operate 12-18 hours a day. Over 500k kilometers. Mixed running and idling. They idle 2-6 hours a day because tourists dont like going out and stay inside where ac is always on because its hot in my country. Ive seen them rebuilt and still see the honing marks. I think if you put the correct oil and change it religiously idling is not a problem.
I fondly remember my first truck with a 3406 back in 1990, by the time I got it, it had a million-two on it already, and was getting tired. Back then we didn't have the toys we use now for heating and cooling, so it was either run the engine or die frozen solid in the bunk. This old girl spewed so much blow-by when idling that within an hour, there'd be a light haze inside the cab, so I had to always run the engine fan to chase away the blow-by gasses from lingering around and getting pulled into the truck's hvac. You could see the vapors coming out the blow-by tube, but it sure was nothing like what Josh showed at 04:10 in the video.
Cummins manual stats no longer than 10 minutes at idle at 750 rpm, high idle at 1100 rpm is ok but not for long periods in cold weather due to cylinder wash. Thank you very nice video, keep up the good work
How bout in hot weather
Thank you for putting these useful info out there! Great job mate!
This was pretty eye opening. I'm one of those guys who leaves for the week and never shuts the truck off until I get home. I do always kick it up to 1000 when idling though, but after this I might start shutting it off more.
Absolutely, I know a lot of the older felas that just let the engine idle indefinitely, for hours, DAYS even!!!
Unless it’s too cold to sleep comfortably it’s just a waste of fuel and dirties up the oil quicker. I can sleep comfortably enough with no heat down to around 40 or so. Below that some supplemental heat for the cab is needed but still okay to shut the motor off unless you’re down into the really cold temps where shutting it off would be a foolish idea.
When I worked at an(independent) engine shop, I remember a piece of paper in the cylinder kits for a cat that said to not idle it for more than 5mins, take it out and drive it and seat the rings or they might not seat.
Not sure what cat model it was ,too much stuff to remember since then.
Nice to see a new one from you l,best videos for a heavy mechanic
Honestly that's one of the best I've ever heard about engines in my life. Don't Mind If I Do.
Running my C9 Motorhome, I typically don't stop the engine until arriving at the destination. Idling the engine through room slide, leveling jacks, connected/disconnect tow vehicle, and fuel stops. I monitor oil pressure and engine temperature closely, particularly for the HEUI pump. It's good information though and I will limit idling henceforth.
absolutely enlightening thank you
I've always followed and recommended following the severe conditions intervals for all equipment. Given the massive list of situations that qualify it almost seems that the manufacturer actually wants those intervals followed but has to keep up with the Joneses with longer and longer "normal" intervals.
Cold weather conditions in many cases forces you to keep a engine running, however, at higher idles only.
Good video, most important part is the engine runs at it's least efficient so carbon build up is very high compared to other conditions.
Thank you for sharing your accumulated wisdom on this topic!
Thank you so much. It’s helpful video. Keep it up. God bless you and your family.
Great information was told many years ago as a young man on dozers don’t baby it don’t idle it work it
Hi Josh,
Excellent video, the explanation of how glazed cylinders happens and what the effect on the engine is.
Explains why our logging trucks always smoked, they idled while being loaded as the hydraulics for the grab ran of the pto.
If it were me I would have a apu and not use a pto where it is going to be used for hours on end.
The cost of a truck being out for two weeks to fix a motor has paid for an apu many times over.
And they smoked well!
Best regards,
Duncan from South Africa
Awesome information. i'm gonna use this for my 2000 f250 7.3. I'll make sure when leaving it idling for longer then 10 minutes to use the high idle warm up tune to keep it above 1k rpm. Also one other thing to mention the use of Archoil AR6500 or Ar6200 fuel additive will reduce soot build up.
Excellent and informative video. Thanks for sharing.
Would getting the high idle option for a Mercedes sprinter (Diesel) be a good idea? And what about when you’re in heavy traffic? Would it be a good idea to shift into lower gears to keep the RPMs a little higher?
When in North Dakota or Alberta area during the winter , u don't have much of a choice but to idle.
Everything just freeze up solid otherwise.
At my old job in North Dakota , if u shut the truck off for more then a few hours while outside , it would completley ice cube. We would have to tow it inside the shop and put cannon heaters under it and a tarp over the truck to act like a large balloon with heat in it.
Then change filters and then restart.
Some times the trucks would run for days or weeks at a time. When it was neg 30 outside.
Guys would do a shift and then come to the yard and go to sleep. Some stayed in the trucks others in campers. But all the trucks would be set to 1100 rpms and left to idle.
Even then and with cold weather bra on the radiator , the engines would still barley keep normal operating temps.
All the engines where pre def and pre regen cats in over the road peterbilts retired from highway use and repowered to work in the oil fields.
You would of got a kick out if that shop. You wouldn't imagine what we put trucks thru in the oil fields.
I spent years doing otr and local and dump truck work then went to the out fields and had a whole new respect for what trucks can go thru.
We truly tested the metals limts, the structure and the engineering of every part was tested.
Cracked frames , broken axels, trucks catching fire due to chaffed fuel and electrical lines, hard part internal engine failures and everything in between was a normal day out there.
Your videos are great! Show us more video examples and more parts examples. It's great stuff.
Thanks.
Great info. Helped confirm what I was debating.....Waiting for my ordered 2022 f-450 to arrive and now will be installing a high idle (if I have to idle more than 5 mins) up fitter switch as the first upgrade for sure. Flip the switch and she'll idle at between 1000 - 1200 rpm. Thanks Adept!
very informative video, Thanks for sharing. Does this also apply to small diesel engines too? I might know the answer to this already, but I want your option.
When you said “slobbering” I had to pause the video and google it lol I’ve never heard that before, I’ve always called it “loading up”.
Great info, thanks again for sharing, I learn a lot from your videos.
your an amazing teacher man i learn alot and i thank you sir love the videos
I have an NH Cummins that has no visible hone marks remaining. Yet it starts and runs great! This engine doesn't see a lot of use, but she does use a little oil. Has great oil pressure.
Thanks! This is very valuable info.
I've always thought it's kind of like pedaling on a bike with the chain off at normal speed it's not that bad but try and pedal as fast as you can it's not that good plus you have mentioned heat cycles so we're do you draw the line between idiling to long and damaging the engine from excessive heat cycling?
Learned!Thought it was for cooling of turbo? So when parked how long should we idle?After running down the highway?
That was good information. Much appreciated
Excellent video. Thank you.
What should I idle my 2018 ford transit diesel engine?
I live in my 2010 Subaru Forester. I leave my car running at night time during the winter cause the nights are just to cold. If I service my car regularly is it fine that I leave the car running
Hi thanka man for valuable information. I have a question when I rebuild a engine like Mercedes Volvo and others I left them running for almost 12/hours is this bad for engine waiting for u answer thanks.
Don't do that, if possible put load on that engine. Try hauling something heavy and climb steep hill, those heat generated will sits the liners and rings rather than sits idle and causing cylinder glazing. Diesel engine needs to be loaded always.
Very interesting. So, letting a rig warm up in freezing weather is a bad idea then... What would you recommend? Block heater is an option, but can get expensive.
Is raising the rpm to 1000+ the best bet in freezing conditions?
Thanks.
Yes
Idling in cold to warm it up a bit is actually a great idea, as it helps things such as oil and coolant raise to operating temps. What adept ape is saying is you shouldn’t idle it at 800rpm for 12 hours at a time for best results of engine longevity.
Pop's How To's let it warm up enough for the engine temp needle to move then it's definitely okay to use it. Mainly just to get all of the fluids going at a high enough temp for them to flow properly.
I hope I remember correctly.
Perkins motor manual 1106d PJ
Start under cold conditions
Idling up the motor to 1000 or 1100 rpm is recommended.
When i use my tractor in my yard for several hours over a week or 2 I take it for a run down the road to bring the engine to full operating temperature so it cleans off the carbon, on road driving is at 1500 rpm, the other major factor is oil, if you use fully synthetic oil it makes a difference and can be used in any diesel engine no matter how old it is.
Thank you brother for your time and information
I have a older F350 with the 7.3. I was told let the truck warm up before driving and that would give better fuel economy, and less wear and tear on the engine. I always let my truck idle in the morning for 10 minutes before I start my day or pull a heavy load.
I have a question about the exhaust. Is it bad for engine if you put straight pipes on? Thanks. love you’re videos.
Love your channel, thanks.
Excellent info. Thank you sir.
i watched TheLittleGuyShow and he is driving a 18 Volvo with no APU yet. The Volvo manual which he quoted stated that he can let it idle for long periods of time which CAT doesn't agree with. I wonder if the idle is increased to keep more heat in the engine or if it has some baffles to help increase engine heat in a state like sleeping in your truck overnite?
How about hypermiling, letting the car idle downhill or on the way to a stop, should you engine brake insted of putting in neutral ? Btw should i raise the idle while driving inside a big city with heavy traffic ?
Thank you for such informative content. I operated a JET A fuel truck at an airport. Probably 90% of engine hours were at idle. No high idle.
i like burning oil so i never have to change it
+fuzzy wuzzy damn ur trolling hard on a mechanic channel
fuzzy wuzzy So does your mother but we're not running around on TH-cam telling everyone.
Zion Avramov my 32v Cadillac northstar consumes 1quart every 2000 miles. Without zinc in the oil anymore, it's not an issue for the cat, but a good opportunity to replenish the oil with a fresh quart. It's an 8 quart of oil gasoline engine.
I'm not gonna buy your car! 😁
lmfao
It is generally accepted that long periods of idling is not good for your engine because it tends to glaze up the bores making them highly polished, this makes the engine pull oil up past the rings to be burnt when the throttle is opened which creates blue smoke until the oil has burnt away. A lot of drivers start the truck up and if the weather is cold leave it running all day and possibly all night if their away from base and have to sleep in the truck, this also stops the brakes from freezing up because of the warm air circulating round the truck. It is not ideal but on freezing night it saves a lot of problems and time in the morning.
What are the pros and cons of EGR on a diesel? What should be look out for in terms of issues?
I got c-15 on around 670000 miles And usually idle @ 800rpm for hour break I never seen those blow by coming smoke. Is that ok ?
I have an mbe 4000 been sitting for over a year but runs. Does this apply to all diesel engines. As well as when is a good time to O/H. Do this type of engine normally last a million miles? Thanks for replying
Buddy of mines uncle left his Cummins running for 7 days straight.
Not good, you can let it run 6 days, but seventh day rest.
@Chad Carroll Surely, you must be joking.
@Chad Carroll It must be a quiet cab. 43 days!!!
@Chad Carroll making money?
Chad Carroll I’m thinking an APU would pay for itself in your application fairly quickly.
do u work on marine diesel engine
Thanks for the informative information.
@adeptape What are your thoughts on cold idle and warm ups? When I first started driving I worked for a guy who wanted me to always let the truck idle for atleast 15 minutes in the morning before leaving. What are your thoughts on that? I’ve monitored oil samples on gas engine cars and letting them “warm up” in the morning leads to elevated wear metals in the oil samples. With out “warm ups” there’s never any wear metals in the oil samples. Obviously you don’t want to be seeing high rpms or load while an engine is cold, but what are your thoughts on warm up operations?
Great question. Im following this
Again another excellent video. Thumbs up
When the engineers wrote that manual they forgot about redimix trucks . They get a lot of idle time on the job , and that’s not do to driver it’s when the job calls for the concrete be distributed slowly. We have 8 CAT engines and 10 Cummins in our fleet of Oshkosh front dishcharge mixers . So far rebuilt 3 cats and 2 Cummins all do to cyl rings / liners shot . We are in the worst conditions for operation so I guess that isn’t too bad lol! Great video Thankyou for sharing!
Black Smoke run a load on a pto while at idle. Like a fridge for the beers. Anything to load it. It's not the engineer, it's the operators responsibility to understand the instructions
A cement truck should be making a load just turning the drum of cement. Maybe not much but its something. Make sure the operator turns the engine up to high idle and has not left it at normal idle while pouring.
1000r rip ems bud
last winter we had a power outage and i let my car idle with an inverter hooked up so that we had power. it ran like this for maybe 4 hours before the power came back on. when I went to pull it back into the garage the exhaust system was completely filled with at least 2 quarts of water from all the condensation in the pipes. Car is fine but I'm sure that didnt do the exhaust any favors.
Great videos, I’m a little new to owning a diesel.
I bought a truck a year ago with a 6nz, currently I am at home for an injury. My truck is here with me. I have an apu, with runs at night, and once a week I still start the engine about an hour at 1000 rpm. Good or bad?
Informative video👌🏿
Question: I live 2 minutes from the highway on-ramp. Is it better to let the engine idle for several minutes to get warm before jumping on the highway, or better just jumping on the highway with a colder engine but avoiding the idle time? This is a small modern 2.8L turbo diesel and I"m in a warm climate where summer days are in the 80's and 90's, winter is usually 60's-80's.
Unsolicited opinion:
Idle it 2 minutes in summer, 4 minutes in winter ...
How many hours have to running engine ideally after rebuild
Hey bud my brother has b model cat. He just had injection pump rebuilt bc it was skipping. Before it sat for about a year. He put freshly rebuilt pump on still skipping and now heavy blow by and you can put your hand over the oil filter cap which comes from oil pan. And it Puffs and blows oil on your hand. It even blew the dip stick out. Can this be caused by the timing advance on injection pump
The volvo trucks I've had used a preheat in intake to help start in cold and exhaust break that would labor the engine to help warm up and also in below 0 temperatures down as low as -40. In MN,ND, MB ,Sk.
If that engine would have died so would I
Excellent information.
That blow by at 4:10 looked like my C15 before the overhaul
So this being said, do I need to idle (warm up) my diesel car in winter months and if yes, how long?
For me, i wait until the engine oil temperture gets to 123 deg's F ( oil gauge does not show below 122 deg's F ).
on a c-15 accert why would it keep poping the hose that from block to egr .cooler
Am I correct in assuming this isn't really an issue in most gas engines?
I've idled my GM 3800 quite a bit in the past, but it's well broken in at 110K miles.
A gasoline engine will achieve operating temp at idle, a diesel will not.
Hey quick question Idling to let the engine warm up shouldn't be a bad thing no? Also how warm should the engine be before putting it under load? Thanks for your time and great info 👍
Question for you regarding idle time and glazing. Is there a way to 'prevent' glazing for RV's now days coming with "auto-start" features to remotely turn on the chassis vehicle motor (gas or diesel) to automatically turn on in order recharge the battery bank when the batteries reach a certain threshold of discharge? As I understand it, the auto-start idle can be "ON" for up to a few hours or so to fully recharge a typical battery bank (of course this depends on the alternator and battery size).
The auto start system will actually run the engine at a higher rpm, it is not a low idle.
Great series, thanks.
I’m glad that you have lots of knowledge and time to tell us what’s on our minds about our engines. However, I wish you would be a little more enthusiastic.
Ive been idling my truck for years after a run to get the EGT's below 400F before I shut her down. Hopefully I have not been doing a bunch of damage this whole time...
i have a question, my izuzu turbo diesel is knocking, my mechanic said that the oil pan and filter is full of ground metal.
should i have them tear into it or just call it a loss? the truck has 300,000k miles and has had a long hard life.
Hillbilly Gold I like to think if it like this. How much dies the truck mean to You? Is the rest of the truck in good shape?
Hi adept I installed all six injectors,start truck runs five now do I have to program the injectors? Also let me know how to donate for all your help thanks again
Does this information also go for like a 5.9 Cummins or a 7.3
why is it that the temperature of the engine cant just be regulated with the coolant, as in keeping the engine hot?
Thanks for letting me know
Here is my two cents. I have always thought excessive idling a total waste. I have been an owner operator since 1992 & constantly look for ways to control expenses. I own & drive a 2007 Pete 386 with a C15 acert that I bought back in 2007. I pull a 53' reefer throughout the midwest & Texas where I live. I try to never idle any more than needed. Truck now has 1.4 million miles on original engine. It't never had the head or pan off. Uses no oil between 15k mile changes. Rotella15w40 & Cat filters only. In the thirteen years I have owned it, the water pump & upper & lower wiring harness have been replaced. The manifold gaskets & studs nave been changed.Thermostats replaced twice.Recently installed a set of reman injectors. I run the overhead every 100k miles & that's it. She still runs smooth as silk & pulls as good as ever. Only mod from stock is a set of free from mufflers from Pittsburg Power along with replacing the entire exhaust system.
1.4 mill is all because you take care of your truck and it’s a cat… I see guys going 35k between oil changes in fleets i find it absolutely insane.
Idling is a terrible waste of money, both in fuel and more frequent maintenance.
I haul regional freight and if i'm gone for 4 days then my truck runs for 4 days. I know its not good for it but neither is heat cycles from stopping and starting all the time such a short trips. I don't like sleeping in a hot truck or cold truck, it blocks out noise, and i don't have to worry about it not starting due to dead battery or bad starter and being stranded. It has 1.3 million miles but the previous owner did have an apu for much of that until it died.
It's your truck do it your way
chase5726 what engine do you have ??
can you tell me what normal operating water temp should be for a c12 .. what is too hot? where should it be
I know you are a large engine bloke but wondering if these things also apply to small diesels as you would have in a car?
Is it still healthier to let your engine (2001 24v Cummins) idle for a couple of minutes before driving? And also letting idle a couple minutes after to cool off turbo?
Dont let it idle for more than 1-2 minutes its better to drive it nicely to operating temp, and you only need to let the turbo cool down by idling after driving if it's hot and you were driving hard, otherwise a few seconds then shut her off, excess start up idling also causes more metal residue flakes in oil between changes, aka excess wear
What do you think about this in the context of a 3508 (locomotive)?
Does this affect my pickup truck ..cause when i am parked waiting on someone .. my ac on n i wait for hours idling.. lol
YES
My truck goes to auto high idle after it's been sitting a few mins in park. Haven't ever seen another F series that did that even when it's not cold....
Thanks. Have a 2005 Volvo 780. Rebuilt. Cummins isx 525 hp
would running the AC and electrical loads help?
Adding load certainly helps! More load produces more heat and will mitigate the issue.
I know this is diesel but does this also go for a gas engine also?
How do you diagnose a blow by rate.? Is it a Compression test?
My service truck has a 7.3 in it, I run the PTO all the time, it has an AIC , Auxiliary Idle Controller, I can program it run any RPM I want it to. In the winter I hit the button and she "idles" at 1200 rpm and the heat builds fast.
I must have done something wrong. My 3406 only got 1,662,000 miles before it dropped a valve. I idled it at 950 nights when it was above 80 or below 40. I primarily ran from the Midwest to the west coast grossing 80 to 90 thousand with spread axle or 3 axle reefer trailers.
Can you describe cold climate starting procedures. How can you maintain a healthy cylinder pressure to raise the coolant/oil/block to operating temperature asap regardless of fuel consumption
Is it true: when idling, piston rings only go up so far on the cylinder wall creating a ridge. When maxing RPM, piston rings will go past the idling ridge damaging the rings.
Or is it a bunch of bs and the rings will stop at the same spot no matter what the RPM is?
Most of our trucks have 3406Es and when they’re sitting we hit the cruise switch there for idling it up
A lot of issues arise from operators that are too lazy to flip a high idle switch on older units that were equipped with them. I’ve seen old S60 Detroit’s in motorcoaches idle for days on end with massive climate control system running full blast. Considering the wear that the S60 were subjected to in motorcoach applications they have nothing but respect from me. The 12.7 pre-emissions was a money making piece of iron.
Great workhorse engine.
I love em.
Simple and has decent power.
Note I didn't say king of the hill, but a good all around engine for everyone be it drivers or techs
One of the best ever made. The later 14.0 ones with EGR were not as good as the original 11.1 and 12.7 versions.