Another engine break-in question.......

[TallPaul]

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Read this. A fascinating article on break in. Even though, according to the article, your engine is broken in in the first 25 miles or so, I would still work on the break in techniques, especially some hard (but not redline) runs with a hot engine.

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Please disregard this post (same link was posted elsewhere in this thread). I ran the site by a friend who is a race engine builder and he didn't buy much of what the Motoman said. My friend says, "Modern engines will seat the rings no matter how they are used when new." So go ahead and break in your car however you please. My preference would be to give is a lot of variance in speed at first. I recall when I got my new '84 F150 I was commuting to Ann Arbor for college. I quit driving the freeway and took surface streets all the way for the first so many (I forget the number now) miles so I could avoid constant speed. Of course it ballooned my commute from half hour to an hour, but with a brand new truck that was kind of nice.

 

[Dr. T]

Just drive normally....keeping the engine rpms below a certain limit for the first 1k miles. Just slowing/speeding up on off/on ramps and getting fuel will allow for varying rpms. Go ahead and use the cruise control.

No need to change oil or filter then either. Open her up after that mileage and then change things out at the first normally scheduled OCI. eg. 5k.

 

[harrydog]

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I wish there were some more definitive resources on the internet from actual manufacturers or research. The mototune page is indeed "interesting" but for all we know, the guy could be full of it.

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That's the problem. There is no definitive answer for this (other than the owner's manual) and there are as many people who say drive it like you stole it as there are people who take the conservative approach. And of course everything in between. Take your pick.

 

[Seth]

Most prestigious automakers will not rely on consumers to affect their reliability ratings. That is the reason we have so many electronic nannies today. Drive By Wire is also one such example. You would think that Honda or Toyota will let consumers screw up their camcords and get poor CR ratings? That sounds lame. They are trying to make their engines last for 200k or more.