can a Toyota (or any) stay running in idle overnight?

a engine that is running at proper operating temps
is lubricating properly when it's running.

At extremely cold temps...
dry starting a cold engine will cause more mechanical wear
then letting the engine idle all day.

being out in the sticks...
I might leave it running if it were cold as fuk

But if near civilization...
a tank (block) heater is the solution...
just remember to plug it in

saves gas, starts easy, less wear

* my opinion:

do not sleep in a running vehicle, evar !

if you must...

keep your fresh air vent open and flowing

be 100% sure the exhaust is not creating a CO bubble under the cab
and possibly seeping in.

Shortened exhausts and turn down tips off the muffler
could be deadly.

An exhaust tip that expels exhaust beyond the underbelly
surface of the truck is a good thought.
^ assuming your exhaust doesn't leak

If in deep snow or when snowing heavily...
be sure to clear any snow build up from the exhaust tip.
will help in keeping the exhaust flow from seeping back under the vehicle.

I will reiterate once more,
that sleeping in a running vehicle, is just a bad idea.

period

 

my thoughts exactly when i read that. Rich has always been a helpful and postive person on this forum. Thank you man.

 

I'm not gonna pretend to know anything, I have no fucking clue!!! but I left my truck running all night several times to power my radio at bonfires last summer. No issues so far...

 

The gas engine vehicle I have for work runs 14 hours a day. Thats every day I work, if I'm busy it will idle for sometimes 10 or 12 hours at a time. We run em till they have 150,000 or more miles, and dont have a problem with engine failure. When driven they are driven VERY HARD.

 

We used to sell the cop cars at some where around 150 to 180K some ran 24 hours but all ran at least 12 hours and I can't remember an engine failure in the 15 years I worked there. That being said heating with an engine is not a very efficient use of fuel and sleeping in a running truck over night may not be a real good ideal. Modern engines don't use much more fuel then they need any more not like an old carbureted engine. By the way don't try this with your diesel it will probably get colder my old TDI idling would go from hot to cold like no heat in about 15 minutes when it was really cold out.

 

Doesn't hurt anything, just burns gas, and if there's a leak in your exhaust you could die if you were in said running vehicle.

Left my trans am running for 14 hours (actually I don't know how long it was running, it ran out of gas and it had a full tank) one night, won't get in to detail about how it happened but the car ran fine.

We also have probably 80 trucks where I work where they run for 10 hours a day, sometimes idling in place the whole 10 hours. They range from 1988 f150s to 2013 silverados (the 88s were bought brand new to give you an idea of how long it's been going on) and they are still running fine today.

Someone also mentioned police cars, which in Houston never get turned off.

 

I've slept in my jeep many nights at the deer lease with it running all night Just used some gas.

 

There is A LOT of misinformation in this thread.

Letting a gas engine idle for extended lengths (more than a few hours) will not cause any noticable harm to the motor. It may be inefficient and stupid...but not detrimental to the motor. Someone brought up police cars...there are also a lot of gas ambulances out there that idle for hours, and hours and hours...and they run for a long time.

And simply sitting in the cab of an idling truck for a long time will not kill you from CO poisoning. That is also just...stupid...Unless your truck has an exhaust leak somewhere before or under the cab, the exhaust gases are safely routed out the back of the truck and away from you.

Going back to the ambulance thing...our trucks (Im a paramedic) are all diesel, but they we are a system status agency (we post at intersections waiting for calls). We can sit in them up to 12 hours straight with the motor idling..., sleeping, eating...etc...and if we don't get a call, we do sit there for 12 hours in and around the truck...and I am still here...been doing it for over a year now...never died from CO poisoning. And we have some Old..dirty, soot full diesels...and we are fine.

 

we (Boston) had a 11 year old kid die in the last snow storm because he was cold and climbed in a running car while Dad cleared snow off it. Clearly had a leak in the exhaust somewhere. News said it only took 15 minutes or so to kill the poor little guy.

 

I think stupid is a little harsh.

Ignorant? Definitely!

Willing to post opinion instead of fact? Most certainly!

He clearly doesn't understand how motor oil(s) work, but hopefully he is motivated enough to learn more.

 

Takes a carburated vehicle W/O a working catalytic converter too.

 

Rich is a very nice guy, he just needs to learn to limit his comments to what he has first hand experience with. Saves a lot of embarrassment, as you can clearly see.

 

We got over 2' of snow, the CO gas was trapped from the exhaust under the car and had no where to go but inside the cab. There doesn't need to be an exhaust leak for that to happen. That's why you always make sure there is a clear path for the exhaust.

 

What are you trying to say here? Carbs and cats have nothing to do with the vehicle's exhaust being able to kill you...

 

Re-read.


CO kills, not vehicle exhaust. More than plenty of people have tried to kill themselves in the garage with a modern vehicle, only to fail again!

Imagine that? Such a fuckup you cannot even kill yourself!

"When choosing a method to commit suicide, firearms are preferred; drugs can be unpredictable, and if the dosage is not selected properly, one just might end up having a fun evening." PJ O'Rourque.

 

So you think that a modern, FI vehicle's exhaust can't kill you? Are you serious?!?! CO is still a byproduct of the combustion process (note that the byproducts are exhausted in the vehicle's exhaust, thus the correlation) and can still kill you... Unfortunately, that little boy is proof of that.

 

No proof of anything. What I say has been tested and proven. Run along with Rich now, kiddo.

 

You've got to be kidding me.... there's no way you can honestly be that stupid. How do you think multiple people have died from having their exhaust trapped in the vehicle with them due to the exhaust being trapped by snow? Must be magic...

 

Please don't make a joke of this. If the OP sleeps in his car with the engine running and something happens, that is not cool at all.

 

Dude, you're ignorant as hell...exhaust from a modern car can indeed kill you. I have observed it myself multiple times.

Due to modern catalytic converters it just takes longer.