Why do people needlessly idle ?

Back before modern injection, everyone always said you would waste more fuel restarting the engine compared to idling for a bit... Not sure if it was true, didn't start driving till 2002 lol. They could be running teams, have a pet in the sleeper, maybe a real fridge in there that pulls a lot of amps, endless reasons to leave it running if they want to. And 45* is cold to me, raised in Texas and all...

 

If you are from Phoenix, 45° is parka weather. Idling for a few minutes is better than wearing out the starter. I would have to start my truck 12 times a day if I shut it off every time I loaded the RGN. I have times that the starter just clicks. Normally only does it a couple of times a month but one day it took me 10 minutes to get it to turn over. Most of the time my idling time is 10-20 minutes at a time.

 

When I'm loaded with livestock I never shut off my truck simply for the reason that I don't want to have to worry about it starting again. Never had an issue, but why take the chance?

 

Who the hell cares? Not my circus, not my monkeys.

 

If I'm gonna be there a while, idle up to 850-900, let er hang. No APU, and I buy my own fuel. Usually idle till operating temp is 180-190, get the juices flowing ya know. At 45, if I was gonna be there a bit, I'd probly turn it off till I finished my business, but when I got settled, I'd fire it up for climate control. Never could understand these cats and their 5 minute warmup, and then hit the road.

 

As with everything, there is no one particular way to do things. I've never chased MPG's. Don't matter if fuel's $5 a gallon or $.90 a gallon. So if I burn a bit extra to maintain my comfort so that I'm ready to do the job, so be it. Got a buddy that crows about his MPG's, but when you're pulling 1.35 TTT freight, maybe it makes a difference. Oh well, to each their own.

 

Must be pulling a box because our rates are not down. Freight is slower but rates are the same but then we specialize too.

 

hmm how long is the average life span of a starter when counting the number of times tge starter is used? or does it matter?