Does The Turbocharged Engine Of The Perodua Ativa Need To Cool Before Turning Off?

Does the Perodua Ativa need to idle/ cool off for a minute before turning off its turbocharged engine? 

With four national cars now being equipped with turbocharged engines in the form of the Perodua Ativa, Proton X70, X50 and Exora, it's safe to say that many Malaysians are now starting to familiarise themselves with how to care for engines with turbochargers attached to them.

Because many Malaysians own them now, we have many strong communities on social media where questions and uncertainties about turbocharged engines are constantly being asked.

Do you need to let the Ativa idle before turning the engine off?

One of the recent subjects that have popped up on the Perodua Ativa Club Malaysia Facebook page is the question of whether the Ativa needs a minute to cool down before turning off the engine?

According to the Perodua Ativa user manual, to prevent damage to the turbo unit, do not turn off the engine after high speed or driving uphill. Instead, drivers must give the turbocharged engine a minute to idle before turning it off unless it is deemed unnecessary, where eco idle would have switched it off anyway (Eco Idle is Perodua's term for Start-Stop System).

The instructions given by the Perodua Ativa user manual are in line with the understanding that it's best practice to allow the engine a bit of a recuperation time before switching it off IF you drive it hard or at a constant high speed. 

Why must a turbocharged engine rest? 

Turbochargers produce a lot of heat while driving and even more if driven hard. If you turn off the engine immediately, the residual heat will boil the oil in the turbo system, leading to a build-up of carbon particles that can cause corrosion and premature engine wear. By giving it 60 seconds to idle, the oil circulation will be continuous, and the turbo will cool down. 

If the Eco Idle system senses that the temperature is suitable for a start-stop operation, it will then proceed to do so, but if the temperature is on the high side, it will not allow the operation to protect the car. 

Eco-Idle does the job most times

In most cases, there is inevitably a period of low-speed driving before coming to a full stop, where it is sufficient for the engine oil to cool to a level that will not damage the turbocharger bearings.

We are not saying that turbocharged engines need to cool down before they are turned off, but it is advisable to let it cool down (idle) after a hard drive - but that is if you have to stop the car deliberately for any reason. 

Most of the time, you would have cooled the turbo off by driving at low speeds, such as when you are looking for parking or slowing down because you have reached congested roads. So as you can see, it's something you don't have to think about because most of the time, the cooling has already been done when you drive at lower speeds before coming to a full stop.