Sleeping in my 4runner while engine idling all night! Is it safe?

[shellyross]

Thanks. I want to car-camp in the spring, but these are the little worries that pop up in the back of my mind. Videos like this are helpful in putting all the little pieces together.

[lp]

Tim...here's a tip for you while idling. Pop the hood release. It raises the hood about an inch or so, but allows for much more heat to escape and makes the A/C more efficient, plus it might lower your fuel burn rate. This is significant, especially when you're just sitting there with zero airflow across the radiator in those hot ambient temperatures.. Police use this technique all of the time to prolong engine life...and to save taxpayer money. Just don't forget to close before you hit the road. Safe travels!

[chrisreed]

I agree 100% I am not going to sleep in a van or car without cold A/C just to save gas or the environment! I have idled for LONG periods for years! No issues! Modern autos have fail safe cooling and just don't overheat unless you have a hose burst or something like that but engines are made to run and the computer will adjust for anything that is off due to lower idle speeds..Glad someone else is doing this too! Safe travels! I live in Tampa and have friends in Osprey area (Oaks G&C club) beautiful area but $$$$

[mikegraham]

Thanks for taking us along! Love watching!

[jacobwaymo]

Makes sure you leave it in neutral so the engine doesn’t have to spin the transmission because in park the transmission is still engaged and doesn’t do a full rotation so it is not lubercated parking gear is made for when the engine is off not stationary idling plus leaving it in neutrally helps it run cooler and make the engine and transmission lasts much longer for those long naps

[oliverlloyd]

Right on! People don't realize modern cars can idle forever. Just think about the taxi cabs and police vehicles that idle all the time and still get over 200, 000 mi on them. The van and car dwellers go through great lengths and expense for solar panels and extra batteries and they don't realize they're burning extra fuel anyway by just carrying that stuff around and from the wind resistance. So you might as well idle your car. Also instead of running a noisy generator that races at a standstill and lugging that around burning fuel just idle your car or van? I think you're safer idling because a would-be thief will leave it alone because they will know someone is in the vehicle or nearby.

[weareallamericans]

I fixed the Tundra and Forerunner "Horrible Gas Mileage" issue by driving a Sienna +PLUS+ I get more interior space to stretch out ! 🤣!

[bradleybond]

You have got me seriously thinking about trading my 1794 edition Tundra in on a 4Runner! I will be retiring in a few years and I plan to travel a lot!

[sharkmedia]

If you are able to follow the best weather in your travels, it's worth a few gallons of gas for those few days when your circumstances don't allow you to get to a temperate climate.

[Stormin]

I have a 2004 Honda civic no rust in perfect condition, I'm traveling to Sarasota to vist my Sister & her Husband, that is 1000 miles, so I need to take a nap 2 or 3 hrs and it all depends on the weather Hot Or Cold when I pull over, I'll have a CO detector. I even thought about extending the exhaust pipe away from car 5 ft or so, not sure it will do anything.

[TROllingNINJA]

2018 Toyota Tacoma 3.5 V6 2GR-FKS 80k miles

Both my girlfriend and I work at a hospital but we get out at very different hours and we have long trip home. To save on gas (sanity and sleep) she sometimes will just sleep in the truck in the parking garage and wait for me to get out. Even being out of the sun it still gets up to 100°F and I tell her to just run the engine if she needs it. I take care of my engine and do strict 5k oil change intervals but I still have an uneasy feeling when I hop in while she's still sleeping and come to find the 6-hour run time.

When I walk up to the truck sometimes I don't even hear it running and everything is still working normally. Air is blowing cold, no warning lights or anything coolant temperature is fine. But I still feel like it's doing it harm.

Should I be concerned?

[BrandonfromTN]

A guy from my highschool died because he got drunk and fell asleep in his vehicle in a garage. He was 23 years old I think. I’d just thought I’d share.

[chacaloredo]

I hate Dallas and Atlanta with a passion…yet is always on my way out of fl…

[balconyclubLA]

How would I know if my suv could do this? I have a 2002 Mitsubishi Montero. Could this work long term? I’m from Sarasota area also living in Arizona.

[Julie-yo]

Well ive been in a delima, I cannot get my place until next month so I am sleeping in my car with it running and heat on. I just woke up to a lady knocking on my window to see if I was alright.

[X]

Sleeping in a confined space, you would die of Carbon Dioxide before Carbon Monoxide got you.

[insightandintuition]

Can I do this safely in my 2019 Toyota sienna? With the heater my mechanic from Toyota dealership told me half hour on half hour off is there a mechanic on this site that knows or do you Tim

[jraci]

What are the odds? I am in Lakewood Ranch for a soccer tournament and my family decided to camp at lake manatee state park. My wife did not want to camp in the tent. So we slept in the back of my Dodge caravan. I ran the engine for A/C so they were comfortable. Then thought to myself, how safe is this? Your video was the first one I saw. Thanks for the information. Time to get some ZZZ I'll let you know if we survive the night. Safe travels!!!!

[Swindy]

If the engine oil is clean, the only thing you will do is burn gas…. No engine damage. Huge myth…

[TheMonk]

I looked it up on the internet and it is said that idling your engine for a long time is bad for it. I builds up gunk and what not. Is that true ? How long have you been doing this, and has it adversely affected your engine ?