New engine "break in".

1315 Views 6 Replies 7 Participants Last post by steveo, Apr 20, 2013

shanesmith

Discussion Starter · Apr 19, 2013

Okay, just had a new Lt1 based engine built. Has about 20 miles on it. This is more of a discussion point or informal survey, if you will. I'm interested in seeing how everyone goes about doing the "break in" of a new engine. I've seen basically two methods. The first is the one we're all familiar with.(the method recommended in vehicle owners manuals) The second, which i'm personally less familiar with states that you should, and I quote, "drive it like you stole it". At present, I'm going with the former. What do you,all think?

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Xzauhst

· #2 · Apr 19, 2013

I babied mine out of the garage, then nailed it as soon as I hit the road. Haven't looked back since.

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Racy Roadmaster

· #3 · Apr 19, 2013

I dont think you should drive it like you stole it, thats just crazy. But you should cycle in the rings ,if you dont do the right stuff "out of the box"
then anything after that dosent matter. People go out and spend alot of $$$ for a new motor,if break in is important to you, then you need to ask these questions before you start it, ed

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USMC

· #4 · Apr 19, 2013

Put strong magnets on the bottom of your oil pan and oil filter. Then take it easy for the first 500 miles breaking it in gently. Let everything break in and then change the oil, flush with a couple quarts and your golden.

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shoebox

· #5 · Apr 19, 2013

I'm almost sure there was a long thread in the past that covered engine break-in. The biggest thing is the rings need to be subjected to a reasonable amount of acceleration and deceleration to seat.

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KW Baraka

· #6 · Apr 20, 2013 (Edited)

shoebox said:
..........The biggest thing is the rings need to be subjected to a reasonable amount of acceleration and deceleration to seat.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^THIS!^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

What I do is......:

1. Fire up the engine, and take it for an 'in town' drive.....maybe 20 to 25 miles;

2. Then immediately take it on the expessway and 'drive it like you fvckin' stole it'! If you can't drive it like you stole it, put the tranny in 3rd gear (for a 4L60E) or 4th gear (for a M6) and alternate your speed between 50 and 65 MPH with the occasional 'goosing' to about 75 MPH. This will give you a wide variance of moderate to high RPMs. Do this for about 20 miles or so.

3. Take it back to the garage and drain/replace the oil, change the filter.

4. Drive normally from there, on.......change oil again 500 miles later and then change oil at regular 3000 to 5000 mile intervals.

5. NOTE.....start out with dyno oil and if you want, switch to synthetic at the 2nd or 3rd 'normal' oil change.

6. REMEMBER.....this is a hydrualic roller valvetrain engine, not flat tappet......so no need to baby the darn thing anymore!

KW

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steveo

· #7 · Apr 20, 2013

except for varying throttle (not holding at any particular rpm), and not subjecting the engine to excess load during the first few hours of operation, all other break-in procedures are total bullshit. imho.

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