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The average American idles an estimated 5 to 10 minutes per day: at drive-through windows, when picking up the kids, while running quick errands, warming up the car, preparing to leave the house, and while waiting to get gas. As a whole, we may be burning as much as 3.8 million gallons of gasoline from voluntary idling and producing about 40,000 tons of carbon dioxide every day.
Idling...It Gets You Nowhere!
January 13, 2008
Winter is here and while it is tempting to have a warm car, Greenprint Denver would like to remind you to avoid unnecessary idling.
Some common misconceptions about idling include:
Myth 1:
An engine should be warmed up before driving.
Reality:
While the engine must be warmed up, idling is not an effective way to warm up your vehicle. With today's modern engines, you need no more than about 30 seconds of idling before driving away, even on the coldest winter days. The best way to warm up a car is to drive it moderately (no fast stops and starts) for several miles within 10 seconds of starting the engine. In cases of severe winter cold, an engine block heater is a safe and economical option.
Myth 2:
Idling is good for your engine.
Reality:
An idling engine is not operating at its peak temperature, which means that fuel does not undergo complete combustion. This leaves fuel residue that can deposit on the spark plugs and increase fuel consumption by up to 5 percent. Also, water condensation in the exhaust system can reduce the life of the exhaust system.
Myth 3:
Shutting off and restarting your vehicle is hard on the engine.
Reality:
Frequent restarting has little impact on engine components like the battery and the starter motor. Component wear caused by restarting the engine is estimated to add $10 per year to the cost of driving, money likely to be saved many times over due to fuel savings.
Myth 4:
Shutting off and restarting your vehicle uses more gas than if you leave it running.
Reality:
The bottom line is that over 10 seconds of idling uses more fuel than restarting the engine. An idling engine gets exactly zero miles to the gallon. As a rule, if you are going to stop for 10 seconds or more - except in traffic - turn off the engine. You'll save money, and you’ll produce less carbon dioxide, the leading greenhouse gas.
Not only is idling bad for your car, and bad for our air quality, it's also against the City and County of Denver Municipal Code (Chapter 4, Section 4-43). Persons reported for violating this ordinance will be sent a letter informing them of the ordinance and potential penalties. If the situation is excessive or repetitive, an inspector will investigate. If a city inspector observes and reports the violation, a summons is issued to the violator. In addition, last year hundreds of people had their vehicles stolen while they were left running unattended.
