Is this normal? High RPM when car start in morning.

[sirnice]

I have a 08 EX AWD Journey with approx 13k miles.

Is it normal that the RPM is around 2000+ for like ~3 minutes before it gets down to 1 (temp is in the high 50s to mid 60s so not cold at all). This happens in the morning or when the car is parked for a few hours. My other cars don't usually take that long to normalize idle below 1000 rpm. I just want to start it and go but don't want to damage the engine. It also starts loud and then quiets down. Anyone else experiencing this?

Modified by sirnice at 3:49 PM 3/26/2010
Modified by sirnice at 3:50 PM 3/26/2010

[Marconelly]

I was just going to ask this same thing! My one month old EX 2010 does this, has been doing it since day 1, and I was never too sure if it's normal or not. It settles below 1000rpm the moment I start shifting to reverse. If I switch the engine off later on, and start it again soon, the RMPs top up below 1000 immediately. As you've noticed, the 2000RPM run only happens if the car was sitting with the engine off for several hours.

I was thinking the car maybe does this on cold weather to heat up the engine as soon as possible but the same exact thing happens during warmer weather too. I wouldn't say that it's loud even during the 2K RPM though. It doesn't sound abnormal, loud or anything, I just thought it's strange that sometimes it starts at below 1K RPM, and then when it's sitting idle for longer, it goes at 2.
Modified by Marconelly at 7:49 PM 3/26/2010

[AWGD8]

It`s normal. My EX35 start at 2k and goes down to 1.2k in 3 minutes. I think manual says you have to keep it idling for at least a minute after start . Do the same thing before turning it off after driving it hard or during cold days.

[Marconelly]

I wonder why it is like that, even if it's normal. I really never heard of a car that needs to sit idle for a minute before driving off in a relatively warm weather, other than old diesels. I definitely don't do that with EX35 either, and since engine goes to sub 1K immediately after I start shifting, I don't see why should I?

[EXceptional]

Upon start-up, our EX35 screams a couple thousand RPM's... and then I just slam it into Reverse and back out of the Garage.

I don't have time to wait around in the Garage... so I just start it and go.

It must be normal, cause they all do it... and i don't give it any special attention.

Start it and go.

[sg77]

Here's an older thread about this topic: zerothread?id=432324

And here's what the manual says:

"Allow the engine to idle for at least 30seconds after starting. Do not race the enginewhile warming it up. Drive at moderatespeed for a short distance first, especially incold weather. In cold weather, keep theengine running for a minimum of 2 - 3minutes before shutting it off. Starting andstopping the engine over a short period oftime may make the vehicle more difficult tostart."

[Marconelly]

OK, good to know the reason, and that it's normal. I suspected that it's done just so that the engine gets warmer faster, so it idles higher if you don't shift it to gear immediately.

[sg77]

But... it takes mine about 1 minute to get down to 1000 rpm. If it really takes yours 3 minutes, that seems a little odd (but I don't know all the details; maybe that's normal for some situations too).

[jonkarn]

I also notice that once you depress the brake as if you are going to shift out of Park, the RPMs will start to lower as well. Anyone else notcie that?

[AWGD8]

But... it takes mine about 1 minute to get down to 1000 rpm. If it really takes yours 3 minutes, that seems a little odd (but I don't know all the details; maybe that's normal for some situations too).

3 minutes when it`s very cold outside.

[ex81]

I also notice that once you depress the brake as if you are going to shift out of Park, the RPMs will start to lower as well. Anyone else notcie that?

YUP... I noticed it as well...and based on the discussion link above from sg77, I wouldn't be surprised if that was intentional.

[txgcoupe]

The RPM's lower when you put the car in gear because the transmission/torque converter is putting a load on the engine.

John

[jonkarn]

Yes the RPM's lowering when you put car in drive is an obvious response. But to have the RPM's lower when you depress the brake in preparation for putting in gear is a new one for me.

[cromagno]

Mine does it too. Makes sense for the RPMs to drop when you depress the brake while in park, especially if the shift brake interlock sends a signal to lower the rpms because it is more than likely you are going to put the car in Reverse or Drive. Also, the AWD could be a little bit more needy about the idle speed.