brianmcd

Hi. I'm just curious as to how long you guys let your cars warm up. I always let it sit until the choke goes back in, what about you guys? I know it doesn't help the gas mileage, but I hate driving it when it's cold. Is it bad to let it warm up totally at idle? Thanks.

poweRX-7

in the winter, i give it a little bit of time, but i never let it warm up completely, as i am always running late... in the summer though, i just get in it, and go. it seemed to help since i did the mechanical secondaries. i really don't even need to let it warm up anymore for it to idle, unless it is pretty cold.
jeff

82transam

iTrader: (18)

I don't, as long as the trip is going to be long enough for the choke to kick itself off. In the winter I'll warm it up for a few mins before leaving work since its only a few minutes from home. As long as the car is fully warmed up before you turn it off your fine. Untill the choke kicks off don't go over 3k rpm and just take it easy when shifting and your fine

poweRX-7

WOOPS!!!!!! lol... i have never had any probs with it, and i have redlined it more times than i can imagine with the choke in.... oh, and you don't need to let it warm up all the way... that is just the fuel injected models. i know that you "SHOULD" let it warm up all the way, but it matters more on the fuel injected models. that is just my experience.
jeff

MikeLMR

I let it run for a minute or so then drive it gently till its warm enough to drive normally. I believe this is meant to be better than just letting it sit at idle to warm up

ACRx7-85

When the choke goes back in - I'm gone!

JLIU

When my RPM returns to 850. That usually take about 3-4 minutes. I have the se.

1stand3rd

No need to wait for the choke to snap back in. Wait for the oil pressure gauge to settle, adjust the choke to 1200-1500 rpm, then drive easily. (like 82transam says, keep it around 3k rpm until the choke goes in).

anthrax

When I drove one in the winter (I don't any more) I let it warm up all the way. But in the warm weather I usually let it run a couple on min, and don't go over 3000 rpm untill the choke goes in. Then I too am gone

MarkPerez

It's a good idea to warm up any car engine, before driving it. My 7 with 170.000 oem miles is always warmed up to the first line on the temp guage and check the oil/water once a week to keep car happy.

AdrenalifeRX7

I let mine warm up until I can rev it a little past 3,000 with no popping noises. Weber 48 IDA and no choke.

Manntis

Yup. Drive gently for the first few blocks and the engine will warm up far faster than if you just sit and wait... that said, letting it idle for minute or two before departure gets the oil circulating nicely before you add load to the engine

Gregs

i let it warm up till the choke goes in.... i feel like i am doing something bad to my car if i dont let the choke go in and feel bad

brianmcd

Yeah that's exactly how I feel, but judging from everyone's responses I guess I'll just start letting it warm up for about 2 minutes then driving around till the choke pops in. Thanks for all the responses guys.

nickj

Really? You let the car warm up first?

FuLLsMoKe

haynes thinks that keeping the rpm's at 2000 for 2 minutes is sufficient

i normally start it up and idle for a min... then drive easy till choke goes in

inittab

Not me! First thing in the morning I usually let it sit for a minute or so and then drive it very conservatively. The choke popping back in means the water temperature is warm but does not mean the oil temp is up to operating temp. It's the oil temp that really matters. I'll drive it nice and easy for a few miles after the choke goes in then I'm gone!

rx7chick

How about first gens on the starting then turning it back off right away? I know on 2nd gens it causes the engine to flood. Bad!

Metallic_rock

the whole point of warming it up all the way is to ensure that your rotor housings are evenly warmed up. By reving it up high when it's cold, you can warp your housings.

brianmcd

I'm pretty sure that's a good way to carbon lock your engine, but not positive. Just don't do it :o

Sk8r_dude

i ussually leave the choke out for the first couple of minutes.

Spieder

I start mine then adjust the choke so she's at 1200rpm. I go finish getting ready for work and when I get in the temp guage is usually just starting to register.

The only reason to use the choke is to keep the car running if it won't idle by itself. Unless it's like 50 f or below I don't need it.

I have read that warming up your car idling is bad. I have also read differently and would have to say that warmign your car up at idle is good. The purpose is to allow the eninge to reach a uniform thermal distribution. This prevents warping. In piston engines, theoil and compression seals will seal better when the lubricants are at operating temps.

Also, it takes a little while for the oil to make it up to the carb. If you start your car in the morning you can watch as it slowly climbs the oil injector tubes.

I have owned 3 RX-7's 2 84 and 1 85, both 12a. I always let them warm up at idle in the morning. These are my miles, and I drive my cars hard. I redline on a daily basis and my throttle is off or on.

84 Stock 173k miles (hit object in road, cracked engine)
84 GS 143k miles (wrecked engien still in garage)
85 GSL 205k miles (engine still has compression, water pump went out and family member overheated then filled with cold water, blows water out radiator)

MRGSL-SE

just start and drive... i prefer driving it right away... the ecu is still in open loop... so the mmo that i added in will get dumped in there... i don't redline it at all but i try to get her legs shaken as fast... i don't know about carb so... i'm only talking to GSL-SE owners...

SevenHeaven

My '85 GSL is strickly a weekend car. When I fire up the engine I adjust the choke so it will idle at 1500 rpm. Then I let the car idle for about 2-5 min. During this time I slowly adjust the choke so the car will idle at 1000 rpm. Then I drive off. I have found that this warm up time also gives the gear oil in the transmission time to warm up a little.

Aviator 902S

Yup, just wait for the oil pressure to stabilize, then drive at low revs until the choke retracts.
The 2nd gens and newer are more critical than our FB's because starting in '86 Mazda introduced the dreaded thermal bypass valve located inside the front pulley bolt that threads into the front end of the eccentric shaft. This bypass valve shuts off oil flow to the internal portions of the rotors until the engine temp reaches 158 degrees F. This is so that the engine will reach operating temps sooner, thus spewing less emissions.
The problem with this system is that if you run the engine hard before the bypass valve opens, the oil seals on the sides of the rotors will overheat and cause the car to spew blue smoke out the exhaust until such a time that the engine is torn down and the seals replaced.
1st gen rotaries, including the GSL-SE 13B were not afflicted with this curse. But it's still not good to run them hard until after they reach operating temps. Idling at the curb for five minutes or more is overkill though.