How to Use Remote Start in Winter Without Wasting Fuel

You fire up the remote start, watch the exhaust plume through the window, and wait. Five minutes. Ten. Fifteen. By the time you slide into that toasty cabin, you've burned through a chunk of fuel and created exactly zero forward motion. Idling gets zero miles per gallon—the U.S. Department of Energy isn't mincing words on that one.

The ritual feels right, especially when it's 15 degrees outside and your breath fogs indoors. But modern engines don't need the babysitting. Fuel injection and synthetic oils changed the game decades ago.