Okay.... i live in Arkansas... it is Freakin cold right now... my car sits outside cause i live in Apartment complex (which sux ***) and it is about 12 degrees outside.... well i dont know if you guys have this problem but... everytime i turn my car on... the battery gets drained out by cold (which is obvious), my engine knocks until it warms up... and it takes like 15 minutes just to warm it up all the way..... damn.... thats a long *** time... let me know what you guys think thanks

 

what's your question?

 

I believe its "piston slap."

This happens when the piston hits the sides of the cylinder wall. When the engine warms up, the heat changes the size of the piston, expanding it to fill the bore.

Mine is doing this, too. I was going to post a video about it, too, hoping someone could confirm it for me.

Hope this helps.

 

I live in good old Canada and it's -10 degress celsius today. (14F)
This is actually normal... We can get down to -35c sometimes.

15 minutes to warm up is completely normal as is the knocking you hear. Don't forget, your oil turns to molasses when it gets that cold so that also contributes to the knocking since the parts are not being properly lubed. Once the oil get warm it does go back to it's normal consistency though.

Whatever you do, do not start driving around without letting that engine warm up properly. Since the cold makes everything chatter, if you stress it by driving before it's properly heated then you will prematurely wear out the components. (metal hitting metal @ high speeds = bad)

I know it's not very eco friendly but it's better than ruining your engine.

 

Use 5W30, give the engine a little rev when you first start it so the oil circulates (just a quick bump to 2500 RPM or so) the sooner you start driving it the quicker it will warm up. The ideal solution here is to get and intall a block heater, they don't cost all the much and aren't all that hard to install. Simply remove the frost plug behind the exhaust manifold (theres coolant in it, so have something catch it) and screw in the block heater. Run your cord away from the exhaust manifold obviously and plug the car in at night.

 

hmmm... thank you guys... good info!

 

my girl's 92lx does the same very thing. Her's only takes about 2 minutes to go away, but its definitely knocking...now I know its normal...thanks!

 

mine does the same thing.
it still runs fine but knocks alot when you start it or even rev a tiny bit.
94eg8 is right get a block heater there help out alot
i wish i had one lol

 

What are the RPMs when you guys first start the car? Cause when I start mine, it's at like below 1K and it starts knocking. I have to give it a little gas. Sometimes, it just dies out and I gotta start it again.

 

well do u have a CEL???? i might be able to help u....

 

yeah.... my car just takes too long to warm up though... hmmmm