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Home / Automobile Insurance / Articles / Say no to idling

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Say no to idling

Are you familiar with “idling”?  This is when a stopped vehicle’s engine runs unnecessarily.  Like when you warm up your car in the winter, for example.  Or when you run into the store without turning off the engine, or you use a remote starter.  Idling is not harmless: it’s bad for your health, the environment, your vehicle, and your wallet.  Let’s find out why.

Idling vs. health and the environment
Whenever a vehicle’s engine is running, it emits carbon dioxide (CO2), the main greenhouse gas responsible for climate change.  And where there’s climate change, there’s also an increase in smog, and a decrease in air quality. When air quality declines, the very health of individuals is threatened.

Moreover, greenhouse gas emissions have a direct impact on the environment.  Violent storms, forest fires, floods and other extreme weather events become more and more common.  Of course, idling isn’t the only thing responsible for environmental problems, but it is a non-negligible factor.  A study by Natural Resources Canada showed that in winter, many Canadians let their engines idle for 8 minutes a day, wasting 2.2 million litres of gas, which is the equivalent of 5 million kilograms of greenhouse gas emissions in a single day!

The downsides for your vehicle and wallet
For your vehicle, idling is synonymous with wearing out the engine. Why? Because an idling engine is not running optimally, which significantly harms fuel combustion.  Gas that doesn’t burn completely leads to soot building up on the walls of the cylinders and contaminating the oil, prematurely wearing out the engine parts.  Not to mention the money just going up in smoke!  It’s important to realize how much idling costs: for a 3-litre engine, more than a cup of gas (300 millilitres) disappears every 10 minutes, without the vehicle moving an inch!

Take action!
Whether you are motivated by your health, the environment, your vehicle’s lifespan or saving money, say no to idling.  How?

• Don’t let your engine run unnecessarily when you start it up: in very cold weather, the engine shouldn’t idle for more than 2 minutes.  Accelerate gently for the first few kilometres, to give the parts time to warm up.
• Use a block heater.
• Whenever you’re stopped for more than 60 seconds, turn off the engine (except in traffic).
• Avoid using a remote starter.

 

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