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Idling is linked to increases in asthma, allergies, heart and lung disease and cancer. |
For every two minutes a car is idling, it uses about the same amount of fuel it takes to go about one mile(~1.6 Km). Research indicates that the average person idles their car 5 to 10 minutes a day.
Ten seconds of idling can use more fuel than turning off the engine and restarting it. And when you start your engine, don't step down on the accelerator, just simply turn the key to start.
One of the common ways cars are kept idling is when the driver is warming up the engine. Idling is not an effective way to warm up your vehicle, even in cold weather. The best way to do this is to drive the vehicle. With today's modern engines, you need no more than 30 seconds of idling on winter days.
Idling is damaging the engine! Excessive idling can actually damage your engine components, including cylinders, spark plugs, and exhaust systems. Fuel is only partially combusted when idling because an engine does not operate at its peak temperature. This leads to the build up of fuel residues on cylinder walls that can damage engine components and increase fuel consumption.
Is shutting off and restarting your vehicle hard on the engine and does it use more gas than if you leave it running? 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 that will likely be recovered several times over in fuel savings from reduced idling.
The bottom line is that more than ten seconds of idling uses more fuel than restarting the engine.
source:http://www.consumerenergycenter.org/myths/idling.html
