How do you 'run in' a new engine?

[xxxc]

as the title says ,do you run it in hard ,i.e load it up everywhere etc ,or take it easy for the first 1000km then graduly go harder,

i beleive running it in hard is the best idea...

what do you guys think?

cheers

[svo347]

Keep it underload but dont go rev'n it too hard or high.
I did this with mine, dropped the mineral oil at 500 then 1000k's after that i gave it alot more

[Gilesie]

The last one that I ran in I towed a trailer the entire time, I did not drive hard and I did not drive soft.
Funny thing it was all in vain as my 1st maraige broke up just as I finished running the car in and I sort of forgot to mention that it required an oil change.

[Danny]

I gave mine revs all throught the rev range and drove it slow and fast and on freeways and in the city. I never punted hard either until it was fully run in.

[xxxc]

apparently its better to run engines in hard to seal the rings properly ,so that may be the go for me..

[LUXO_8]

Originally Posted by Gilesie

The last one that I ran in I towed a trailer the entire time, I did not drive hard and I did not drive soft.
Funny thing it was all in vain as my 1st maraige broke up just as I finished running the car in and I sort of forgot to mention that it required an oil change.

i have been told you shouldnt tow at all while running in......

and lol at forgetting:P

[I bleed ford]

run it pretty hard but no redline action or burnouts! if an engine is nursed to much and then you go to give her some hooter, it can be pretty bad. take danny's method..it's the right way to go

[brodfloyd]

drive it like you stole it, if its a new car, it will have a warrantee, so if u stuff it, no wukkas.
if its an old car, well it should be "classic not plastic" as the bumper sticker says and it should take a beating like a geelong wife.

[brenx]

My current engine was run in on a dyno. Roughly 6 or so hours of running inc cam break-in. After that it did about 100k's driving, then I was out racing @ Heathcote. Motor was a week old.

[Tiges]

The guys I work with at a Ford dealership, in the Pre-Delivery department, rape the hell of every car they get when they road test it. These are cars with 0-40km's on the clock, so I guess if they do it, you should do it as well...

[gtfpv]

drive it hard but no redlining . stay below 4000rpm till 1000kms .after this increase to 5000 rpm for 2000kms occassionally . then at 3000kms. go for it if it breaks then it was always going to . but they run in all the way up too about 15000kms.

[jabba]

run in secrets rip it's neck of and red line it..... And what this keep it under 4000rpm rubbish, if you want it to go hard, then drive it hard when running it in.

[gtfpv]

Originally Posted by jabba

run in secrets rip it's neck of and red line it..... And what this keep it under 4000rpm rubbish, if you want it to go hard, then drive it hard when running it in.

very interesting reading there jabba. it doesnt mention redlining much though if at all . it says drive it hard. your running in gears and drivelines too you know.soft beak ins do more damage than driving hard . i wouldnt thrash an engine too see if the valves bounce at full rpm from driving out the dealership .but before my car had 50kms on it it had reaches redline in low gears and then had brakes applied . but mainly didnt go over 4000rpm . rarely under 3000rpm for 1st 1000kms . and virtually driven with foot to floor everywhere up and down hills but not too redline .my 2c's anyhow. and i used mineral oil for 15000kms changed at 1000kms 3000kms 9000kms 15000kms . now it has synthetic . the boss 290 according to ford has harder tighter tolerance crankshaft bearings which apparantely . according to them with mki failures take much longer to run in than other engines , so i guess engine design would step in too some degree as well .its not all about gas combustion sealing . although this is detrimental too.

[Redrum]

I keep the engine working through different rev ranges, dont push it beyond 3000rpm for first 1000k and then after 1500k is open season. Never idle it for too long or stay at same speed in same gear for too long. Have run in 14 new Fords this way and all have come through well and none have missed a beat!

[XRated]

Originally Posted by DUMPT

apparently its better to run engines in hard to seal the rings properly ,so that may be the go for me..

I heard this in reference to the LS1 engines, does it apply to most/all engines?

[brenx]

If you treat them too kind? You'll glaze the bores which shortens engine life. My prior engine I ran in driving it like I stole it. Ring seal is the key to extended engine life.

[Des]

As a mate of mine (who owned and built race engines for drag, circuit and speedway as well as some hot rod work) once told me, "Let it warm up properly, then load it up as much as you can without bouncing the valves". Remember you also need to get the gearbox and diff temperatures going as well for any hi-po work. If you don't believe this, look at Ferrari, their cars now won't let you use over about half revs until engine, gearbox and diff are up to temp, then you can run it as hard as you want, straight from factory.

[OzJavelin]

Originally Posted by XRated

I heard this in reference to the LS1 engines, does it apply to most/all engines?

Had an LS1 from new, and I drove it spirited, but not hard, from the get go. It went to 80,000km between services without using any oil (yes I know they all "use" oil, but it never appeared to drop on the dipstick). That engine was replaced for gudgeon pin noise .. manufacturing fault, not run-in.
The exchange engine I let my wife drive at the start .. bad move. She pottered about in it and it started using a LOT of oil. Between that and a leaking rear main/sump .. it used about 1litre in first 1500km. Things looked bad, so after the rear main/sump fix I drove it "spirited" again whenever I go the chance and it's stopped using oil (I think?).
Moral is, yep drive em hard(ish) or they'll glaze up the bores and be an unhappy engine ..

Originally Posted by Tiges

The guys I work with at a Ford dealership, in the Pre-Delivery department, rape the hell of every car they get when they road test it. These are cars with 0-40km's on the clock, so I guess if they do it, you should do it as well...

Well thats nice to know that they flog the new cars befor people buy them. Wouldnt be buying from where you work. Idiots

[chief]

That was a really good read Jabba. I have never had to run a car in because I have never owned a new car.... yet....

[ebxr8240]

Give it heaps, well 85 % so rings bed in BUT only for short periods so rings don't get too hot.. Its the first 200 klrs that counts..After that the honeing on the bore is gone and it won't make any difference after that...Manufacterers tend to fit soft low tension rings these days with much much lighter noneing..All goood for bedding in etc..But at 100.000 klrs the rings can be stuffed but still run...
Some engines with liners as bores like Subaru have hard bores and take longer to bed in.. The gen lll may be the same? My Dart block has heaps hard bores also..
Don't use synthetic oils until 5.000 klrs...

[gozza]

interesting to read all your opinions
id be inclined to baby it for a few thousand k's but i don't really know much about engines

ive heard people say if you want it to go hard belt it when you get it
but i don't like belting my car regardless


also i drive my i6 eb around barely using any throttle for extended periods of time...my fuel av in 9.8...will this do any damage?

[Des]

Originally Posted by gozza

interesting to read all your opinions
id be inclined to baby it for a few thousand k's but i don't really know much about engines

ive heard people say if you want it to go hard belt it when you get it
but i don't like belting my car regardless


also i drive my i6 eb around barely using any throttle for extended periods of time...my fuel av in 9.8...will this do any damage?

Probably not, though I reckon it's good to blow the cobwebs out every so often. For me that usually means every couple of days at least, or every time I leave the toll booths, merge on a motorway/freeway/highway or just for the hell of it.

[EFIwindsor]

Load it up....

When my car is running again...has had a brand new engine...but rebuild with cam. better rod blts... oil pump etc.... see signiture for details...will be getting run in with a l8 night trip to the Glass house mountains. lots of hills to load it up on no traffic to get stuck in and 100km/h speed limits....

prob wont be finished un til march though...all the waiting is killing me though.

[LTDHO]

I easy mine. Remember the bearings are very tight.
After first petrol tank I go harder and third tank is red line, dyno etc.

[stiddy]

I know of people hitting revlimit leaving the dealer in brand spankers..and there cars are now freakishly quick, with no problems 40,000k's later..
I also know of poeple putting and babying there cars for 2000k's before giving them a rev and the first time they rev em out something goes wrong, and they continue to have problems when driving hard..
Id suggest drive it hard, but not thrash it.. set a real standard for it, or do what Brenx did and run it in on the dyno..

[svo347]

Is the procedure the same for those that run moly rings, as ive heard it takes longer for them to bed in than it does iron

[Outbackjack]

From my experience, it seems that working the engine without lugging it is the way to . I had a new engine in my C172 about twelve months ago. The lame stressed to cruise at 100 rpm higher than normal for the first 50 hours. The engine had special oil in it called red band. Not had a moments trouble since.....

[xxxc]

cheers for the replys ,just drive it hard .but at the moment my car is in the process of being panel beated etc ,has and will do alot of start and stop and mainly idling for the next god knows how long ,do you reckon this is a bad thing ,i do cause its just idling no load so yea...

[Steffo]

FPV's recommended run-in prodcedure for the Boss-290 V8 can be seen here... http://www.fpv.com.au/index.asp?link_id=2.419