I've had my car for a little over a week now and one thing I've noticed is how fast the engine reaches operating temp. It takes about one minute of driving from a cold start. How does the engine warm up so fast?

 

Yes, it's very quick when the temperature is 95 outside.

 

Smart azz! I've lived in S. Fl. for 37 years and have never owned a vehicle that warmed up this fast. Even when the temp. outside is hotter than 2 rats f*****g in a wool sock. Just curious...maybe a dumb question. I dunno.

 

I noticed this as well when I bought my 2010 Max 3 months ago. This is an all-aluminum block and head, which typically heats up much faster than say... an iron block. My old man's 2004 Corvette is the same way. My previous car, 2001 Grand Prix GT (3.8L V6, Iron block and aluminum head) took quite a bit longer to reach operating temp, even in 90 degree heat.

 

Also, the 'operating temperature' in this 7th gen Maxima seems to be higher than in my previous Maximas, and definitely higher than in cars I owned thirty to sixty years ago. When I raise the hood after even just a ten mile easy drive, it is hotter than an oven under there.

 

I don't know why it does but since I live up north I am sure I will appreciate it more than actually knowing why.

 

Appreciate the feedback.

 

Yes, it does but once it gets to it's operating temp, it seems to stay very stable. Oh, and welcome to the forum fellow Floridian.

 

That is another thing I have also noticed. The temp needle fairly quickly moves to the exact middle of the gauge, and it doesn't matter if I am coasting in a blizzard or pulling a steep mountain in 100 degrees with six big passengers, that needle never leaves the middle of the gauge.

 

Because it's pretty hot outside that's why it warms up fast.

 

I understand what your thinking with Aluminum vs Iron heads. Aluminum transfers heat much quicker than Iron ( that's why a/c fins on coils are aluminum) so you would think that's why the guage responds so quickly, because the aluminum transfers the heat so quick to the thermostat.

 

There's a lot more going on than just the material used in the major engine castings. Coolant flow path and thermostat location in that path, to name a couple. The all-aluminum 315-ish HP 4.6 liter V8 in my Mustang is the most cold-blooded beast I've ever owned, bar none. Even the 125 lb heavier all-iron 155 HP 5-liter SBC in the Malibu warmed up faster.

If you think that your engine temperature gauge is rising faster than the coolant temperature really is, you can use one of the better scan tools to display operating data and watch the coolant temperature parameter. It's how I found out that the blue idiot light color in the Subaru goes out at about 125° and that that car is most of the way to fully warm in 1.5 miles.


Norm

 

I too have noticed that my '09 Max heats up quickly. Must faster than my 4.0 liter '06 Frontier. These two engines are in the same family so one would expect similar performance. It is well known that a fully warmed engine pollutes the least. Therefore a fast warm-up is a green initiative.

I suspect the answer lies in engine design. The temperature measured is coolant temperature (hot side, before the thermostat). Logically, if the coolant heats quickly, it's probably due to the quantity of coolant within the engine. A smaller quantity of fluid will heat quickly. However if the fluid quantity is too small, the engine may overheat during transient conditions. Nissan may have engineered the within-engine heat transfer dynamics to allow a smaller hold-up of coolant.

The above thoughts are musings from the left side of my brain. It could be that Nissan programmed the rise in temperature to be independent of engine temperature. The appearance of green, but not really green.