Focus st query

BeenThroughItAll

Jono987 wrote: »

This forum is getting worse and worse. Someone asks a question and gets attacked for being lazy?

To be fair, anyone who says they want to use a car for a three mile commute (which after all is walkable in an hour or cycle-able in 20 mins) without giving any other details, does come across as a little bit 'exercise-shy'...

Drip feed information, and assumptions will be made. It's not just this forum, it's the way the world works.

mambo69

Fair point. I Leave my house at 7.45 after getting the kid's ready to school and starry work at 8. My car is also the family vehicle at weekends so any trips or busting the in-laws who live forty minutes away is in my car, and we visit them once or twice a month.

Mobeer

Just avoid getting a STD (or whatever the diesel version of the ST is called).

z1a

I did 1.2 miles 4 times a day in a Saab turbo for 7 years, never caused any problems. Did tend to use it properly at weekends though.

NBLondon

AdrianC wrote: »

Turbos spin (very, VERY fast) the entire time the engine's running.

BeenThroughItAll wrote: »

Turbos turn at anything up to 120K RPM (exc. really high end stuff) and reach that from idle RPM in 1-2 seconds. Even at idle, the turbo cartridge is turning at thousands of RPM.

So operating temperature is a red-herring then? Or is the point that you shouldn't floor it until the engine is warm? The question is then will the OP ever need/use any boost... which is what I was saying about my previous commute. I got more use out of the stop-start system!

AdrianC

No, operating temperature is far from a red herring. It's very, very important. Just spinning is not the same as spinning under load.

Mercdriver

Mobeer wrote: »

Just avoid getting a STD (or whatever the diesel version of the ST is called).

Must resist a durex joke...

NBLondon

AdrianC wrote: »

No, operating temperature is far from a red herring. It's very, very important. Just spinning is not the same as spinning under load.

Ye-e-es I got that bit. So on a slow commute in stop-start traffic, is the turbine under any significant load or not? If it isn't - then the OP has less to worry about temperature. If it is, then surely there would be huge warnings in the manual about not driving off until the temperature reaches a certain level. There aren't any in mine...

I do see the other end of it from time to time - stopping after a long run/hot day and the cooling system keeps going even after hitting the Engine Stop - which I've always assumed is to protect the turbo or related components.

almillar

For a 3 mile commute I wouldn't want anything other than a tiny-engined petrol car. Anything else will give dire fuel consumption and be quickly ruined by those kinds of runs.

That tiny engined petrol car will have similar problems to any other petrol car.

An electric car would be the logical alternative - no warm up issues with engine or cat, nor wear/charging issues on the (12v) battery.

Renault Zoe, Nissan Leaf, BMW i3, Kia Soul EV, Hyundai Ioniq.

You could even go hybrid and never use the petrol motor for your commute - Mitsubishi Outlander etc.

I have 2 children so after work i need to pick them up from the childminder. This is not possible on a bike.

You missed that from your first post if you don't want bike suggestions!

Driving three urban miles each way, twice a day, five days a week, is a very quick way to kill any car.

Not an electric one.

custardy

mambo69 wrote: »

There some people here who are so rude making a judgement on a person they have never met. I am surprised anyone ever asks for advise.

I have 2 children so after work i need to pick them up from the childminder. This is not possible on a bike.

Thanks for the informed opinions about the question i asked

I think you mean not practical,rather than not possible