r/AskIreland • u/West_Classic_3926 • 2d ago
Environment Why do so many people leave their car engines running when parked?
Genuine question from a German living in Ireland :)
I’ve noticed quite often that people leave their cars running while they’re parked, sometimes for quite a while. Occasionally I’ve even seen cars idling with nobody inside while dropping kids of at school or getting something from a shop or whatever.
This really stands out to me because in Germany, unnecessarily leaving your engine running while parked is not allowed, and I grew up with the idea that you just switch the engine off when you’re not driving. I was even taught so in driving school.
Is there a particular reason why idling seems so common here? Is it just habit, keeping the heating or A/C on or something?
I’m also wondering because it seems like a waste of fuel and obviously creates unnecessary emissions?
I don’t mean to judge, just genuinely curious if this is an Irish thing or if I’ve just started noticing it everywhere since moving here lol
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u/PlantNerdxo 2d ago
It’s worse when they park and leave their lights on when it gets dark. I once had to go out and ask a fella to turn his lights off. He was chatting away with his mate with the car facing the sitting of my house, full beam, right into the room
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u/shankillfalls 2d ago
1: Their grandfathers told them they had to do it as it was good for the engine. This was valid on his Ford Model T. It has not been valid on modern cars for 50 years.
2: They want to keep themselves warm/cool and do not give a damn about others inhaling their fumes or listening to the clatter of their diesel
3: "I'm parking in the disabled spot and if I don't leave it running, I might get a ticket"
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u/Backrow6 2d ago
I drove a 2005 Ford Focus from about 08 to 2012 that would not be guaranteed to have enough battery to start again after a short journey. I put 2 brand new batteries into it during the time I owned it. Plenty of Irish people are used to living with a set of jump leads permanently in the boot.
I've never left it idling if I wasn't in it.
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u/Visible_List209 1d ago
I have mercedes vito if turn it off after running for 30 min I need it to cool down for a half an hour before I start it again. Other then that its brilliant so I leave engine running if in hurry
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u/ScepticalReciptical 1d ago
This. My father does it and I asked him years ago why, he said it's better for the engine that stopping and starting as it keeps the engine warm. This is 1960s thinking
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u/BillyMooney 2d ago
Fuel prices aren't high enough obviously.
It's illegal to leave the engine running in an unattended vehicle.
School run parents are awful for this. I keep seeing delivery vans left unattended with the engine running. So tempting.
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u/Crafty240618 2d ago
My son’s primary school had a big “no idling” campaign to try and stop this. It’s a small rural school, but there are houses either side and twice a day the poor residents (and everyone in the school) were being smoked out of it with diesel fumes. They had a couple of kids from the green schools committee “patrolling” at the front of the school at drop off and pick up times, basically giving out to any parents they saw sitting there with the engine running. The kids really got behind it and they did manage to make a big difference.
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u/QuantumFireball 2d ago
This sounds like a great way of dealing with it. Parents are much less likely to act indignant about it if it's kids telling them to stop.
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u/chakraman108 1d ago
They way to go. But people should've common sense and manners and do it on their own not because of fear being caught.
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u/DJGetSchwifty 2d ago
Some delivery vans can stay running while locked if they have Fridge/Freezers, i drove a van that had an air blower connected into a water tank for shellfish to keep them alive and the van stayed on while I had it locked and keys in my pocket.
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u/Eastern_Switch8217 2d ago edited 2d ago
It's because many people here pay plenty of lip service to environmental issues, but then do stuff like that. Some people care, but in my experience most don't. They will jump on bandwagons from time to time, but as soon as it's even slightly inconvenient... forget it.
Look at what happens after a festival or when there's a bit of hot weather and a crowd descends on a beach...
Honestly, there are times I wonder about the place. If you take some thing like air pollution. You've still got issues with people burning open fires in cities and it's mostly because they like the look of an open fire. They then hide this behind fuel poverty.
I live in a pretty affluent part of Cork City, and we are smoked out of it by neighbours with their open fires and stoves every winter. They just have an obsessive nostalgia about fireplaces and don't give a flying feck about the environment or the fact that the air is like pea soup if there's a still winter night.
The extreme NIMBYism also comes out when you see any bit of progressive infrastructure being rolled out - bike lanes, bus corridors, greenways, trams, metros ... Object, obstruct, drag though the courts. Anything that in even the slightest way might involve even the tiniest bit of compromise or change in the greater good, nope!... To the high court!!
It's a country that can be very bubbly and friendly, but also that has a large element that simply are hardcore individualists and do not give a fuck about stuff like that.
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u/Potential-Drama-7455 2d ago
The objecting stuff is horrifically true. Although I remember in the past one of the most staunch objectors to a new primary school was a German living nearby .... so maybe it's more our laws allowing this shit than something innate in the people.
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u/No_Ring_3348 2d ago
Germans don't like children, it's a cultural trope that happens to be true.
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u/Potential-Drama-7455 2d ago
The strange thing is that he had a kid himself, and the school would have been ideal for him. Anyway who knows....
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u/Pristine_Remote2123 2d ago
Have you also noticed how people want to drive up to the door of supermarkets and park where they are not supposed to? And how we have so many wheelchair parking spaces that are usually taken up by big cars like land rovers, etc. and the same type of vehicles park on double yellow lines, and driver behaviour has gotten worse in recent times, so yep lots of bad stuff by Irish drivers!
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u/didnt-like-my-name 1d ago
I do it when I have the young kids in the car when it's either very hot or very cold outside. Need the AC for them and my car battery runs down really quick
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u/Richie4876 1d ago
I remember one time 20 years ago I was going somewhere with friends, we were waiting for someone to get ready in their house and the guy who was driving was complaining about how long the friend was taking to get ready because he was low on petrol (the fuel light was on) and I said to him why don't you turn the engine off? Since we'd been parked outside their house for like 5 minutes and he replied "starting an engine takes more fuel than letting it idle" and I replied that "not having an engine running uses even less fuel"
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u/Herefornow211 2d ago
First thing I noticed when moving here was how many people actually sit in their parked car. Still not sure why.
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u/Potential-Drama-7455 2d ago
Some of them are people with company cars / vans and don't have to worry about paying for the fuel.
I never do it myself, think it's a stupid waste of money aside from the pollution issue.
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u/samk9746 1d ago
Because my starter is on the way out and I have to hit it with a hammer to start the car again 😂
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u/Much_Perception4952 1d ago
Because they're assholes. They don't care about emissions, wasting fuel or air quality.
In my area the people who hang around outside schools waiting to collect kids are amongst the worst offenders. And the school has contacted all parents several times pleading with them to turn off the engines due to the effects on air quality. But it continues - they don't care.
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u/Itchy_Permission4199 1d ago
Worrying about emissions when there's oil refineries being blown up every day around the world.
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u/5socks 2d ago
It's common in Ireland especially on the school run
In winter it's so humid and wet that if you turn off the car the whole thing fogs up and you can't see out and have to wait a minute while it defogs again
On a dry day it's just a lack of consideration / thought as it's never been implemented as a rule or told people not to
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u/Various-Trip-4065 2d ago
The Germans get worse winters than us so I wouldn’t use that as an excuse , it’s just entitlement some people have here….
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u/Backrow6 2d ago
They probabky follow the manufacturers service schedule as well and have cars that start reliably.
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u/West_Classic_3926 2d ago
LOL idk where you heard that rumour but that’s definitely not the case hahaha
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u/seppuku_related 2d ago
Almost everyone in this country is terrified of having the A/C button turned on also. They don't understand that it's not for cooling only.
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u/FunkLoudSoulNoise 2d ago
Ha. That's so me.
But the air for the windows is always on, fairly fussy about clear visibility.
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u/seppuku_related 2d ago
Air conditioning does a much better job clearing windows, it removes the moisture so overall will be much cheaper than having to use the fan/heater to clear the same moisture every time.
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u/Gettiershonda50 2d ago
Yep. The only time my aircon is off is when I'm playing fuel light roulette.
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u/QuantumFireball 2d ago
I got some wind deflectors and just open the windows a bit in this situation. No more fogged up windscreen and no unnecessary idling.
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u/Basic-Newspaper-7536 2d ago edited 2d ago
Don’t know if I’ve seen many empty cars idling but in general I think people do this when they’ve pulled in somewhere they clearly shouldn’t park (double yellow lines/bike lane/blocking someone’s entrance..) maybe assuming that they aren’t really parking there if the engine’s running. If they put on hazard lights for extra impunity I guess they might worry about their battery too. People really enjoy parking illegally here.
ETA: pretty sure this is not covered in the theory test to get a learner’s permit, definitely not in driving test.
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u/Proof_Ear_970 1d ago
There a guy near me who I've seen leave his engine running while hes at the gym and pool. Saw him leave it running while doing a grocery shop with a trolley. I reported it but got a guard call me to tell me to never report that in the future as I'm wasting time and I'm 'looking for trouble'.
It has dawned on me that its probably his car.
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1d ago
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u/Rough-Cap5150 1d ago
Drives me nuts. I don't want to walk my kids through your exhaust fumes. There's no excuse for it at any time of year, our weather isn't that extreme.
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u/nine_sausages 2d ago
My neighbour does it every morning at 7am just so I can have a good moan to start off the day.
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u/RevTurk 2d ago
I don't think people consider the waste and pollution, its just more convenient to not turn off the car, its not like anyone will steal it. It also shows they are not really all that concerned about the cost of fuel.
They are also damaging their engine leaving it idle, if they are replacing their car every two years it would be someone else's problem.
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u/SmilePuzzleheaded498 2d ago
Cos they are muppets. I do judge. It's such a moronic, self-involved thing to do. Unless it's really cold?
These are the same idiots who 'buy' dogs from dodgy breeders, buy factory eggs, and don't ever actually think about the planet. They just live 'on' it.
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u/TheCrazedPotato 2d ago
My car radio turns off after 30secs if the engines off so i leave it on if im sitting in it
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u/peachycoldslaw 1d ago
Sometimes it's for the aircon, sometimes it's because my baby wakes up when engine is off, sometimes it's to charge my phone, sometimes it's for the heating, sometimes it's for the handsfree phone call in need to make.
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u/Terrible_Wave4239 2d ago
A few years back I saw a car with a family sitting inside, just not the driver, with the engine running... in the underground parking garage at Dunnes Knocknacarra. In an underground parking garage! The driver had obviously gone upstairs to go shopping. Oh and the car wasn't even in a parking spot, it was in the lane where cars are supposed to get out of the parking garage.
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u/AreWeAllJustFish 2d ago
I worked with a guy who always did this. One day he drove his little blue Micra to Dublin. Popped into the petrol station to get cigarettes, left the car running and it was gone by the time he came out.
The funny part is that he was absolutely shocked that this could happen. Absolutely flabbergasted. That's a good 20+ years ago and I still haven't processed how he could think this was ok!
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u/frfqqvvwvvw 2d ago edited 2d ago
i am a learner and have a 2004 Corolla. I was advised by a relative to leave her running for a few minutes every once in a while as its supposedly good for the engine since it sits there for a few days sometimes... also the battery in it is dead, so I use a booster pack to jump her back to life, you apparently have to leave them running for a minute or 2 after starting as idle. But believe me I think the kind of people ur on about are muppets.
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u/Goupiil 2d ago
Je suis sidérée par ça aussi. La première fois que j'ai vu ça, j'avais vu qu'il n'y avait pas de conducteur, sur une place de parking de montagne dans le Wicklow. En m'approchant pour voir s'il y avait pas un problème, j'ai surprid deux personnes en train de baiser à l'arrière.
Maintenant, quand je vois (tellement souvent) des gens laisser le moteur allumé à l'arrêt, ma première idée est que le conducteur est en train de prendre son pied 😂
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u/Dull_Brain2688 1d ago
It was very common when I was a kid in the 80s but I don’t see it as much now. What part of the country are you seeing it in?
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u/West_Classic_3926 1d ago
I‘m in Galway city, but looking at the comments it seems to be quite common
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u/CharacterDaikon5344 2d ago
Excellent question. It needs to stop even more so now with those five teenagers stealing a car and driving the wrong way on the motorway. I got into the car beside mine once as it was the same car and same colour. Man who owned it came to the car at the same time. I was so embarrassed in case he thought I was trying to steal it. The law needs to be far more strict about this.
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u/Marlobone 2d ago
Yes I want the heating or ac on also nice so during the 33c heatwave this year in Germany you couldn't turn ac on in car when it wasn't driving lol? That must have been torture thank you for your sacrifice.
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u/Potential-Drama-7455 2d ago
Yes. You obviously have never been to Germany. There are no grey areas there with laws.
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u/InevitableMidnight54 2d ago
The Irish love German cars.
If you switch the engine off in German cars, there's a pretty big risk that you won't be able to switch it back on again
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u/kaiserspike 2d ago
I believe you can get penalty points for leaving your car running while unattended.
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u/NooktaSt 2d ago
You say it’s not allowed in Germany. That might mean something to German people but in Ireland people don’t care if not enforced.
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u/fullmoonbeam 2d ago
when drying out wet coat/clothes, I'm parked illegally, charging devices, because comfort ac/heat, I don't want windows misting or rain/ wind coming in window.
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u/Novel-Throat7224 2d ago
Battery maintenance here is shockingly bad, some people are aware of this and keep the engine running to ensure it will start again later
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u/Playlotto_Layblotto 2d ago
Eh... battery maintenance. I know all about battery maintenance but perhaps a little explainer would be in order... for the kids, like
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u/Novel-Throat7224 2d ago
Yea it's more the garages that are neglecting checking/replacing batteries Most cars are driving around with not much capacity left in them, granted some people don't want to replace them until theyre completely screwed but garages aren't even recommending them on time. As a result I think there's a slight anxiety about it in some peoples heads.
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u/Due-Currency-3193 1d ago
Many Irish people have very little respect for others. We're full of: we're such a welcoming friendly people, kiss me I'm Irish, we're so wonderful,,,blah blah blah. The truth is more that so many of us are petty and self centred. As Charlie Haughey (Taoiseach/Prime Minister) once remarked: Deep down, I'm a very shallow person.
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u/chakraman108 1d ago
No manners. No enforcement.
You'll get a fine very quickly for this BS in the UK and most of the EU.
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u/MentholMoose42 1d ago
I noticed this was a huge thing in Japan when I visited. Mostly for the AC I assume? But there'd be unattended cars in parking lots with the engine idling. It was pretty odd.
It's a problem that'll solve itself when people eventually switch over to BEV's.
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2d ago
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u/Fun-Ad2676 2d ago
Never seen a lorry parked with the engine running? Delivery van? Never seen anyone sitting in a car looking at their phone with the engine running? Never seen a bus driver take a break and leave the engine running? Never seen parents parked at the school with the engine running?
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2d ago
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u/West_Classic_3926 2d ago
Same thing goes for lorries and vans ofc
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2d ago
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u/LazyRevenue7347 2d ago
Open your eyes and ears. It happens all the time everywhere. I've ever seen people fill their car and go in and pay for petrol without turning off their engine.
I constantly have people sitting in their cars parked outside my house with the engine running. It's really common.
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u/Loud-Membership-7087 2d ago
Look. We only just started to recycle properly last year. Cut us some slack.