Warming Up.

[drumwrecker]

My friend recently bought a new Triumph 955i and was told to make sure the bike was warmed up and the engine had settled down to a normal tickover before moving off. Why? I don't have to do that in my car which fuel injected and every bike I have had, although carbruated, I drive off immediately after starting and let it warm up on the move so as to get it off the choke asap.
I know there are lots of opinions on this but can anybody give the facts and reasons?
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I know that you believe you understood what you think I said but I am sure you realise that what you heard is not what I meant

[MarJay]

Because Daytona 955i's are hard to ride in cold start mode?

Personally I think that engines don't get fully warmed up until they are used a bit.

Incidentally is it a brand new 955i?
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British beauty: Triumph Street Triple R; Loony stroker: KR1S; Track fun: GSXR750 L1; Commuter Missile: GSX-S1000F; Cheap project: CBR900RR FireBlade
Remember kids, bikes aren't like lego. You can't easily take a part from one bike and then fit it to another.

[mr.z]

Provided your not blasting arorund like a loon till its reached normal operateing temp your unlikely to cause a problem.. i tend to let it get to a level tickover before moveing off just so its not going to cut out at the lights or something..
Time it takes to bck up out the drive and gt my gloves on seem enough even in the dead of winter..
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>RidingSkills<->Tech Tips<->MyBikes<

[angryjonny]

Yeah - any engine, bike or car, should be treated gently until it's up to proper operating temperature. Revving it to bits as soon as you've started it up is a bad idea. But that doesn't mean don't drive/ride it.

[drumwrecker]

[drumwrecker]

[moonym20]

Its good ownership to allow your engine to warm up from cold, just letting it sit a few mins before moving off allows low heat to soak through the engine and get everything going.
particularly when its cold ambient temperature as it allows to oil to warm up and start properly circulating around the system before you abouse the engine
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[TheDonUK]

I just take it very easy for the first 5/10 mins...

[Dazbo666]

[drumwrecker]

I'm sure our neighbours would be really pleased when I'm setting off at 6am and/or coming home at 10/11pm.
I tend to start her up and cautiously ride away almost straight away if I'm starting at an unsocial hour... but being relatively inexperienced I made sure I'm keeping an eye on this thread for the opinions of more experienced riders [/quote]

That is exactly what I do but as I said I have only had carbruated bikes and when on choke the bores are awash with petrol which is not good so I get going and get off the choke asap.
Modern fuel injected bikes have engine management systems to ensure the correct fuel air mixture at all times so why shouldn't you be able to drive off from cold with no repercussions?
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I know that you believe you understood what you think I said but I am sure you realise that what you heard is not what I meant

[mr.z]

I did a few jobs i needed to be up and away at 4am, i used to wheel it a few meters down the road to start it where theres less houses
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>RidingSkills<->Tech Tips<->MyBikes<

[dew]

I sit on my bike, start it and put on earplugs, wear helmet and gloves. It takes about 2 mins and gives time for bike to warm up little bit.
Why sit on bike? Well, some high profile honda engineer told that if you start the bike and let it idle when it's on side stand, only part of engine is getting oil, so try and ensure that it's evenly on ground when you start it. Dont know how much correct the argument is though
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[dransy]

[Whosthedaddy]

[JonB]

I think so long as you don't rag it you are fine. Unless of course you are on a RS125 which I heard needs to be at certain temperature before you set off.

What I tend to do is not take it above 6,000 RPM for the first 5 minutes or so. Seeing as the town I live in has a little 30MPH bit where I can stick the bike in 4th and travel at about 3,000 RPM so to let it warm it up for a little, then there is about a mile section of 40MPH so I leave it in the same gear and it is now at about 4,000 RPM. Gently warming it up before I am in the NSL area and going 60MPH in 6th means I am revving at about 5,000. After that and I can almost guarantee my engine is sufficiently warmed up.

It probably seems really anal, but I am not too fussed.
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[Gixajane]

Tick her over for about 1-2 minutes to give the oil chance to circulate set off keep the revs down until the engine gets to 50c then and only then gradually open her up when she gets to 70c.

[MarJay]

The reason I asked is because if it is brand new its a whole different kettle of cod.

Basically, if the dealer told you to warm the bike up correctly, then that is the best advice he can give to make sure the engine lasts as long as possible. He might just be saying it to cover his own back but I would obey it at least during the running-in period.

If you need to make a warranty claim and the bike has been damaged due to thrashing from cold, they could decide that it is a breach of the warranty. Obviously you're looking at a vast grey area of whether or not the dealer can prove you did the damage and blah blah, but I'd still treat my brand new pride and joy with kid gloves, not least because I just spent a heck of a lot of cash on a new bike!

I used to have a 1999 Daytona 955i and it was a fantastic machine. Just a little on the physically large side for me. Now my mate Anton has it and he loves it just as much as I did. I usually rode off fairly soon after starting the engine, but I was careful to nurse the engine through the warm up phase. It was a bit of a pain to ride when cold but it had a smooth power delivery and a noise that had hints of 'v8' about it.

It was a sweet handler and rock solid around sweeping bends. it had great brakes and was built as well as any Honda I've owned, and certainly better than the Suzukis and Yamaha that I've owned.

Now Anton has it and it is approaching the 40,000 mile mark. It is seven years old and still looks as fresh as the day it rolled out of the factory. I'd say that it wouldn't matter if you mistreated it because it is so over engineered, but I think that would go against my own mechanical sympathy.

I'd also say that you should treat it nicely because I have a bit of a soft spot for 955i's and I'll be upset if you don't!!

Personally, I'd be careful during the running in process, then I'd ride it carefully until its up to temperature, then I'd thrash it.

If you decide to warm it up carefully every time you go out for a ride then I'd understand!
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British beauty: Triumph Street Triple R; Loony stroker: KR1S; Track fun: GSXR750 L1; Commuter Missile: GSX-S1000F; Cheap project: CBR900RR FireBlade
Remember kids, bikes aren't like lego. You can't easily take a part from one bike and then fit it to another.

[Pete.]

[BorderHooner]

This has nothing to do with carbs or injected fueling, nowt to do with bore washing or the time of day.


The idea of warming up an engine presumes to serve one purpose > to protect a cold engine from wear and eventual failure.

yeah yeah, carb freezing etc is affected on carb'd bikes..... that aside and encompassing all engines be they carb'd or injection, petrol - diesel or 2stroke, Multi grade oil protects at varying temperatures and its ability to flow or pour (not it's viscosity!) is what we are concerned with.

The chemical structure of the oils additives allow the pour point or flow of the oil to change as temperature rises or drops, the oil has to protect in extreme temps when the engine and it's components are super heated, they would otherwise seize without a good quality oil due to heat and friction, fatigue and load.

Oil has to protect from cold also, however it is well known that a good multigrade will be able to flow during the crucial squeeze of components - but it will not flow as well as oil in a hot engine. The scientists are not that clever, nothing stops the laws of physics entirely and infinitely.

You should warm all engines up slowly before putting load on moving parts. Even if you use a fully synth with a 0w or 5w rating.

The length of time depends on the type of oil (fully or semi synth) , grade of oil and the condition of oil.

As oil is heated and cooled, again and agin, as blow by chucks emmisions and unspent fuel into the oil mix, it slowly loses it's ability to protect, the chemical structure supporting the multi grade ability is breaking down. So naturally you should warm up an engine a little longer with old lying on its crank.

So there you go, there isnt one answer, there are several - all of which you need to consider to see the big picture.

When oil 'floats' between moving parts it is squezed when under load, thus.....simply - warm multigrade oil protects better than cold multigrade oil.

Will you have a seizure if you zoom away when cold? probably not, but there is a higher chance of an engine low on oil, with poor oil or with wear (high milers) going bang if you dont warm them up.
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[Mark312]

Like Dew, first thing I do is start the engine, then I manoeuvre the bike out of it's resting place, put helmet and gloves on, through the gate, get off to shut the gate behind me. Riding through the estate to the main road takes a minute or two, so in all that time, it seems to have warmed up nicely, before I hit the dual carriageway. Even then, I don't give it full throttle for another few minutes. I have always treated engines gently when cold, after a friend told me not to "screw it when cold" when I got my first bike donkeys years ago, and it seemed to make sense.
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