below 45 degrees outside and my EX idles at 18 mph...

reelbigfish241 · 11-15-2007, 11:27 PM

yeah. When my engine is cold (as in 1 bar) with an outside temperature under 45 degrees it idles at a ludicrous speed. I put the car in drive and don't touch the gas pedal the car will get up to 18 mph. It even changes to second gear.

But once it warms up it doesn't do it anymore. I never had this problem in my 02 civic, so I was just wondering if this is normal or not. My thought i that because the engine is cold it keeps the rpm's higher thus causing the speed to go up.

weird...

lowerlevel · 11-15-2007, 11:30 PM

can u say take it to the dealer..hmm thats a good idea..

good luck

ps not normal

reelbigfish241 · 11-15-2007, 11:37 PM

haha, i knew it wasn't normal. that would be frightening if that was normal.

it's weird that it only does it once. Usually by the time I stop and get going again the engine is warm enough and it won't do it again.

I know my dealer will pull some crap and pull the "We can't reproduce" card.

hmmmmmmm....

fishermoe14 · 11-15-2007, 11:37 PM

well if it helps.... my si has a 2-2.5 k idle when its cold outside

errorunknown · 11-15-2007, 11:38 PM

That sounds pretty normal to me.

If the car will idle at around 7mph when the engine is fully warmed up, it makes sense. Before the engine is warmed up the idle rpms are triple (or more) the normal rpms, so the car will go faster...

***Whocares05050*** · 11-15-2007, 11:41 PM

Its normal. The car's REVS are higher becuase the car needs to fully warm up. SOmetimes the car is jerky when you take off when cold becuase the car runs overly rich to heat up the catalist.

reelbigfish241 · 11-15-2007, 11:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by errorunknown

That sounds pretty normal to me.

If the car will idle at around 7mph when the engine is fully warmed up, it makes sense. Before the engine is warmed up the idle rpms are triple (or more) the normal rpms, so the car will go faster...

that was my theory. maybe I just need to warm my engine up more. but I hate idling the car for 5 minutes because it wastes gas.

(there is not an emoticon to express how i feel.)

***Whocares05050*** · 11-15-2007, 11:47 PM

^ Your barley burning any gas at all at idle. theres no load on the motor.

***Mikey6p*** · 11-15-2007, 11:55 PM

totally normal.

reelbigfish241 · 11-16-2007, 12:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Whocares05050

^ Your barley burning any gas at all at idle. theres no load on the motor.

I always thought that it burned more gas than it was worth, but if it calms down the idle then it's worth it.

maybe I'll try warming it up longer after I fill up again and see how much my mileage is effected.

thanks for all the quick feedback everyone.

fishermoe14 · 11-16-2007, 01:27 AM

it shouldn't effect it that much... when people say idle wastes gas it means for a warm engine... (i think) lol

***Whocares05050*** · 11-16-2007, 01:50 AM

It dosnt waste hardley any gas at all guys. theres no load on the engine. Your also at 800 RPM. Its barley sipping fumes.

nayilsi · 11-16-2007, 02:52 AM

i could smell gas today.... i was smoking my cig infront of the exhaust... after having started the car..... letting it warm up.

i was like...why does this place smell of gas station ?

weird

***Whocares05050*** · 11-16-2007, 02:54 AM

^ because your car runs rich at startup. im not suprised

nayilsi · 11-16-2007, 02:56 AM

reppd for the vital info

***Whocares05050*** · 11-16-2007, 02:56 AM

^ Thanks. lol

Duce2k · 11-16-2007, 11:12 AM

It's normal, that's why you need to warm up the car before you drive it.,

***Mabuz*** · 11-16-2007, 11:17 AM

Def. let the engine warm up when its cold. Would you rather waste $0.03 worth of gas or screw up your engine...not a tough decision in my book.

Young Gunna · 11-16-2007, 11:40 AM

idiling to warm up your car is not neccesary at all... just take it easy on acceleration and dont do highway speeds on your cold engine and you will be fine. Just take everything nice and slow. only takes about a mine for your engine to be fully warmed.

mrbill · 11-16-2007, 12:51 PM

When the engine is cold, the Intake Air Bypass Control Thermal Valve sends air to the injectors. (Bypassing the throttle.) It's regulated by engine coolant temperature. Once it's hot enough, it closes.

Because of the added air, the engine will require more fuel AND the idle will be higher. How much higher varies. Honda doesn't spec cold idle speed (only hot idle speed) as far as I can tell.

What RPM is your cold idle when you are in neutral? I don't have an R18, so if several of you report that, than you'll know what "typical" is. If you are outside of "typical" (or even high typical) consider having a mechanic take a quick look. (It means dropping your car off the night before so they can see your cold idle behavior.)

But if you *are* in the typical range, DO NOT "warm up" your car in the driveway. During cold idle you're burning well over a liter of fuel an hour for no good reason. (You get ZERO MPG!) Just drive, that's the best, most fuel efficient method of warming up your engine. The only exception is safety related - on some humid days you want just enough coolant temperature to be able to operate the defroster efficiently. But otherwise you are just burning over a liter of fuel an hour for no good reason.

(OK, the other exception is extreme cold, but a block heater and a grille block is the far better solution there.)

OH, the guy down in texas whose car smells like a gas station? That's not normal. The engine only operates open loop for a *VERY* short amount of time (seconds, not minutes). Closed loop is an efficient burn. It'll take a while for the cat to get up to efficient operating temperature, but on the R18 that happens very quickly as well. The cat will be working well long before the IABCTV closes.

-mr. bill

11-15-2007, 11:27 PM	#1 (permalink)
reelbigfish241 Senior Member Join Date: May 2006 Location: Darien, Illinois Age: 22 Posts: 1,925 Jason dSLR Squad #27 iTrader: 5 / 100%	below 45 degrees outside and my EX idles at 18 mph... yeah. When my engine is cold (as in 1 bar) with an outside temperature under 45 degrees it idles at a ludicrous speed. I put the car in drive and don't touch the gas pedal the car will get up to 18 mph. It even changes to second gear. But once it warms up it doesn't do it anymore. I never had this problem in my 02 civic, so I was just wondering if this is normal or not. My thought i that because the engine is cold it keeps the rpm's higher thus causing the speed to go up. weird...

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11-15-2007, 11:30 PM	#2 (permalink)
lowerlevel Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Austin,Texas Age: 30 Posts: 1,160 dave iTrader: 5 / 100%	can u say take it to the dealer..hmm thats a good idea.. good luck ps not normal

11-15-2007, 11:37 PM	#3 (permalink)
reelbigfish241 Senior Member Join Date: May 2006 Location: Darien, Illinois Age: 22 Posts: 1,925 Jason dSLR Squad #27 iTrader: 5 / 100%	haha, i knew it wasn't normal. that would be frightening if that was normal. it's weird that it only does it once. Usually by the time I stop and get going again the engine is warm enough and it won't do it again. I know my dealer will pull some crap and pull the "We can't reproduce" card. hmmmmmmm....

11-15-2007, 11:37 PM	#4 (permalink)
fishermoe14 Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Minnesota Posts: 1,117 Moe iTrader: 0 / 0%	well if it helps.... my si has a 2-2.5 k idle when its cold outside

11-15-2007, 11:38 PM	#5 (permalink)
errorunknown Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Bartlett,IL Posts: 155 Thomas iTrader: 0 / 0%	That sounds pretty normal to me. If the car will idle at around 7mph when the engine is fully warmed up, it makes sense. Before the engine is warmed up the idle rpms are triple (or more) the normal rpms, so the car will go faster...

11-15-2007, 11:41 PM	#6 (permalink)
*Whocares05050* WHOcaREs05050 Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: SOFLA Age: 100 Posts: 14,709 Mike iTrader: 7 / 100%	Its normal. The car's REVS are higher becuase the car needs to fully warm up. SOmetimes the car is jerky when you take off when cold becuase the car runs overly rich to heat up the catalist.

11-15-2007, 11:47 PM	#8 (permalink)
*Whocares05050* WHOcaREs05050 Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: SOFLA Age: 100 Posts: 14,709 Mike iTrader: 7 / 100%	^ Your barley burning any gas at all at idle. theres no load on the motor.

11-16-2007, 01:27 AM	#11 (permalink)
fishermoe14 Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Minnesota Posts: 1,117 Moe iTrader: 0 / 0%	it shouldn't effect it that much... when people say idle wastes gas it means for a warm engine... (i think) lol

11-16-2007, 01:50 AM	#12 (permalink)
*Whocares05050* WHOcaREs05050 Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: SOFLA Age: 100 Posts: 14,709 Mike iTrader: 7 / 100%	It dosnt waste hardley any gas at all guys. theres no load on the engine. Your also at 800 RPM. Its barley sipping fumes.

11-16-2007, 02:52 AM	#13 (permalink)
nayilsi Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: You mean nothing to me Posts: 9,648 iTrader: 0 / 0%	i could smell gas today.... i was smoking my cig infront of the exhaust... after having started the car..... letting it warm up. i was like...why does this place smell of gas station ? weird

11-16-2007, 02:54 AM	#14 (permalink)
*Whocares05050* WHOcaREs05050 Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: SOFLA Age: 100 Posts: 14,709 Mike iTrader: 7 / 100%	^ because your car runs rich at startup. im not suprised

11-16-2007, 02:56 AM	#15 (permalink)
nayilsi Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: You mean nothing to me Posts: 9,648 iTrader: 0 / 0%	reppd for the vital info

11-16-2007, 02:56 AM	#16 (permalink)
*Whocares05050* WHOcaREs05050 Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: SOFLA Age: 100 Posts: 14,709 Mike iTrader: 7 / 100%	^ Thanks. lol

11-16-2007, 11:12 AM	#17 (permalink)
Duce2k Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Houston, TX Posts: 2,916 iTrader: 4 / 100%	It's normal, that's why you need to warm up the car before you drive it.,

11-16-2007, 11:17 AM	#18 (permalink)
*Mabuz* VIP Member Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Steel City Posts: 1,012 iTrader: 4 / 100%	Def. let the engine warm up when its cold. Would you rather waste $0.03 worth of gas or screw up your engine...not a tough decision in my book.

11-16-2007, 11:40 AM	#19 (permalink)
Young Gunna Member Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Fort Monmouth, NJ Age: 24 Posts: 82 iTrader: 0 / 0%	idiling to warm up your car is not neccesary at all... just take it easy on acceleration and dont do highway speeds on your cold engine and you will be fine. Just take everything nice and slow. only takes about a mine for your engine to be fully warmed.

11-16-2007, 12:51 PM	#20 (permalink)
mrbill Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: MA Posts: 430 iTrader: 1 / 100%	When the engine is cold, the Intake Air Bypass Control Thermal Valve sends air to the injectors. (Bypassing the throttle.) It's regulated by engine coolant temperature. Once it's hot enough, it closes. Because of the added air, the engine will require more fuel AND the idle will be higher. How much higher varies. Honda doesn't spec cold idle speed (only hot idle speed) as far as I can tell. What RPM is your cold idle when you are in neutral? I don't have an R18, so if several of you report that, than you'll know what "typical" is. If you are outside of "typical" (or even high typical) consider having a mechanic take a quick look. (It means dropping your car off the night before so they can see your cold idle behavior.) But if you are in the typical range, DO NOT "warm up" your car in the driveway. During cold idle you're burning well over a liter of fuel an hour for no good reason. (You get ZERO MPG!) Just drive, that's the best, most fuel efficient method of warming up your engine. The only exception is safety related - on some humid days you want just enough coolant temperature to be able to operate the defroster efficiently. But otherwise you are just burning over a liter of fuel an hour for no good reason. (OK, the other exception is extreme cold, but a block heater and a grille block is the far better solution there.) OH, the guy down in texas whose car smells like a gas station? That's not normal. The engine only operates open loop for a VERY short amount of time (seconds, not minutes). Closed loop is an efficient burn. It'll take a while for the cat to get up to efficient operating temperature, but on the R18 that happens very quickly as well. The cat will be working well long before the IABCTV closes. -mr. bill