Hi all,

Just wondering how long everyone's cars take to get to the normal temperature - the mid point on the guage?

I thought I had thermostat problems and thanks to some :thumbup:ace advice and instructions on the forums I managed to change the coolant temperature sensor. That seems to have at least got my guage going back to the middle, but it takes a a fair while....

- 1.9TDI takes approx 13-15min / over 5miles to reach the normal temperature. Is this normal.......

Cheers

Yep, the PD engines take an eternity to get warm.

- 1.9TDI takes approx 13-15min / over 5miles to reach the normal temperature. Is this normal.......

Cheers

My 03 seems to take the same amount of time/distance. mind you if you look closely the guauge doesn't start until 50 degrees:confused:

My new (57 plate) seems to take less time than my old one (04 plate) did.... not much but i notice it.... i think about 3 miles compared to 5 (both cars 1.9TDi PD100)

My 04 plate 1.4TDI can take a full 9 miles to warm up. Always has since new. Depends on outside temperature (of course), but I suspect slower at +5 C than at -5C. One trick to get some heat in is to drive 2 miles, stop and turn the engine off for 5 minutes. When you restart there will be some warmth from the heater.

SWMBO has a 1.9 SDI and that gives heat before the end of the drive and is fully warm in about 2 miles.

I used to be able to do a 17 mile, 45 minute commute in mid-winter in my 1.9SDI Fabia and the needle wouldn't even move off the coldest temperature.

4+ miles for my Fabia vRS, compared with not much more than one mile for my Octavia 4X4 on a similar journey.

Mine is about 10 mins over 3 miles on my jaunt to work in the morning.

Mines about 3 miles in the morning.

diesels will tend to take longer than a petrol engine due to the heavier construction to cope with the higher compression ratios, my 1.4 16v takes 1 -2 miles

Additionally diesel engines are incredibly efficient when it comes to wasted heat.

about 10/15 mins, 4/5 miles

About 10 mins here too. Not having the heater on will help it to warm up quicker.

Using the turbo has a great effect on warming up the engine by increasing charge temperatures. Trouble is it's not recommended to push the engine when it's cold so unless you don't care about longevity it's of no help.

My XUD Peugeots and Citroen all warmed up quite fast but at the same time hated sitting in slow moving traffic as the engine got quite hot. All other diesels I've had have taken waaaay longer to warm up and don't mind the aforementioned traffic.

Best for warming up fast were my Jap petrols like the CRX and MR2. High idle speed when cold and the simple fact they're running on petrol made them really good in winter - 5 mins and the cabin was lovely and toasty. Trouble is both had Janspeeds fitted and when they're idling at 1,500 rpm+ all you get is BOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAR for that few mins till the coolant warms up a bit.

The PD engines used to hold the world record as the most thermally efficient production diesel engine in the world, so I guess you should be pleased that it takes an age to warm up……I think? My Old Toledo (TDi 130) took forever to heat up in the winter too.

My current diesel has an electronic blind over the radiator and blocks of air until the engine warms up (it does produce warm air quite quickly this way) and can close when cruising at speed to improve aerodynamics, only opening when a spot of extra cooling is required. It's also an all Alloy engine, so that helps too.

The thermostat won't open until the water around the engine block is warm anyway, if you watch the needle, it will start to go up then when the thermostat opens, it will dip back down for a short time as the cold coolant comes in from the radiator.

You can feel the warm air in the cabin quite quickly in mine. I always thought that the hot coolant for the cabin heat was taken from somewhere near the middle of the engine where the cylinders will warm it up fastest. You could see it on my old Focus, but the car makers differ so don't know if the principle s the same on the VW engines.

The thermostat won't open until the water around the engine block is warm anyway, if you watch the needle, it will start to go up then when the thermostat opens, it will dip back down for a short time as the cold coolant comes in from the radiator.

I've only ever seen this warming the car up at standstill - never noticed it when driving... :confused:

I've only ever seen this warming the car up at standstill - never noticed it when driving... :confused:

In my old SDI, if I sat in traffic on a morning colder than around -2C the engine temp used to go down quite quickly to around 1/2 operating temperature

Mine was just about kicking some heat out as i pulled into work and switched it off LOL

I've only ever seen this warming the car up at standstill - never noticed it when driving... :confused:

Yea, I only notice it as the first couple of miles is start stop nonsense.

Don't know about warming up at standstill, I always just start and drive off.