Engine break-in question

[HaloEye]

I have a question about engine break-in. I have never owned a new car and was curious if cars are like motorcycles, meaning you should keep the RPMS low for the first few hundred, maybe even first thousand miles. i know the obvious answer may be yes but just wanted to make sure.

[mryakan]

The manual explains the breakin period very well, but in short, stay below 4500 rpm and 100mph and vary the engine speed often for the first 1200 miles.

[MIMI1]

I have a question about engine break-in. I have never owned a new car and was curious if cars are like motorcycles, meaning you should keep the RPMS low for the first few hundred, maybe even first thousand miles. i know the obvious answer may be yes but just wanted to make sure.

Drive it like you stole it. 1st 20 miles or so determine the way your rings will seal. I never drove any of my new cars at indicated levels by the book. When I sold them they were some of the strongest running engines. Now i have a 09 Honda Fit which i beat the living piss out of since day one with nearly 40k miles. Pulls so hard to redline you would be surprised.

[GaryX]

Drive it like you stole it. 1st 20 miles or so determine the way your rings will seal. I never drove any of my new cars at indicated levels by the book. When I sold them they were some of the strongest running engines. Now i have a 09 Honda Fit which i beat the living piss out of since day one with nearly 40k miles. Pulls so hard to redline you would be surprised.

Can more people corroborate this? So new BMW with say 17 miles from the dealer I should redline on the way home and the first week? When exactly do the rings 'seal'?

[AshamedGorilla]

Can more people corroborate this? So new BMW with say 17 miles from the dealer I should redline on the way home and the first week? When exactly do the rings 'seal'?
The theory is (I think) is that if you drive it hard, the sealing rings around the pistons will seal better. This will give you a supposedly stronger engine. However, some people feel that this will decrease the overall life of the engine.

So, hard break in means stronger engine. Easy break in means longer life.

I think that's it.

[mrkt321]

People will have convincing arguments for either option, but if you look at an engine like what's put in the new Gtr, it's redlined for 10 minutes right after it's put together and then owners are instructed to follow a normal break in. This definitely backs up the "first 20 miles theory."

[subawang]

Most rings are already sealed from the factory. All manufacturers already do some sort of break-in at the factory. Even though they recommend a certain break-in procedure, I'm not totally convinced that it makes a huge difference.

[E36BMW3series]

500 miles - Change the oil, and have fun.

[BradR127]

If you do a search here, you'll find numerous threads regarding break-in... and you'll also find that there is no consensus. :rolleyes

Everybody has a different opinion, and none seem to be backed up by hard scientific fact. :)

[ceb]

Everybody has a different opinion, and none seem to be backed up by hard scientific fact. :)


...what the manufacturer requires in the owner's manual - but - what the hell do they know - they only designed and built the things.

I've broken every new car I've owned in according to the manufacturer's requirements. None of my cars ever burned oil when all the people on the forums were moaning about their cars burning oil. Did they have the most amount of "MaD PoWeR yo!" - probably not, but I've never been stranded on the side of the road either <<ceb knocks on wood>>

[HaloEye]

i guess i will just take it easy for the first few hundred miles, then beat the crap out of it... best of both worlds

[BradR127]

...what the manufacturer requires in the owner's manual - but - what the hell do they know - they only designed and built the things.

I've broken every new car I've owned in according to the manufacturer's requirements. None of my cars ever burned oil when all the people on the forums were moaning about their cars burning oil. Did they have the most amount of "MaD PoWeR yo!" - probably not, but I've never been stranded on the side of the road either <<ceb knocks on wood>>

Exactly my point: no "scientific facts"... just anecdotal. There are also plenty of people that have broken in cars according to the manufacturer's recommendations and had their engines fail. There are plenty of people that have broken in cars really hard and had their engines be fail-proof.

I guess I haven't seen the scientific study that the manufacturers' recommendations are based on. If anyone has it, please post it!

[Kevlar]

I would do what it says in the manual... those engineers get paid lots of money to do what they do and do it well. And if anything goes wrong and you didn't follow their rules, they are going to blame you.

[mryakan]

I guess I haven't seen the scientific study that the manufacturers' recommendations are based on. If anyone has it, please post it!
Manufacturers don't publish that, but they will use the statement in their user manuals against you. Guess who will win if it ever goes to court for example.
It really isn't that hard to follow the manufacturer recommendations for 1200 miles.

[BradR127]

Manufacturers don't publish that, but they will use the statement in their user manuals against you. Guess who will win if it ever goes to court for example.
It really isn't that hard to follow the manufacturer recommendations for 1200 miles.

I'm not saying it's hard to do, and I'm not saying it's right or wrong. In fact, I'm not saying anything is right or wrong... I was only pointing out there has never been a consensus here about breaking in, and no one is ever able to point to a scientific study that evaluates break-in procedures over the short and long term. Everything is always anecdotal for all types of break-in, and nobody ever agrees on what is best.

[HaloEye]

well if something goes wrong, there is always the warranty. but i think if something goes wrong it is going to be years after the warranty is up

[SimonSingh]

The theory is (I think) is that if you drive it hard, the sealing rings around the pistons will seal better. This will give you a supposedly stronger engine. However, some people feel that this will decrease the overall life of the engine.

So, hard break in means stronger engine. Easy break in means longer life.

I think that's it.

This pretty much covers it. But then some other valid points are raised - if something goes wrong while beating it during break in, then be prepared to pay for it out of your own pocket (if it's blatent it's down to not following the recommended manufacturers break in period)

Just down to how much you value the car and if you can afford to cover any expenses. To be safe just follow the manual and you'll be fine.

[BradR127]

This pretty much covers it. But then some other valid points are raised - if something goes wrong while beating it during break in, then be prepared to pay for it out of your own pocket (if it's blatent it's down to not following the recommended manufacturers break in period)

Just down to how much you value the car and if you can afford to cover any expenses. To be safe just follow the manual and you'll be fine.

Just playing devil's advocate here.... Say something happened to the engine while under the warranty. How could they prove one way or the other that you did or did not follow the recommended break-in procedure? Therefore, how will they know to cover or not cover the repair?

[HaloEye]

i thought the same thing too bdr. i do not think there is a way to see if break in procedures were followed. but what do i know, cars these days are like computers so i wouldnt be surprised.

[mryakan]

Just playing devil's advocate here.... Say something happened to the engine while under the warranty. How could they prove one way or the other that you did or did not follow the recommended break-in procedure? Therefore, how will they know to cover or not cover the repair?
They do have black boxes in the new cars recording every single bit of data. Whether anyone will bother checking is another story, but is it worth the risk finding out? Not like breakin is a bad idea. Not only does the engine needs breaking in, it is also the brakes, tires, transmission, you name it. It all needs to settle down.

[Critter7r]

This pretty much covers it. But then some other valid points are raised - if something goes wrong while beating it during break in, then be prepared to pay for it out of your own pocket (if it's blatent it's down to not following the recommended manufacturers break in period)

Just down to how much you value the car and if you can afford to cover any expenses. To be safe just follow the manual and you'll be fine.


See, that's just it.. You're not just driving the crap out of it just to drive the crap out of it.... if you're doing the "drive it hard"-type of break-in properly, you don't even take it up to redline, just get it up to 5-6000 RPM and then allow the engine to slow the vehicle, then get back on the gas up to 5-6000 RPM and then let off the gas, etc... Very smooth, very methodical. You don't even use FULL throttle to get up to those 5-6000 RPMs, and you're not running it to redline. If you follow the directions, you're really not even running the engine that hard.