Actually, I’ve heard this several years back; If you’re going to idle more than 20 sec., turn it off. Even considering wear and tear on starter, alternator and battery. Have to pay close attention to traffic though! But if you need A/C…And remembering your engine gets its’ hottest a minute or two after you turn it off(no water circulation).
Seems I remember a model from somewhere that cut off when stopped for a certain time and restarted when the accelerator was pressed. Was reminded of it the other day when a car in the next lane and I parallelled for 3 intersection red lights and I heard his start up each time we had to move ahead. A hybrid, maybe??
In Germany there is a little key symbol at traffic lights to let you know when to start your engine.
In Ireland I rented a diesel Volkswagen Jetta (diesel gets better gas mileage than gasoline). It was rigged so the engine turned off when the car was stopped and the clutch in neutral and the foot on the break. When you engage the clutch, the engine turned back on.
I know the “long lights” in town. I do shut down while waiting for them to turn.
Judging by the way I see drivers racing around in town (like pulling out and passing me to get to the red light.) I’d say that some drivers are OK with the price of gasoline. It seems that the bigger the car, the more aggressive the driving technique.
I read the average person spends $1800 a year on coffee which is 360 gallons of gas as the moment. How come I don’t see angst over coffee prices??!! I make mine at home for about 25 cents a cup.
The other day, my husband went with me to do some shopping. I was only going to run into one store for a few minutes, so I said, “You can stay in the car if you want.” It was about 95 degrees, so the AC would need to be running. My husband said, “With gas prices the way they are?” It struck me that that has never been an issue before.
It was 100 degrees here on Sunday so I said, why don’t we go and do our shopping now instead of later? The car has AC and it costs us nothing to drive it. It’s an EV and our solar panels more than cover all our electricity.
i’m on a mission to train folks around here to turn their damn engines off when they get out of the vehicle. for whatever reason, people have no problem at all with leaving the engine running for up to hours at a time. the other day it was our plumber who wanted to leave his big van idling while we chatted about fixing my well…
whahoppened over 2 years ago
Think again about electric.
whahoppened over 2 years ago
Actually, I’ve heard this several years back; If you’re going to idle more than 20 sec., turn it off. Even considering wear and tear on starter, alternator and battery. Have to pay close attention to traffic though! But if you need A/C…And remembering your engine gets its’ hottest a minute or two after you turn it off(no water circulation).
sandpiper over 2 years ago
Seems I remember a model from somewhere that cut off when stopped for a certain time and restarted when the accelerator was pressed. Was reminded of it the other day when a car in the next lane and I parallelled for 3 intersection red lights and I heard his start up each time we had to move ahead. A hybrid, maybe??
Zen-of-Zinfandel over 2 years ago
Folks are moderately strapped for cash.
dflak over 2 years ago
In Germany there is a little key symbol at traffic lights to let you know when to start your engine.
In Ireland I rented a diesel Volkswagen Jetta (diesel gets better gas mileage than gasoline). It was rigged so the engine turned off when the car was stopped and the clutch in neutral and the foot on the break. When you engage the clutch, the engine turned back on.
I know the “long lights” in town. I do shut down while waiting for them to turn.
dflak over 2 years ago
Judging by the way I see drivers racing around in town (like pulling out and passing me to get to the red light.) I’d say that some drivers are OK with the price of gasoline. It seems that the bigger the car, the more aggressive the driving technique.
Zebrastripes over 2 years ago
All I can say is don’t go any where you don’t have to….sacrifice is a foreign word some Americans can’t comprehend…..
NeedaChuckle Premium Member over 2 years ago
I read the average person spends $1800 a year on coffee which is 360 gallons of gas as the moment. How come I don’t see angst over coffee prices??!! I make mine at home for about 25 cents a cup.
WCraft Premium Member over 2 years ago
Judging by your car – I don’t think you’ll have to worry about that.
Lola85 Premium Member over 2 years ago
The other day, my husband went with me to do some shopping. I was only going to run into one store for a few minutes, so I said, “You can stay in the car if you want.” It was about 95 degrees, so the AC would need to be running. My husband said, “With gas prices the way they are?” It struck me that that has never been an issue before.
GKBOWOOD Premium Member over 2 years ago
So much for the environment!
tabby over 2 years ago
It was 100 degrees here on Sunday so I said, why don’t we go and do our shopping now instead of later? The car has AC and it costs us nothing to drive it. It’s an EV and our solar panels more than cover all our electricity.
gopher gofer over 2 years ago
i’m on a mission to train folks around here to turn their damn engines off when they get out of the vehicle. for whatever reason, people have no problem at all with leaving the engine running for up to hours at a time. the other day it was our plumber who wanted to leave his big van idling while we chatted about fixing my well…
syzygy47 over 2 years ago
It’s an old expression, the idle rich.