Warming up a Powerboost

[PaulGrun]

Especially in this cold weather, how do you Powerboost guys warm up your trucks before driving away?
I was taught to give the engine a minute or two to "warm up" before driving down the road in normal circumstances and a bit more in cold weather.

I'm seeing comments from ICE-only guys about letting their trucks idle for 5+ minutes in the cold.

In "normal" weather, after punching the start button and getting the Ready light, I'm used to blipping the throttle to force the ICE to fire up before driving away first thing in the morning. I live on a hill, so the ICE is guaranteed to blaze up before I'm out of the driveway, and it seems cruel to wake up a groggy engine and make it take up a load immediately. Is that sufficient in this cold weather?

What say you brethren Powerboosters?

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[Mosey]

I do almost the same as you. I always blip the throttle, warm or cold, if the truck has sat for more than 15 minutes. I really wish the engine had a small electric oil pump, just enough to fully pressurize the oiling system, not flow much oil. That way the mechanical pump will instantly flow oil.

 

[Eskram]

You could always use Tow mode to force ICE until the engine is warmed up.

 

[HammaMan]

Did a 10 minute long warm up test via remote start right about freezing temps, within 5 minutes coolant was at 100 degrees. It'll be 13 degrees here in 2 days, I'll try it again and capture the data.

Worth looking at the thread. This warmup profile is unique to the powerboost due to exhaust heat scavenging.
https://www.f150gen14.com/forum/threads/pb-remote-start-warmup-snapshot.21555/

 

[imnuts]

If it's really cold, or there is a thin layer of frost or potentially snow on the truck, I'll remote start about a minute before going outside. Longest it's "warmed up" before driving is the time it takes to clean things off plus maybe a minute. Otherwise, I get it, turn it on and go. When it is cold outside, unless I'm using the defroster, I keep the HVAC off until the coolant temp is up to ~170°F and just rely on the seat & steering wheel heaters.

 

[HammaMan]

If it's really cold, or there is a thin layer of frost or potentially snow on the truck, I'll remote start about a minute before going outside. Longest it's "warmed up" before driving is the time it takes to clean things off plus maybe a minute. Otherwise, I get it, turn it on and go. When it is cold outside, unless I'm using the defroster, I keep the HVAC off until the coolant temp is up to ~170°F and just rely on the seat & steering wheel heaters.

I'd give it a few more minutes. I've found that in the cold, hybrid mode while driving will start coming in as little as 5 minutes post start whereas remote start will keep warming up the motor and trans with ICE still running. Not fond of hybrid mode shutting off the ICE so soon when the engine is still ~140.

Those first 5 minutes at least at 32f provided the best heat ramp up. I'll see if the 16 degree warmup produces different results.

 

[BUDXR7]

You could always use Tow mode to force ICE until the engine is warmed up.

Doesn’t running the heat command the engine on?

 

[HammaMan]

Doesn’t running the heat command the engine on?

No, once the cabin temp is reached it goes into hybrid if things are fully warmed up or not. Cabin heat comes from the exhaust. It will heat soak the the heater core then use the blend door to output the right temp.

 

[BUDXR7]

No, once the cabin temp is reached it goes into hybrid if things are fully warmed up or not. Cabin heat comes from the exhaust. It will heat soak the the heater core then use the blend door to output the right temp.

Interesting. The heat seems to keep it running for a while when it’s sub-40. Either way, I feel like the electric to ICE threshold is far lower when it’s cold anyways. I assumed the battery is a little slower at low temps.

 

[HammaMan]

Interesting. The heat seems to keep it running for a while when it’s sub-40. Either way, I feel like the electric to ICE threshold is far lower when it’s cold anyways. I assumed the battery is a little slower at low temps.

The batt will start to heat up quick once it's used. Each acceleration / braking event can add 20 degrees to it due to its high C loading. Watch the HVB temp with a OBD2 app. I didn't even do 1 mile around the block with a few low speed starts and stops and it went from 39 degrees to 85 fast. much faster than I was expecting. It's a 1.4x kWh batt that puts out 35kW+ of power while being able to charge even faster. Imagine how hot your phone would be if it could fully charge in 3 minutes. That's the energy load the PB's batt is subject to every acceleration / braking event until it starts to thermal throttle if cooling can't keep up.

 

[imnuts]

The problem with warning up the engine/trans while idling is that nothing else is warmed up. Your differentials, bearings, etc. are still cold, so any hard acceleration is still bad for them. Driving without hard acceleration while everything is cold allows everything to come up to temp evenly. I don't know if any manufacturer that doesn't recommend just getting in and going anymore either.

Waiting until 170°F for the coolant to turn on the heat minimizes temp loss when the truck does go into electric only mode. When it gets to that temp, I rarely see it dip under again while driving, where lower coolant temps tend to see larger temp swings when the engine shuts off. When I do turn climate control on, I also have my auto fan speed set at low to avoid losing a lot of coolant heat when the engine is off and help the interior warm up more gradually.

 

[PB2021]

I start out from unheated garage so it’s about -10C at coldest but I just back out and take it easy for the first while till engine temp starts coming up. With the 3.5L fuel dilution issues I’m not a fan of long term cold idling.

 

[Gros Ventre]

For the engine, letting it idle for a few minutes is good for the pistons and rings. It lets them stabilize in temperature at their new operating point (EG ~1700ºF). After that its a good idea not to punch it for awhile. For the transmission, transfer case & axles, its a good idea to get some miles under the wheels to let the gear lube warm up. Remember, those axles are lubed with something like 75w-80. That's pretty thick stuff. I suppose the real issue is simply be as gentle as you can until its all warmed up.

 

[JIMFOUNTAIN]

When it is cold outside, unless I'm using the defroster, I keep the HVAC off until the coolant temp is up to ~170°F and just rely on the seat & steering wheel heaters.

Agreed. With HVAC on you are burning fuel to heat water to heat the cab. I turn of the HVAC and let torque demand determine when to fire up the ICE. Saves a little fuel that way.

 

[JoeRedFly]

Warms up while I drive, just go easy on the throttle. Idling to warm up is a waste of gas on a modern vehicle. Now, if it's too cold for the human, that's a different story, 5 mins will do it.

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