I have heard and read a lot about the importance of warming up and cooling down the engine/turbos during a "spirited" drive. How long does everyone take to do this?Do youwait until the engine temp is in its normal position to push the car hard? Do you idle the car for a certain amount of time before you turn it off? I live in MN so I feel this process could be very important to follow (Damn snow, I want to drive my new toy fast!). Or is this process completely exagerated?

 

I always warm up my car for atleast 10 min when the temp is below 40 degrees. I hear people do cool them down by ideling after a cruise too havent done it myself might start tho. As for anytime driving i have a 99 A6 and it idles a lil above 1 RPM for about 3-4 min then settles to under 1 RPM Its like it "chokes" or idles high so the engine warms up does anyone elses do this is it normal?

 

Absoultly, thats normal, like you said it's for the engine warm up, also turbo timers are a great inexpensive way to prolong the life of your turbos, and no more being late beacuse of the cool down

 

Okay i figured so but i was just gonna double check while the matter was at hand

 

Yea my engine runs a little bit above idle for a bit also. I will be tryin to warmup/cooldown for at least a few minutes on the good drives. If it is a short one I will make sure not to push it. Seperate question, is it normal to have the auxillary fan in front of the radiator run after the car is off for more than a few minutes? I haven't timed it out yet, but I know it can go at least 5-10min.

 

Yes

 

I wait for the temp to be at 175 to push it. (Low is 150) You have the 2.7 right? I also let it cool down a little AFTER EVERY spirited driving, but usually not idling sitting in th edriveway... I drive the last few miles easy. When I have to stop, I let it idle 30-45 seconds before turning it off. if i drive normal, no cool down. IN most daily driving, I don't really drive abve 3000 rpm or so

 

Yea I have the 2.7. Thanks for the info.

 

I'm getting a compustar remote starter installed next week, it has a turbo timer option... im looking forward to taking advantage of this after all i've been reading about warm-up/cool-down. I'm not quite sure how to use it yet, but i know i have to set a time for it to shut down.. im thinking one minute. anyone else use a turbo timer? what times do you use.

also, anyone want to rant/rave about compustar... im curious about the product

 

Somewhat related... I love my NewSouth $70 powergasket/spacers... Engine is torquier but also it rnus cooler. After running the car a while, it'd be at 250.. not it hardly goes above 220.