Winter is finally here and Americans are bracing for the cold in many parts of the United States.

Given the fact that it’s so chilly outside, many people believe that they should warm up their car before embarking on their morning commute by turning on their engine and leaving the vehicle idle for ten to thirty minutes, but it has just been revealed that this is actually a very bad idea.

Experts are saying that the best way to get your car to warm up is by driving it right away because of how modern internal combustion engines operate. It turns out that the engine control units (ECU) in today’s fuel-injected engines are designed to work with any weather, even sub-zero temperatures, which means your car does not build up as much heat when it’s idle as it would when you are driving it.

Leaving your car idle when it’s on leads to extra fuel that gets into the combustion chamber, which in turn leaks into the cylinder walls.

“That’s a problem because you’re actually putting extra fuel into the combustion chamber to make it burn and some of it can get onto the cylinder walls,” said Stephen Ciatti, a mechanical engineer who specializes in combustion engines at the Argonne National Laboratory. “Gasoline is an outstanding solvent and it can actually wash oil off the walls if you run it in those cold idle conditions for an extended period of time.”

This could then cause premature wear and tear in crucial parts, like the piston rings and the cylinder liners. So, take heed of this warning and safe journey to all drivers out there this season.