Does idling your car for long periods of time use up a lot of gas?

Question

My boyfriend likes to take forever in stores so I end up sitting in the car in the parking lot with the air on because I get bored. Bad for the environment too and I'm gonna cut down on doing it but I was just wondering if it took a lot of gas.

Answer 1

You've probably heard that it takes more gas to restart a car than to let it run. Maybe that used to be true, but it isn't anymore. With modern fuel-injection engines, it takes very little extra gas to restart a car once it's warmed up.

Idling burns about a half-mile worth of gas every minute, according to the California Energy Commission. That's why hybrid cars shut down their gasoline engines whenever they stop, even for a moment.

Now you don't want to shut your engine down for every little stop in your regular, non-hybrid car - it's not designed for that - but if you're waiting for someone to run in and out of a convenience store, turn off the engine.

Bonus tip: Don't idle your engine to let it warm up before driving. It does your engine no good and it wastes gas. Instead, start driving right away, but drive gently until the engine is warm

Answer 2

Yes, idling uses the gas same as driving.

Answer 3

It uses gas, but not nearly as much as when you are driving.  I estimate idling a car uses about 1 gallon of gas per hour.  

Answer 4

While idling your vehicle gets zero miles per gallon.  It doesn't get any worse than that.

If you anticipate idling for more than a couple of minutes, turn off the engine.

Answer 5

yes, it does. and, if your boyfriend wants to leave the car on for an hour, let HIM pay for the gas, which is sky-high these days

Answer 6

ENGINE RUNNING with vehicle at rest = O MPG

Answer 7

YES! Why not join him and help him spend his money, on stuff for yourself. That should speed him up. LOL