Break-in Procedures

[punkey]

I was reading a few of the posts around here regarding engine break-in, and most of you seem to say that taking it easy for the first 1000 miles or so is the best way to do it. However, I remember coming across a link from a website a few months back that said that absolutely flogging it was the best way to go. I dug up the website (http://mototuneusa.com/break_in_secrets.htm), and it turns out that there's a lot of controversy floating around about that page. I happen to think that he makes an ass of himself, but what I know about engine mechanics and performance jibes with what he's saying (basically, caning it from the get-go forces the compression rings against the cylinder wall and wears them way smoother and tighter than babying the engine does), so I decided to see what else I could dig up.

Most of the web pages I found were people fighting over that article, but the ones that I did find that addressed engine break-in actually came down on the same side as the article. This (http://www.johnnycoolguy.com/JCGR/main/tech_break-in.html) and this (http://www.jettengineering.com/tech/breakin.html) are both regarding RC engines, but the principles are the same as far as break-in goes, beating on the engine wears the piston rings smooth. The big counter-arguement is always that it kills reliability, especially against the first article, since that was written by a guy who builds and maintains racing engines for motorcycles that get torn down and rebuilt twice a year, and if they crap out, you just lose the race, instead of being without transportation for a month while the dealership fixes your car and you pay through the nose. However, if anyone's going to be psychotic about reliability, it's going to be airplane fans, and these (http://www.carneyaviation.com/doc/breakin.htm) two (http://www.cessna.org/benefits/articles/breakin.html) websites, if you look past the pre-test "make sure it doesn't start gushing oil in mid-air" baby runs with it chocked in place and the airplane jargon, they're recommending the same thing, that it be blasted at the first opportunity, which is even more applicable to us, as many airplane engines are turbocharged to compensate for the lack of air pressure at altitude. A great article that sums it all up and references/rips-off the airplane articles (or the other way around, I'm not sure) is here (http://www.ntnoa.org/enginebreakin.htm). (EDIT: Also, there's a lot of statements floating around to the effect that all car and motorcycle manufacturers beat their engines as soon as they've build the car, directly contradicting what the owner's manual says, but I can't find any supporting evidence, so I guess that'll just have to stay conjecture until some hard proof surfaces.)

Well, go ahead, say I'm an idiot who's going to grenade his engine inside of a month. I'm waiting. :wink:

[Kurupt]

vw engines are already "broken in" and are ready for drive at the dealership

[punkey]

Then why the 1000 mile baby period? Why not just kick ass from the instant you get it from the dealership?

[Kurupt]

someone made up the 1000 mile thing bcuz they wanted to... i have heard 250, 500, 1000, 5000, its rediculous there is no set limit. in the factory the engine was run hard to c if it performed right hence pre tuned. for example when u get a spankin new dirt bike u dont baby it for a while u just start mashing on it and it performs good the whole way through... when u get a street bike u dont baby it u just hammer down on it... i dont want my fast to think i am a bitch thats why i only broke it in with moderation(50 miles) but whatever floats ur boat

[Dubsta]

Well it says in the manual to take it easy....so it really can't be made up right? I personally have taken it somewhat easy, but I have let loose on it here and there, I'm almost at 1000 now....but that doesn't mean I will pound the shit out of my baby once that happens...

Although I did when that mustang and Shitvic wanted to play over the weekend...

[punkey]

My guess is that when this became the best method of break-in, legal screamed when they heard what the engineers were planning. Which sounds more like a lawsuit waiting to happen: "Drive carefully for the first 1000 miles to break-in" or "Rev the shit out of your car while driving and drive very fast to break-in". At the factory, when they do their factory break-in (which can't possibly be long enough to truely break-in an engine, 2-5 minutes of full-bore RPM does not a break-in make, and any longer would slow down the production line), they have either the engine or the car on a dyno, which provides the load needed. Since most people don't have access to a dyno, the only place they can provide continuous high-RPMs under load would be on the open road.

Pre-tuned is not the same thing as broken-in. Tuned just means that they have it set up to produce more horsepower or be more reliable, depending on what the manufacturer wants. All cars are technically "factory tuned", as no car manufacturer just takes a engine, slaps it together from spare parts, and then throws it in a car. They're all tuned to some extent. Broken-in means that all the parts that need to provide seals and lubrication in the engine are properly ground down to match the parts that they rub up against, and that takes more than a few minutes of hard riding.

[Freek]

like ive said before in these types of posts....i dont believe in a break-in period...most new cars engines are already ran for a bit while testing them to make sure they run ok...so that right there puts some miles on the motor

when i got my GTI the other day i left the deal and smacked a paddle at redline leaving the dealer and did it again for 2nd gear....i drive it like that cuz i know for the life of the car it will see redline alot and see lots of high speeds..on the way home i got about 110mph and the car only had like 25 miles on it

i think if the car is going to be driven had for its life time then it should get used to it right off the bat..if its going to be babied its life time then u should take it easy...just IMO

[Kurupt]

like ive said before in these types of posts....i dont believe in a break-in period...most new cars engines are already ran for a bit while testing them to make sure they run ok...so that right there puts some miles on the motor

when i got my GTI the other day i left the deal and smacked a paddle at redline leaving the dealer and did it again for 2nd gear....i drive it like that cuz i know for the life of the car it will see redline alot and see lots of high speeds..on the way home i got about 110mph and the car only had like 25 miles on it

i think if the car is going to be driven had for its life time then it should get used to it right off the bat..if its going to be babied its life time then u should take it easy...just IMO

finally some1 agrees with me and yea i did the same thing on the way home lol... then again it might be a GA boy thing

[Wild Hare]

Rule of thumb of most great engine builders is first 500 miles go easy and allow things to break-in seat and then drive it like it's stolen. And yes, synthetic oil can be used from mile one.
But if you believe they (VW) spent their good natured time on an assembly line breaking in your engine... then go adhead and beat it from the get go.

Good luck, it's your wallet.

[Kurupt]

well i dont plan on having this car till i am 40 years old(no offense) but by then i will have moved onto bigger and better things

[loccusst]

You are supposed to take it easy for the first 500 miles. If you don't want to do it for your motor then do it for your clutch and brakes. They need a brake in period too. Also, don't do what so many people do...let the car idle within the first 500 miles for a long time. The whole letting the car sit and idle to warm the car in the winter on a new engine does nothing but polish the valves.....not good.

[jkaruzas]

Here is what I plan on doing (I take delivery in less than 3 weeks!!):

Many people say wear a metal shoe from the get go, others say go easy for the first 1000 miles. I see articles that substantiate both claims, so i decided to go for the happy medium. I plan on being VERY, VERY gentle for the first 100 miles. then a little more aggressive up until the 250 mark. step it up a notch and get used to a good amount of wheel spin through 500, and then hold very little back until 1000. I think it gives you the best of both worlds; you won't kill your engine in a month by blowing out the gaskets before they are saturated with oil, and at the same time you'll smooth the inside of the cylinder walls effectively. It will also allow you, as a driver, time to learn your car and how she responds before you go giving the rev limiter a workout.

Just my 'rational' thoughts. Happy motoring!!

[Rabbit GTI]

Here is what I plan on doing (I take delivery in less than 3 weeks!!):

Many people say wear a metal shoe from the get go, others say go easy for the first 1000 miles. I see articles that substantiate both claims, so i decided to go for the happy medium. I plan on being VERY, VERY gentle for the first 100 miles. then a little more aggressive up until the 250 mark. step it up a notch and get used to a good amount of wheel spin through 500, and then hold very little back until 1000. I think it gives you the best of both worlds; you won't kill your engine in a month by blowing out the gaskets before they are saturated with oil, and at the same time you'll smooth the inside of the cylinder walls effectively. It will also allow you, as a driver, time to learn your car and how she responds before you go giving the rev limiter a workout.

Just my 'rational' thoughts. Happy motoring!!

that is one of the best reasonings i have read for a solid break-in period.

[Freek]

Here is what I plan on doing (I take delivery in less than 3 weeks!!):

Many people say wear a metal shoe from the get go, others say go easy for the first 1000 miles. I see articles that substantiate both claims, so i decided to go for the happy medium. I plan on being VERY, VERY gentle for the first 100 miles. then a little more aggressive up until the 250 mark. step it up a notch and get used to a good amount of wheel spin through 500, and then hold very little back until 1000. I think it gives you the best of both worlds; you won't kill your engine in a month by blowing out the gaskets before they are saturated with oil, and at the same time you'll smooth the inside of the cylinder walls effectively. It will also allow you, as a driver, time to learn your car and how she responds before you go giving the rev limiter a workout.

Just my 'rational' thoughts. Happy motoring!!



sounds good to me

like i said in my post...i drove my car hard from the get go...its almost at 3k now...and running like a champ

[Wantagti]

Every one of my drag racing friends over the years have broke them in like they want them to run, hard. I have done the same myself and have never had a problem. The days of break in are pretty much over. That was kind of funny back in the 70's when engines needed overhaulin' at 50-60,000 miles.

[tydale3]

The main thing about a break-in period is not to stay at a steady RPM for extended periods of time and not go over 80% of full throttle. The amount of miles or time you do this is the argument. I chose 2,000 miles. Motorcycles I go 500 miles. However i found nothing in the owners manual that even comes close to a break-in period. Race cars are race cars, they tear down their engines on a regular basis, befor damage occurs. I plan on getting many many miles out of my MKV. I truley believe that running it hard with no break-in period, shortens the life of your drivetrain.

[KaynE]

haha... At 300 miles, I was already revving it up to 6k rpms at full throttle.

I don't know about the engine, but it sure as hell won't be good for the clutch.

[MachSchnell]

Mine is now a month old and has just under 1400 miles on it. I got on it right out of the dealership, and haven't stopped since.:burnrubber:

I've never held to a break in period for any of my cars, and have regularly seen mileage over 200K before death-of-auto. And by that time, I'm ready for them to die so I can get something new.

Oh...post #1 for me here!! Yaaaay.

[GTI lover all over again]

I've always driven engines hard for break in, just short of red line,

They have always lasted well past 250K plus with no oil issues or loss of compression.

My MKI GTI was broken in that way, and after 23 years it still gives hell when I stomp on it!:burnrubber:

and the engine is still tight, with good performance.

I've rebuilt engines because rings have blown, oil pumps have gone toast, but those have been north american vehicles, big block engines.

My german cars are still virgins, never been into the engines yet!

So I would say, break in a north american car slowly, first 500 to 1000 miles or Km, them push them harder.

German engines, give them the go from the get go!:evil:

They seem to have been designed that way!:thumbup:

[Gazz]

Babying the motor during break in can glaze the cylinder bores so the rings don't seat so well. Best rule of thumb is to vary the load, i.e no long periods of constant revs and run it 80% of max revs for the first 200 or so.
Main thing is to regularly change the oil and service.

[bigdyno]

wow, it never ends! One thing that I don't see alot of people mentioning is the heat cycles that a new engine needs to go through from new. I won't get in to a big rant about how it applies to break in, but I will say this: Load is what you need to start your engine's life properly. I don't think bouncing off the rev limiter is the thing to do, nor is babying the poor car. Steady accelleration will induce load on all the engine parts (yes this includes rings which need pressure to work properly).

If I could make a perfect place to start a new car, it would be a long hill that flattened in steps so it would look like a stair case. You would accellerate enthusiastically during the "up" parts and ease off the throttle on the flat parts. This would provide a load period and a rest period, thereby allowing heat and pressure to build and then let the heat be removed so you wouldn't build up hot spots.
repeat as required.

Just my thoughts

[Boonedock82]

anyone have any opinions on how to go about your first oil change. A shorter period of time??? A slightly longer lenth of time, do it immediately with a synthetic?

[Wild Hare]

The time they recommend and synthetic is the way to go!

[Meat]

Just do everything normally. Drive the car like you're going to drive it all the time.

[stevezor]

I asked this question while leaving the dealer lot. The techs replied "drive it how you would drive it normally". I just smiled and peeled out off the dealer lot. Everything seems to be going fine, 5k miles, no issues, and didn't burn a drop of oil (something vw's are notorious for).

[gniknave]

I could have sworn VW uses synthetic from the factory...

[Shotinthehead]

I'm at about 3000 miles and i've been beating the shit out of my mkv. Honestly i've tried to take it easy but its just so damn tempting. one thing i do though is to never push it when its cold. other than that I floor it alot. Glad to hear that it might not be bad for my car though....

[Tom$lick]

finally some1 agrees with me and yea i did the same thing on the way home lol... then again it might be a GA boy thing

I've run mine in hard, loading the rings under power and under decel. I have access to the autobahn which helps to facilitate this type of run in. I did this the second day I got the car and since then I haven't given it a moments peace. I've even run sitting on the top end limiter for more than 10 miles. I currently have ~3200 miles on it and no issues. I've always made sure the engine and oil were up to full operating temp before getting on it. The worst thing you can do is dog a cold engine.

FYI- I'm from Carrollton, GA

[speedlimit256k]

yeah same thing here. i picked up mine from the dealer and about 5 min later i was on the autobahn maxed out! :burnrubber: ive driven all my cars hard from the first mile and no problems.

[conom06d]

The time they recommend and synthetic is the way to go!

I am a general aviation pilot training for the airlines and suprisingly many of the thing we are taught about engine performance for aircraft applies to cars too. If an engine is running a mineral based oil during "break in" a synthetic should not be followed right away, the sump must be drained. However, i read in this thread and don't know if it is true, but we supposedly run synthetic from the start which is ok too. it is just switching back and forth which is bad.

As for engine break in, our instructors always say to stay in a higher gear using more throttle at low rpm to increase the pressure in the cylinders which wears out the piston rings helping them set in place. I am not sure if this applies to turbocharged engines, but definitely NA engines. I have always heard 1000-1500 miles but dunno 4 sure, this is my first "New" car so I will definitely be continuing to read this thread.

[GotGTI?]

just puttin in my 2 cents, my car had 400 some odd miles on it when i bought it and i drove it how i was gonna drive it. all the wrench heads and car people i know have always said and done this "break it in how ur gonna drive it". so i did. and after a few thousand miles i dyno'd my car to see what it had STOCK, hence, stock, and it hit 207whp and 202wtq. yeah it's nothing amazing but hey, not bad for stock.

[gotboost]

I normally tried to break it in but when you just feel that turbo pulling u just forget about the breaking in stage. I tried but i couldnt do it. lol

[mk5nrg]

) 30 minutes later after the purchase i was already practicing shifting gears at 6000rpm....bastard , but never managed to shift before 6500 what a bastard .

[Geesevs]

just puttin in my 2 cents, my car had 400 some odd miles on it when i bought it and i drove it how i was gonna drive it. all the wrench heads and car people i know have always said and done this "break it in how ur gonna drive it". so i did. and after a few thousand miles i dyno'd my car to see what it had STOCK, hence, stock, and it hit 207whp and 202wtq. yeah it's nothing amazing but hey, not bad for stock.

207whp and 202wtq stock is pretty damn nice man. I did 179/211 stock.

[conom06d]

just puttin in my 2 cents, my car had 400 some odd miles on it when i bought it and i drove it how i was gonna drive it. all the wrench heads and car people i know have always said and done this "break it in how ur gonna drive it". so i did. and after a few thousand miles i dyno'd my car to see what it had STOCK, hence, stock, and it hit 207whp and 202wtq. yeah it's nothing amazing but hey, not bad for stock.

So how did you drive it??? Hard, soft, gentle on daily commutes and hard every once in a while? :iono:

[Rukbars1]

I drive my car every day like I stole it and cops are on my ass no but seriously I give it good hard rev once and awhile but when I know im about to park it I drive it gentle for a little then little sit for 30seconds to a minute

[mk5nrg]

I drive my car every day like I stole it and cops are on my ass no but seriously I give it good hard rev once and awhile but when I know im about to park it I drive it gentle for a little then little sit for 30seconds to a minute just to make yourself feel better , i know im gentle after and try to talk with her and not be mad at me .:wink:

[Gluzko]

Im at 600km at the moment and I broke to 4000+rpm (coincidentally) should I continue pushing at the 4000 rpm range at this mileage or should I ease it back to lower revs (i.e. around 3000 rpm)...


Just a question though, if were to follow the manual to breaking in myengine, what would be considered as high engine speed and consequently I should be avoiding, is the redline the only high engine speed according to vw? or is it any revs about 3000 rpm (as it says in the manual to avoid high engine speed, but they never gave an estimate of such rpm)

[UMassJ77]

I beat the CRAP out of my GTI when i got it, and it runs GREAT!! I honestly believe that if a CAR isn't meant to be driven, then FROM THE FACTORY, there should be some kind of Speed GOVERNER that doesn't allow for Over-revving of the engine...and after certain mileage it will disable itself. But alas there isn't such a thing, because the ENGINE is already broken in.

But each to his/her own....in the end it doesn't really matter. I have read too many conflicting articles on vehicle break in procedures. I know from experience I beat my MKIV 2.sl0w when i first got it back in 99, and it has over 160,000miles on it. Not a single damn issue with it, never replaced a single component of the engine or transmission....and the car still runs great. So for me break in meant DRIVE IT LIKE YOU STOLE IT!!! =)

[Zuhaib]

Well i plan to take the middle route.
For the first 300 miles i baby this thing let everything set in. Then after 300 to 500 i have been going baby with a few close to red line moments when needing (Like over taking). Right now she just got 600 miles so i plan to open her up a bit more too 1000 and then drive it like i stole her. It worked for all my cars and bikes (a 03 Passat which now my sister has with no engine problem at all, 06 S500, 05 Softail)

Well for Harley's they call for an Oil change at the first 1k, and boy i found a little metal in there, but after that she was good. But that is aircooled motor so oil is very important in a bike like that.
So yeah, some might like to drive it like they stole it off the dealership lot, but then again i was just reading the post about the kid bummed for the fact his parents wont buy him a GTI. So yeah, when its not your money its easy to beat on it. Also its not just your Engine your breaking in, its also your Tranny, Brakes, Tires (If you picked up your car with less then 150 miles), Suspension, and everything else. While Tires are not that important on cars, as you have 4, on bikes you only have two and slick tires make for more then just a bad day.

[Gluzko]

Well i plan to take the middle route.
For the first 300 miles i baby this thing let everything set in. Then after 300 to 500 i have been going baby with a few close to red line moments when needing (Like over taking). Right now she just got 600 miles so i plan to open her up a bit more too 1000 and then drive it like i stole her. It worked for all my cars and bikes (a 03 Passat which now my sister has with no engine problem at all, 06 S500, 05 Softail)

Well for Harley's they call for an Oil change at the first 1k, and boy i found a little metal in there, but after that she was good. But that is aircooled motor so oil is very important in a bike like that.
So yeah, some might like to drive it like they stole it off the dealership lot, but then again i was just reading the post about the kid bummed for the fact his parents wont buy him a GTI. So yeah, when its not your money its easy to beat on it. Also its not just your Engine your breaking in, its also your Tranny, Brakes, Tires (If you picked up your car with less then 150 miles), Suspension, and everything else. While Tires are not that important on cars, as you have 4, on bikes you only have two and slick tires make for more then just a bad day.

So in the 300-500miles (600km) area you were pushing it to 4000rpm+ at times right? I think I am going the similar method as you are using.

[MOPAR man]

Folks,

Very interesting posts. Don't forget that a new vehicle not only has a new engine, but everything else. All engine driven accessories (alternator, A/C compressor, a hydraulic power steering pump), the transmission (gears/bearings and seals), CJ joints, wheel bearings, etc.

So my personnal opinion is that a break-in procedure permits ALL dynamic components to be run-in prior to full load/full speed is achieved. Has anybody in the group bought two "identical" cars and broken in one and not the other and then run them both for 150,000 plus miles? Any car should easily last 150,000 miles without a rebuild (rings/bearings/valves).

[72luke]

Just passed 1,000 miles today while travelling on I-75.

Speed at time of 1,000 miles : 106 mph.

Don't tell my wife. She was sleeping...

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

[=silent=]

All ideas seems to be very interesting here. I had mine for about 2 weeks now and Im going quite easy on it. Some times I charge it but only up to 4000rpm. I think im gonna go easy on it and slowly building up after 1000km. I was just wondering this. If you go really low. Lets say gear change around 2500-3000 rpm would that cause any damage??? Especially on uphill roads.

[72luke]

omg, read the thread, please.

repeat after me "load engine, rest. load engine, rest."

:burnrubber: :thumbsup: :burnrubber: :thumbsup:

[UMassJ77]

All ideas seems to be very interesting here. I had mine for about 2 weeks now and Im going quite easy on it. Some times I charge it but only up to 4000rpm. I think im gonna go easy on it and slowly building up after 1000km. I was just wondering this. If you go really low. Lets say gear change around 2500-3000 rpm would that cause any damage??? Especially on uphill roads.

Man drive it like you stole it!! shifting at 2500rpm's is normal driving :confused: so how can you damage anything???? Even shifting at redline is fine....your engine will thank you...if you drive it hard sometimes. This of course is my personal preference and experience!