Warm-Up Time

[CatMan1]

I'd like to drive my car more and drive it to work, but the days are short and it gets dark early. New LED headlight bulbs are in the mail so that will help. The other aspect of this is that I only live 2 minutes from work by car. To me that's not enough time to properly warm up the car and it would be bad for it. What is the expected time for a stock A to properly warm up? I'm in Iowa and it's cold; 20's this morning, but near 50 in the day and dry out with no salt or sand.

[nkaminar]

We are having similar temperatures here in North Carolina. Yesterday I drove my car to the market, which is also 2 miles away. But I took the long way and also went to the hardware store, another 3 miles away. I took the long way to and fro. The car was warm when I got back.

I have a thermostat and a coolant powered heater. So I was toasty warm as well as the car.

One person on the barn reported the use of a cardboard cover over most of the radiator to help warm up the car and keep it warm. In the Model T and Model A days, people would put blankets over their hoods to keep the engine warm while they went shopping or worked. They also built little fires under the engines but I don't recommend that, although a 120 volt block heater might be a good idea.

[CatMan1]

My one concern is it could cause the plugs to foul, but I suppose there are other issues to consider. I know I'll be cold, but I'll live. Just don't want to be hard on the car and cause premature wear.

[Bob Bidonde]

It was a rule of thumb in the last century that it takes 15 miles of driving to remove condensation from the motor oil. Personally, I like to idle my engine with the spark retarded for a period that makes me confident I can drive away without the "A" bucking (~5 minutes when temps in 20sF).

[CatMan1]

It's looking like I either need to run mine for 5 minutes in the morning or........move farther away from work!

[Big hammer]

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Nan just drive the other way from work, pickup some donuts, coffee, lunch and drive back to work ! Change your oil more often.

[Banditorama]

My other car is a diesel and when I take it on the normal route to work on cold days it won't come all the way up to temperature. I take a different route in those instances that's about 5 miles longer and gets it all the way warmed up. I would figure out a nice "scenic route" for your drive, even if you just end up driving in a big old loop.

I'd also get a temp gauge for your A. They're easy to install and it takes the guesswork out of the equation. You may find you need a thermostat or a piece of cardboard for winter driving. Mine won't get above 130f when the weather gets below 50f without my cardboard blockoff. I laid down several coats of black spray paint and you can't see it unless you're standing a couple feet in front of the car

[Jim Brierley]

It's actually better for the engine to not just let it idle (or so) for lengthy periods. I start my engine, then hook up my seat belt, then back out of the garage and drive gently and slowly to warm the engine. This warms it faster, heats and dries the muffler, etc.

[eagle]

This is definitely a case of overthinking the issue. Model As are not fragile, starting it and driving 2 miles will not hurt it. Watch the oil, if it starts to look bad change it. The A will likely outlive all of us. Drive it and have fun. My A sits in the shed til well into spring due to the salt on our roads, but that's the only reason. It's typically the end of May before our roads are clean.

[Kurt in NJ]

Use a thermostat, and once a week go for a long enough drive 30 miles? to get the oil up to temperature long enough to boil off condensation

[katy]

Originally Posted by Kurt in NJ

Use a thermostat, and once a week go for a long enough drive 30 miles? to get the oil up to temperature long enough to boil off condensation

Ditto, and maybe add a winter front or even a piece of cardboard.

[1crosscut]

My truck always has run on the cool side. I considered putting in a 160 degree thermostat but decided against it.

A couple of days ago I drove it for 20 miles and then checked the temperature with a dial meat thermometer placed directly into the coolant and it was only 120 degrees.

I left it running and covered the radiator with a piece of cardboard and allowed the temperature come up to 195 and then adjusted the cardboard to hold it at that temperature for about 30 minutes. Just something I do in the winter season on occasion to reduce any condensation in the block.

Running with a winter front of some type would help but I wouldn't consider doing that unless I had a temperature gauge set up so I could read it from the cab.

[Sunny the Model A]

with a 160 thermostat and a three core rad and six blade fan, my A will warm up quickly, but will also keep itself cool when necessary. I found that in freezing temps on cold start to fully warmed up at idle with retarded spark takes approx. 5-7 minutes, during warm weather this process takes 3-4 minutes. I start my engine with the gav 1/2 turn open when freezing, 1/4 once the temp gauge picks up off the stalk, and full closed once it hit driving range at 140. my A will go up to 180-185 and sit there.