During winter, those with cars parked outside often face the chilly chore of de-icing windshields, leading to the temptation to keep the engine running for warmth while scraping away frost. However, there are compelling reasons to avoid this practice, including potential legal consequences.
In the greater region, leaving the engine running without a valid reason is more or less prohibited by law.
Why leaving your engine running when stationary is not a good idea
The enduring practice of leaving the engine running when parked harks back to the days of our parents and grandparents when engines struggled to adapt to colder temperatures. Preheating the vehicle was once advisable to enrich the air-fuel mixture, ensuring complete atomisation of the fuel.
However, modern advancements render this practice not only unnecessary, but also potentially harmful to your vehicle. Contemporary engines are perfectly capable of adapting to winter conditions, eliminating the need for preheating. In fact, allowing modern engines to idle in the cold poses a risk of damage. In a cold engine running in neutral, fuel evaporation is less efficient, prompting the engine to compensate by adding more fuel to the mixture. Over time, this surplus can be detrimental to critical components like piston seals and cylinder housings, impacting lubrication and overall lifespan.
Beyond the potential harm to your vehicle, idling is also detrimental to your budget and the environment. An idling engine consumes significantly more fuel than when initially started. According to the French news site Le Progrès, leaving the car running for five to ten minutes daily could equate to the consumption of a full tank of petrol over a winter. Additionally, the engine emits more smoke, with more CO2 emitted in just ten seconds of idling than during a cold start.
It should be noted that other winter-related offences are also punished in Luxembourg:
