Warming up the Car

For most of the country this week, it has been necessary to warm up the car - at least a few minutes - before heading off. Jodi Helmer suggests in her book, "The Green Year," to check the owners manual to see exactly how long a car needs to warm up. As she says in her book, it may be tempting to turn it on and blast the heater while you finish getting ready, but your vehicle is burning more fuel and also causing more emmissions into the atmosphere. Another point: thieves scour neighborhoods just waiting for you to leave your car running, so they can take off in it.