Running in...please pass.
- Thread starter Briton
- Start date
The way I ran my engine in was by just driving it how I would do, sometimes caining it, sometimes driving gently, didn't pay much attention to the handbook but the dealer did say that the engines were run in anyway and just take it easy for a few miles for the brakes and tyres to bed in.
Even took mine on the prodrive trackday at 800miles clocked
Even took mine on the prodrive trackday at 800miles clocked
The point is that any warning which is so important that flouting it would result in the loss of your warranty should not be consigned to "small print" in the manual but instead should be explained by the dealer as part of the handover process.Briton said:
It would have to be tested in a court of course, but if a dealer tried to wriggle out of the warranty in this manner, my money would be on the customer tbh.
Besides, if it's so damn important not to rev the engine too high in the first thousand miles or so, why doesn't the manufacturer program the ECU to prevent it? Such an argument could also be used by anyone falling foul of this "warning".
Vertigo1 said:
'should'...mmm maybe but I think more likely it would be in the small print of your warranty. Actually you could equally say it's blindingly obvious that 'to rags the nuts off it' is likely to cause the seller to refuse to meet the warranty.
So you would be quite happy to sell a product and guarantee it regardless of whether the customer used it within specs or not?
That's a fair point for cars that have that capability I suppose. What if you overclocked the CPU though?
![[TW]Fox](/data/man-of-honor/2009.png){kind=avatar}
Thing is, its just not worth risking unless you do a paltry 3k a year, 1k miles will fly by, we all know what a bunch of shysters dealers and manufacturers can be, how long does it take them to admit they have inherent problems ala nikasil (bm and ford), yes you can take them to task over this in the courts but wo has the time or inclination to do so.
To be fair, the problems from poor running in will really only be noticed towards the end of the cars life, by then you will most likely not be the owner of the car.
To be fair, the problems from poor running in will really only be noticed towards the end of the cars life, by then you will most likely not be the owner of the car.
No, but I wouldn't expect to be able to void the warranty because the customer didn't follow some advice buried somewhere in a 200-page manual.Briton said:
You're making the assumption that "taking it easy" to start with is common sense and something everyone would know. This couldn't be further from the truth. As this thread and others have demonstrated, even amongst some enthusiasts there is an attitude that such measures are no longer required with modern vehicles (not debating whether this is the case or not mind), and amongst the motoring public as a whole I'd imagine this attitude is just as prevalent, if not more so.
In the absence of any guidelines to the contrary therefore, such customers will drive the car as they please. If they are subsequently told by the dealer that their warranty is void because they didn't read the aforementioned warning buried in the manual then I think they'd have a very strong case in court.
Consigning important warnings about non-obvious things to the "small print" is not an acceptable practice, nor is "should have read the manual mate" an acceptable defence on the part of the vendor.
I'd wager that virtually every new car on sale today would be capable of this without very much work at all.
Soldato
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tolerences are better nowadays.... eg honda redline their test motors for 24 hours to see if anything wears. if it wears its failed, simple as. well for motorbikes anyway, dont know about cars.
imagine how much stress its under for 24hrs, no wonder modern motors mainly fail on electrics, the motors are generally bulletproof.
imagine how much stress its under for 24hrs, no wonder modern motors mainly fail on electrics, the motors are generally bulletproof.
tonyyeb said:
Well labouring the engine is keeping it in a low gear for the speed, so you could thrash it in first gear... no rpm limit is given...
And you wouldnt be exceeding the speed limit or driving it briskly..
For a new car you should vary the rpm, a far better description of not labouring the engine... do not rev the engine hard would be another good suggestion... the instructions are vague, and merely there to reduce liability in case of a failure... not to protect the engine for its life....
Like I said, warm the engine up, vary the rpm, gradually increase rpm during the running in process...
Most people reading the manual won't even understand what labouring the engine means..
A friends dealer told him not to take the car over 60mph during the first 1000km (toyota corolla)...
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wohoo said:Thats why I rag the nuts of the ST, my clutch will be lucky if it survives 30k, god bless launch control, and vive le the company car scheme
oh dear that's the attitude that will see us destroy the environment and be running about in electric golf carts before this decade is out
not to mention why us less fortunates who have to buy there own cars are paying over the odds on the forecourts
Soldato
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I can't be bothered to read it all so I apologise if someone has already said it, but....
Older engines needed running in basically to get rid of rough edges bed in the engine internals. The you needed an oil and filter change to get rid of the ****.
These days manufacturing process are better, and the engine comes out of the box much better and pretty much ready to roll. The manufacturers still give silly rev guidelines and things to cover their own bums. Most are cycled for differing ammounts of time after being built, but this varies.
The best way (IMO) to run an engine in is to keep it in a free revving rev range and not above 80% revs for a couple of hundred miles. The worst thing you can do is labour the engine.
Older engines needed running in basically to get rid of rough edges bed in the engine internals. The you needed an oil and filter change to get rid of the ****.
These days manufacturing process are better, and the engine comes out of the box much better and pretty much ready to roll. The manufacturers still give silly rev guidelines and things to cover their own bums. Most are cycled for differing ammounts of time after being built, but this varies.
The best way (IMO) to run an engine in is to keep it in a free revving rev range and not above 80% revs for a couple of hundred miles. The worst thing you can do is labour the engine.
Dr Who said:
Did you read the bit from the ford owners manual its says - Avoid labouring the engine.
Dr Who said:
It says vary the speed - that should be enough to vary the rpm.
dr who said:
Like fox says his BMW manual says DONT warm up the engine. I think my 306 manual said that as well so thats not true.
dr who said:
Hmmm i disagree. I think the majority would.
You have yet to prove your claim of:
dr who said:
I think this is a silly statement. I would love to know the figures of cars 'killed' by owners by FOLLOWING the owners manual instructions!
Stephen B said:oh dear that's the attitude that will see us destroy the environment and be running about in electric golf carts before this decade is out
not to mention why us less fortunates who have to buy there own cars are paying over the odds on the forecourts
Company car drivers (with fuel cards) have nothing to do with forecourt prices, thank Tony and Gord for that mate.
You think i never had my own car? i have only had a company car for 4 months dude, prior to that you never found me whingeing and moaning.
Anyway i generate wealth for my company and economy, so ner
wohoo said:
Company car drivers (with fuel cards) have nothing to do with forecourt prices, thank Tony and Gord for that mate.
You think i never had my own car? i have only had a company car for 4 months dude, prior to that you never found me whingeing and moaning.
Anyway i generate wealth for my company and economy, so ner
wasn't talking bout fuel dood, I mean the inflated prices franchises charge in UK for new cars,
generating wealth for company and economy has to be the funniest reason yet for kidding yourself driving like a loon is acceptable, just say what you are "turbo nutter b'stard"
and yes I would like to own an ST but I drive 60 miles a day to work so not the most economical way to commute for me
Man of Honour
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I've always taken care to run in a new clutch - takes anything from 300 to 500 miles. I guess with new cars that plays a certain part too, as well as letting the engine internals settle under high temperature and heavy use.
I guess however, as long as you let the engine warm up sufficiently there's little damage to be done?
I guess however, as long as you let the engine warm up sufficiently there's little damage to be done?