Dear Editor;
Taking climate change seriously, there are many little things we all could do to help improve the situation and reduce our carbon footprint. Sometimes if we understand something it may make it easier.
Years ago when I was taking my Auto Mechanics pre-apprentice training our instructor taught us that a car or truck engine takes an average 12 miles or 16 kilometers to warm up thoroughly. That is not just when your temperature gauge shows warm, it is when the oil temperature and core temperature of all internal parts reach full operating temperature. When this is attained, condensation is dispelled from the internal parts and the oil. This is when optimum efficiency and fuel economy are attained, thus if you do a lot of short drives the condensation build up requires more oil changes - i.e. more of that increasingly precious black gold.
The short drives don’t do your car engine much good, the lack of exercise doesn’t do your much good and the pollution created doesn’t do our atmosphere much good. This could be called a loose, lose, lose situation, but the oil companies love ya.
Jim Hodge
Princeton, B.C.