Nickerz

I came across this in another forum and was just wanting to get some feed back from some of the "car buffs" in here to see what you think. Here is a link to an article on breaking in an engine and it seems to make sense to me...

www.mototuneusa.com/break_in_secrets.htm

I hope you see this Road Rage as I would like to hear your thoughts on this too!

Thanks,
Nick

wolftag

Well, I can only hope that he's right. I have occasionally been unable to resist the temptation with my new TL (300 miles on it now).

PoochaKannInc

A earlier break-in period thread:
http://www.acura-tl.com/forums/showt...light=break-in

Another break-in period thread (I personally liked this one, lots of info):
http://www.acura-tl.com/forums/showt...light=break-in

Also refer to the TL Garage.

cvajs

i'm sure the engines are started and rev'd some before they go out for shipment.

it's general engine building practice to adjust idle to 3-4k rpm during startup of a new build and let run for 15-30 minutes. after that most items are seated. they fill fully mesh "seat" after some miles are put on.

i would not do anything out of the norm with a new car. i would go easy for first few hundred miles, then i would use as normal (as i did at about 500 miles, went up against 350z).

caball88

agreed i read that article posted on the site above numerous times and searched the net. there are as much supporters of it as people opposed to it. although his explanation seems somewhat scientific i am still skeptical. i just obey the user manual and after the break-in period i drove the car as i would normally.

Road Rage

Asked and answered previously. That posts pops up its ugly head every now and then. This is nonsense. One guy posts on the Web, and you are gonna 2nd-guess the Honda engineers? These are the guys from the same company that produces arguably the most powerful F1 engines in the world. Plus, a motorcycle is not an auto engine. (And Honda recommends break-in of their motos as well).

Do what y'all will with your cars - I broke mine in the old fashioned way - I earned it.

Better reading in this link than you will likely find here:
http://www.s2ki.com/forums/index.php...hl=mototuneusa

Nickerz

Even though the link was discussing motorcycle engines, it does say it applies to all 4-stroke engines, whether it be motorcycle, automobile, even a lawnmower or snowmobile. To me it just makes sense and I really believe the engineers are obligated to take the "safest" approach to breaking in the typical engine not the most effective way when it comes to putting it in writing (i.e., car manual).

The way I see it...if you're going to write a car manual on breaking in an engine, you have to consider the typical person, the general public, so wouldn't you write it in the most conservative way to ensure consistency? This way you avoid people abusing the controversial method and/or incorrectly following directions on a more aggressive approach. This would get very expensive - fast, as far as warranty claims go.

It would be very difficult to write a manual that tells someone to "Floor it (now-and-then) to ensure proper sealing of particular engine components" - not knowing if that person would take a methodical approach to breaking in the engine. So what sounds better? "Take it easy for the first 1000 - 1500 miles" or "Drive it hard for X miles and then do the following..." The safest/sane route would be the conservative approach.

Nick

Dr.Murdock

Well, this sounds like good news for me.I am abusing the crap ut of my engine, really high revving, but keeping the speed below 100 for safety. On the highway, i let the engine run around 5k rpm. Whne i increase the speed, i let it redline then shift into 3rd. On the street, i stay in 2nd, hovering between 4000-6000rpm. I only havw 1,900 miles on it. I hardly even stay below 3k rpm - because of this, i average 13mpg. But once i na while i feel bad for the car, so on the highway i end up getting 35mph when driving in 4th. I hope my engine turns out to "break-in" real well and not "break-down."

-I know one thing for sure; only at 2k miles, my car feel much faster then the pre1k mile mark.

Road Rage

To me, I would just as likely take the word of one "expert" and one article as have a witch doctor operature on a brain tumor. Reading all sorts of "insidious" rationalities into engineering best practices makes absolutely no sense to me - mfrs. recommend break-in based on technical measurement and experience - it is in their best interest to reduce or eliminate warranty claims, as they are anathema to profits. It is beyond me to suggest that a different pattern of break-in would be impossible for "everyman" to understand - anyone who can read or understand verbal instruction can understand "a few bursts of moderately aggressive acceleration/deceleration". Surely anyone who can afford a $32k+ motor vehicle.

I place a lot of confidence in credentials - who knows what the credentials are of Mr. Mototune? I am sure he has opinions on any number of topics, but that does not an expewrt make - perhaps even the best oil, but does that make him a credible source of expertise on tribology? Can he point to empiric studies that show wear, compression, etc at 10k, 20k, 50k, and 100k? Honda's engineers can. Whom do you trust to give the best advice on how to best bed-in your Honda? My 6 year old can draw great horses - does that make her qualified to run the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena?

dtakai

I agree with Rage. I am always a skeptic, and to go against the manufacturer and to change the way I break-in my car, I simply need to see more reliable evidence. This Mototune's work is, at best, anecdotal evidence. The type of proof he puts up as support for his theorys are weak, and I'm not just being mean or hating. It's well known in any field, be it engineering or medicine, where evidence is scrutinized that relying on anecdotal evidence is dangerous. Mototune's break-in technique could potentially have a huge impact on your cars reliability. So demand good evidence from him to back his claim.

Now let me say this also. Good evidence comes only from well thoughtout and executed studies. Anyone who knows about testing will readily tell you these types of good studies are horribly difficult and expensive to do. They require a large number of test subjects (preferably in our cases 04TL engines) and controls. But I'd argue that your TL was expensive for you to obtain, and you deserve to have decisions made affecting it founded on solid proof. Now ask yourself who has the money and will to do this type of expensive testing... Motoman? I think not.

neuronbob

Jeez, not that site again! This must be the 50th time it's been posted here. please search before posting this stuff. it's also listed in the 3G garage. Locking thread, use one of the older ones...