I found this web page a couple days ago that seems to contradict most break in advice I recall. Have new engines changed this much? Or is this guy very wrong?
http://www.mototuneusa.com/break_in_secrets.htm
the final word on breaking in a new car, all the components and not just the motor, is the manufacturer and the owner’s manual. Everyone else is just attempting to make their own lives relevant …
What dagosa said ++
Running the snot out of a brand new engine paves the path to a second rebuild…
There’s somewhat of a middle ground. An engine will be broken in within 5 miles no matter what but by the same token a new engine should not be taken out and whaled on full throttle. The race car guys may get away with it because longevity is not an issue and they seem to dwell on air cooled engines.
That being said, I read through that site and saw a number of things stated that are on very shaky ground in a technical sense.
A gaudy website by someone whose mechanical credentials can’t be determined does not inspire a lot of confidence either.
One thing you should definitely NOT do is drive the car gently at the same speed for hundreds of miles. This will not seat the rings properly and may result in oil consumption.
Typical city driving is actually a good way to break in a car.
+1 to OK4450’s post.
When I was in college back in the Jurassic period, I had a professor who gave us a one question quiz… that was worth credit towards our grade. The one question was “who wrote your textbook?”. The point of the quiz was simple… if you don’t know how qualified the guy who wrote the book is, how do you know he knows what he’s talking about?
By he way, the formatting is pathetic and the thought process highly erratic. He appears to be more interested in impressing someone than in actually passing on knowledge. He seems analogous to “the man behind the curtain” in The Wizard of Oz.
Some of the points of contention I had.
The bogus finer cross-hatching used now.
Blowby wear in particles in the oil out the exhaust.
Gobs of small wear in debris.
Changing the oil within 20 miles on a new engine. I certainly don’t have a problem with doing so in 500 or a 1000 miles and feel that it serves a beneficial purpose but 20 miles is a bit much and even more so based on his reasoning.
HIs reasoning involves “machine chips” inside a new engine clogging up the oil pump. Sorry, but “chips” is a bit much and apparently he doesn’t realize that “chips” have to make it through an oil filter first.
The guy is full of beans. Read the owner’s manual and follow it exactly.
missleman is correct and put it in a polite context. It could have been “The guy is full of ____”.
Gotta agree with the others. I’ve always followed the owners manual for break-ins and never had a problem.
If an engine is rebuilt using poor machining practice and/or poor assembly techniques no break in procedures will put the engine in order. Some recommended break in procedures seem to be the efforts of rebuilders to give themselves an easy out if their engine fails prematurely.
The guy doesn’t cite a single source.
Not sure what this guy was smoking before he wrote the article.
“Not sure what this guy was smoking before he wrote the article.”
The tires.
"A gaudy website by someone whose mechanical credentials cannot be determined doesn’t inspire a lot of confidence either. "
Always being suspicious of anyone’s claims without knowing their background that allows the reader to do his own research makes me think first that this guy works for an aftermarket parts manufacturer. I am always suspicious of claims when money and sales are motivating factors. And, if it is yet to be determined, we have nothing left but to assume it is. Some one is selling something, even if it’s just an idea. Truth is often secondary to making a profit.
Cars are a big topic area susceptible to misinformation.
The more I skim that site the more ridiculous, or ludicrous, I find the statements to be. As if “machine chips” wasn’t bad enough…
That guy claims that rings don’t hold pressure in the combustion chambers because ring spring tension is 4 or 5 PSI and cylinder pressure is in the thousands.
He also claims that at idle and during easy driving the rings won’t seat because there’s not enough pressure on them and they’re quote “just along for the ride”.
Flogging the engine hard means increased pressure and better ring seating. So he says.
He also claims that it’s all backed up by professional mechanics who have torn flogged engines down and compared them to easily driven engines. Of course that brings up the question of why those mechanics are allegedly tearing apart those engines…
Just as bad as the site is the forum with a number of fawning sycophants who eat that crap up and agree with it.
That’s the beauty of the internet where anybody can say anything regardless of fact or fiction. That’s why we have a “disagree” button on our comments to self-police when I say something stupid.
I have been caught putting my keyboard in gear before my brain on a few occasions and lucky for the OP the Posting Police caught me @Bing. They didn’t know that was your special button.
Come to think of it I used a similar approach to break in my 1983 Mustang GT. Odd thing though, afterwards it used a quart of oil every 700-800 miles in city driving.
Ed B.