Should You Use P Gear or N Gear for Warming Up the Car?

[Jayce]

Both engaging P gear and N gear result in the engine idling, providing the same warming-up effect. When in P gear, the car has the parking brake engaged, making the vehicle more stable and safe, preventing any accidents. When in neutral, the vehicle is in an unstable state, and if it loses balance, there is a risk of rolling. Therefore, for safety and security reasons, it is better to warm up the car in P gear. Here is some additional information: 1. Reason for warming up the car: The main reason for warming up the car is that after prolonged parking, the engine oil flows back to the lower part of the engine, the oil pan. Thus, when starting, the upper part of the engine is without oil and lacks lubrication. It takes about 30 seconds after starting for the oil pump to circulate the oil to the most critical parts needing lubrication, such as the pistons, connecting rods, and crankshaft. 2. Gear selection for automatic transmission when warming up: For automatic transmissions, whether to use N gear or P gear when warming up, from a safety perspective, P gear is more secure and reliable. When warming up in P gear, it generally should not exceed one and a half minutes. After starting, maintain the RPM below 2500, drive for a while until the water temperature rises, then increase the RPM for normal driving.