Warming up your 3rd gen for winter driving

It seems to warm up faster than the 4.0L 2013 I had, but it hasn't got down below about 35 degrees F in Albuquerque yet with my 2017.

 

I don't know if it has anything to do with it but my manual tranny Tacoma warms up very slowly. Like others have said. I usually just get in it and go. Heats up fast that way. Only time i let it warm up at idle is when it dips into the single digits

 

Hey, did you design that gif or whatever it is of the truck? Cool.

 

A block heater for your home will fix this issue right away

 

I’ve also heard about the elec element in the core but no back up info

I’m not a fan of the auto climate control only able to use floor heat. You change the direction and it goes off auto

 

I can't find any info on what conditions/settings cause the electric heating element to come on.

 

If your oil isn't in the heads within seconds of starting the truck your valvetrain wouldn't last past 50k miles. Oil flows everywhere very quickly, modern engines have check valves to prevent backflow when the engine is off, so the galleries all have oil in them already. Modern vehicles can be started, put in to drive, and immediately driven with no undue damage to anything, this is doubly true of anything that utilizes stop/start.

 

I usually fire the truck up then scrape the windows or clean snow off, heated seats help greatly.

 

The 3.5 heats up extremely fast when you start to drive. It begins to blow warm air soon after the needle rises of the cold peg (3-4 minute of driving). I don't let mine idle for more than a minute unless I need to scrape (usually garaged so no need to scrape).

If Its below 20 I normally plug in. That gets the engine up to 70°F before starting. The block heaters on these are really nice to install. Its a cartridge style, no need to break in to the cooling jacket. Helps with fuel economy too.

 

Right, letting the engine warm up is an outdated automotive adage, like changing your oil at 3000 miles. The only reason to "warm up" now is to blow warm air inside as OP stated.

 

Wasn't idling for 10 minutes, maybe 2 minutes then started driving. 10 minutes run time before getting much heat.

 

Is there an electric heater?

 

The auto climate will change depending on the need. If the truck senses frost on the windshield, it'll kick in the windshield blowers then turn off once gone.

I believe even when the auto climate button isn't on, say you prefer front vents, the climate control will still regulate blower speed based on selected temperature.

I'm still learning how this truck thinks and reacts in cold weather.

 

Yes. There is an electric element on the heater core. There was a description and pic of it somewhere on TW.

Search on PTC Heater. It supposedly comes on all V6 3rd gens.

Here a description:
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/where-do-you-set-your-hvac-controls.515447/#post-16270374

 

The you shut off the Truck. Turn your seat heaters on. Turn on defrost and set the fan too high. The electric heater is supposed to come on when temp is at high and I also believe the defrost has to be on. Other then that just start the Truck and make sure the windows are clear before driving away.

 

Scanguage shows it warms up pretty quickly. I usually start it up, clear off the windows, and get back in and drive away.
By the time I'm on the street it's already cwt 50C, normal running is around 70-90C.

 

I idle mine for 30 seconds to a minute and off I go. by the time I hit the round about 3 minutes from the house I have warm air even on the coldest of days.

 

I'm glad at least a few people have mentioned that letting an injected engine idle to operating temps is terrible for it. It will run rich causing incomplete burn in the cylinder, and as gas is a solvent it causes increased wear due to dilution of the oil.

Running rich is also bad for the catalytic converter.

 

I warm it up sometimes. Sometimes you have to just to get all the snow and ice off.

 

This what I do, fire it up, then get back out to scrape the ice and remove all the snow. I'm usually dressed for cold weather, never noticed if the truck takes longer vs any other car I've owned...