Is It Illegal To Leave A Vehicle Idling In Wyoming?

For the question of whether or not it’s illegal to leave a vehicle idling in Wyoming, the short answer is yes - but it's yes AND no.

It’s not so much that no one wants us warm in the winter, or even about the waste of gas. It's more the fact that no one wants us to just give away a car to a thief.

Some car thieves refer to leaving a vehicle running as “puffing,” about the puffs from the exhaust on a cold morning. Car thieves look for “puffing” because they literally have to do nothing more than walk up and drive away.

Colorado bans "puffing" (well, this kind of puffing), and hg.org says, "Colorado will ticket owners who run their engine with nobody behind the wheel. Arizona, on the other hand, has a time limit, allowing a person to leave a vehicle unattended and running for five minutes or less." On the other hand, in Montana they don’t have to sit in a cold vehicle while it warms up – at least for now.

Here’s the law in Wyoming, and nothing is left unclear about what is, and isn't illegal:

The person owning or in charge of a vehicle shall have five minutes from the time of the police arrival to shut off or move the vehicle. A misdemeanor citation may be issued after that. No vehicle, even attended, shall remain idling while parked for more than 20 minutes.

The law on this in all other 50 states is here.

Just for a bit of irony, idling is not even the best way to warm up a vehicle, even in cold weather. Just drive. Today’s engines need no more than 30 seconds of idling before driving away.