OK, I have recently moved to a Midwestern City. I am from S. Calif., born and raised. We are pretty paranoid about keeping our cars locked when we are away from them, so this is a new one on me. But one of the first things I notice is that people here leave their car motors running for reasons I cannot fathom.
I understand leaving it running when you are just dashing in to drop off a letter, or something. I understand leaving it running when it’s beastly hot outside, and you want to keep the air conditioning going. I understand when it’s beastly cold outside, and you want to keep the heat in. I understand when you think your battery is going to die if you turn it off.
But that’s not always what happens here. People are just casually standing around, while their car motor is running. Or they’ll take their time shopping at the 7-11, while the car runs outside. For a LONG time. It’s not too hot, not too cold, their windows aren’t up, so obviously it’s not to preserve heat/cool in the car. They are taking waaaay too long getting back in the car, it’s not “I didn’t think it was worth shutting it off, I was going to be away for just 1 minute.”
I had it just happen when I was at a fast food drive in. I would have/could have eaten my food there in the car. But some guy next to me had his car running as he shot the breeze with his girlfriend, and his car exhaust fumes were yukky. So I left. But I was tempted to ask him “Why do you people do this?”
It’s not really always safe - people leave cars running and unattended for long periods of time. Just recently a mom left her kid in the car w/ motor running while she went to get fast food. Some carjacker got the car, the kid, and through a bizarre set of events, the kid ended up dead. OBVIOUSLY this is not smart.
So, do people in your area do this, and if so, why?
I remember being told way back in the mileage-conscious 1970’s that it actually (supposedly) takes more gas to start the car again after it’s been stopped, than to leave it running. Dunno if it’s true or not, and I personally never leave the car running, especially at the 7-11, 'cause it’s just begging to have your car stolen (at least around these here parts.)
Apart from the obvious security considerations, the gasoline-saving question depends on how much gas it takes to power up the engine again – expressed in terms of how many minutes of continuous running the gas consumption is equal to.
I had the impression that to power up the engine uses the equivalent of about one minute’s worth of running-the-engine gas. So it’s not worth it to power down when you’re stopped for less than a minute. Does anyone know the minimum length of time when powering down allows you to save gas?
Thanks - that’s kinda what I thought. I figured - a minute or two to drop a letter in the mailbox is one thing. I’ve heard about the “wasting gas powering up again” as well, and figured it meant for relatively short amounts of time. But sitting around, taking your time doing whatever while your car spews out exhaust seems wasteful, and nasty. So I don’t get it.
You did not mention WHERE in the Midwest you moved to.
Where I live, when you leave someone’s home and head to your car they will follow you. You then have at least a 15 minute conversation with your engine running before you actually put it into gear, and then ride the brakes another 10 minutes before you actually leave.
I caught some flack for this over in MPSIMS thread about the MPLS dopers meeting, but it is true, especially for older people in my area.
The particular instances you bring up, however, give me another thought - the person with the engine running expected a 2 minute conversation, and it turns into a 20 minute conversation. I have been there, and equate it with the infamous door dilemma - is the person behind me close enough to hold it? If I wait a second will she speed up? Is he so close that if I drop the door he’ll think I’m rude?
In many European cities the taxi drivers drive ordinary cars powered by diesel engines (as opposed to custom-made taxi cabs like the London Black Cabs). I’ve often seen drivers leave their cars running for substantial amounts of time, we’re talking over half an hour sometimes. When I asked one why this was, he said that in a car that was supposed to clock up a lot of mileage, they had found that most of the wear and tear on the engine came from when the engine was cold or just warming up. Therefor it was more efficient for them to leave the cars running all day long even when they didn’t have a ride, than to switch them on and off and increase the wear on the engine.
Here in South Florida, I see cars left running with children and/or dogs in them. Presumably it is to enable air conditioning. I notice this most often in the Wal-Mart parking lot although I have seen it at various malls.
It is truly remarkable, IMHO, that someone could put together the money to buy a car and drive it somewhere while at the same time being stupid enough to endanger their children in such a way.
And, lest you ask, it is fear of retaliation that prevents my calling the police.
Moonshine: that might be true for diesel engines, which burn fuel badly until the glow plugs get up to the proper temperature, but I can’t think there’d be that much of a wear difference in an Otto engine like most American cars have.
Maybe it’s just a matter of wishful thinking, leaving the car running to express your sense that your shopping won’t take long, even though you ought to know that you’re just going to get caught in line.
This behavior is still a mystery to me. Sure, I guess some people think that leaving the motor on is OK because they are just going to be shopping for “just a minute”. Which, as pointed out, is folly, since rarely do you shop for “just a minute”. Leaving the motor running while at WalMart (or most other stores) seems to be the height of stupidity - there is NO WAY you are getting out of there in less than 10 minutes, and I am assuming that leaving a car on longer than a few minutes is a waste.
I don’t wonder why people leave the motor (and air conditioning) on when there are people (or dogs) in the car - though of course this is a dangerous practice. I do wonder when I see no possible reason to leave the car on, but people do it anyway. I also notice people in older cars (not the ones with the automatic “running lights”) leave their car running with their headlights on, when there is no reason to.
the worst is diesel trucks. they will be aprked outsie my window for an hour or three, with the engine running, fumes belching. Now, with diesels, you DO not want to turn them on & off like gas engines, but for HOURS?!?
I believe it is illegal for the driver to get out and leave the motor running. If it isn’'t illegal everywhere it should be as there have been enough accidents of cars getting into gear etc.
Not to mention the obvious: Just about a week ago, a mother left her kids in the car with the motor running while she went inside to buy something. A thief took off with her car and her three kids. The tone of the news was “this poor woman”… WTF? WTF? She should be prosecuted for endangering her kids. Even if the crook hadn’t been there one of the kids could have thrown the car into gear.
The world is just full of irresponsible idiots. Also within the last ten days a father was arrested for leaving his kids in the car in the sun. The kids had to be given emergency care and thank goodness the police arrived in time to save them. The father was found inside some betting place.
All the time you hear of incidents like these… I just don’t understand how idiotic people can be. The mother saying “Oh, they took my kids” (like it’s not her fault) and the guy saying “I didn’t know it was dangerous to leave my kids in the car”… Sheesh!
I’ve noticed that a lot of cops tend to do this kind of thing - they’ll just leave the car running while they’re having a doughnut or writing a ticket or doing something that won’t take a very long time. I always thought it was a cop thing.
I am very much averse to leaving my pickup with the motor running while I leave it unattended. It’s not so much that the engine is on that makes me uncomfortable as much as that it’s unlocked and the keys are in it! That the engine is on only advertises that fact to passersby benevolent and otherwise.
All my life, I’ve lived in suburban/urban areas, where doing something like this is practically begging for it to get stolen. Not the first time, probably, and maybe not even the tenth. Making a habit of it, though, seems really dumb.
Anecdote of dubious relevance: I read a story here in LA a couple of years ago about a guy who jumped out of his car to render aid at an traffic accident that happened right near him. In his haste (understandable, given the situation), he left his keys in the car. While he was helping the accident victims, some slimeball jumped into his car and drove off…
Yep, you are correct. It is illegal (at least, here in Iowa) to leave the motor running in an unattended vehicle. By definition, that means any vehicle without a driver sitting at the wheel. But I’ve seen cops at the local 7-11 go in for donuts and walk right past unattended idling vehicles.
A long time ago, I drove a beater which, once it warmed up, was unlikely to restart until it cooled down. I would leave it running in parking lots, hoping (a)that it would still be running when I got back, and (2)that some poor fool would steal it while I was gone.