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-   -   ARTICLE: How to Run-In your new car (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/owning-car/67729-article-how-run-your-new-car-39.html)

You are doing great and probably better than 99% of the new owners so don't worry about a thing.

In general it is good to run in an engine in varying conditions. Remember that if you decide to sell your car after say 100.000 kilometers all you're run in efforts are mostly beneficial for the next owner and not to you!

Jeroen

It sure will. That is how we are supposed to run-in a new engine and not by maintaining a constant RPM. And city traffic is ideal for this, as against highways where we will have to consciously do it.

I have booked the Grand i10 Asta(o) Diesel from MCP Hyundai, Thrissur. Hopefully I will get the delivery on Mar 20. I am a bit worried about my new car's breaking-in process. Problem is that as soon as i get the car delivered i need to take it to Bangalore from Thrissur due to work reasons.

I know that driving on a highway during break-in with constant rpm is bad. Any suggestions that I should take care of while i take the car to Bangalore? I am a bit skeptical about the whole thing and i really want to run-in the new car properly. But getting back in time to Bangalore is of utmost importance.

Thanks in advance

^^ No worries. Just follow these:

a) Don't be in a hurry. Take ample time for the trip.

b) Stay within speed / RPM limits for each gear.

c) Don't drive at a constant speed. Drive between 60 and the maximum permissible break-in speed, by not sticking to one speed more than half an hour at a stretch.

d) Take a small break after every couple of hours of running. Be mindful of where you fill the fuel en route. It will be best to fill the tank at a trusted pump before you start.

There is a school of thought which says modern cars don't require break-in. But they generally give the advice for others' cars!

Try and vary speed and RPMs safely on the highway. You just need to be gentle. When the engine is cold do not rev it in trying to build up speed on the highway. Also when overtaking, it is too easy to put it into 3rd gear and rev it up for the overtake. Try and avoid that. Don't worry too much about it. After all in the developed countries all the new cars run a lot on the highways when new. Modern engines are a lot sturdier and less prone to abuse (the ECU helps).

Thanks Gansan and sandeep108. I will surely keep these points in my mind.I guess my mind is at ease now and I can confidently make the trip with the new car. :)

The owners manual of my Gi10(D) says, no need for any special break in measures, but still reccommends driving between 2000-3000 RPM for the initial 1000Km's, avoid prolonged bumper to bumper and highways drives, and not idling the engine for more than 3 minutes at a stretch, not racing the engine.
My question is:
1.) For Gi10(D) the max torque range is 1500-2750 and max HP limit is 4000. Wouldn't driving between 2K-3K, strain the engine as the engine would be producing max torque it's capable of.
2.) As the manual says donot idle engine for more than 3min, so what i do at traffic lights/jams is, rev the engine to around 2K RPM intermittently so that i comply to rule 3 but while doing this, i violate rule 4 which says donot race the engine. So, is revving to 2K-3K OK? and what the manual means is donot race to redline?
Please advise!

Just because you are running the engine between 1500 - 2750 doesn't mean it is producing the max torque. It really depends, if you are flooring the accelerator in this range maybe. If you are driving at a steady pace, you will be way lower.

The main reason for being careful with the revs is the running in (seating) of the piston rings against the liner/piston grooves and to some lesser degree bearings. Needs to be done with the right amount of lubrication and thats why long low revs and high revs are slightly worse. If anything I would shut the engine off before revving up! Its only a 1000 km so soon it will all be behind you anyway.


Also, not adhering to these run in instructions is unlikely to show up for the first 100-150.000 km, unless you really go completely mental and go pedal to the metal all the way for the first 1000 kilometers.

just drive very relaxed, dont worry and enjoy your new car, even for those first 1000 km.
Jeroen

I'm getting my first diesel sedan (Ford Classic) next week and being a petrol engine owner (Alto) I need some clarification in running in my new ride. I don't intend to go too much into the specifics, speaking about the fundamentals only, this is what I intend to do

- Idle the engine 30-60 secs before the days first usage (I don't have to do it for every start right?)

- Lower the RPM atleast 1 min before coming to a halt/ Idle it for 30-60 secs before the days last usage (Right?)

- Don't rev hard/ go beyond 2200 mark for the first 2500 kms/ First service

- Change the engine oil after first 1000 kms (Right?)

Any other stuff that I missed?

Congratulations first for the Fiesta. Brilliant car.

Idle the for 20-30 seconds and drive of slowly, gradually increasing the speed and RPM. Drive slow till engine has reached optimum temperature (see the temperature gauge).

REPEAT this for every start when engine is cold and when the engine is already hot due to previous drive just idle for 10-15 seconds so that lubrication reaches all places.

As you'll know it before hand that your destination is near about, drive sedately (the non-turbo range) so that the engine is not that hot. In such case idling before shut-down is enough for 30 seconds.

If your last drive was spirited then, idle for 35 - 45 seconds.

Yes. No F1 style driving.

Drive sedately and gradually increase speeds rather than bursts of acceleration and no hard braking too. Remember to continually vary speeds and NOT to drive at a constant speed.

Till first 1000 kms keep the maximum speed between 60 - 70 kmph. Increase the speed and maximum RPM by 1500 every 1000 kms.

Oil + oil filter both need to be changed. The ASC will give you 100 reasons for not changing but insist in doing so.

Most important part: Enjoy the drive and the car. I know it is terribly painful to complete the Run-in period but it is fun.

Anurag.

Enjoying the car is very important indeed. not so sure about all this run-in. What does the owner manual say? Stick to that!
Jeroen

This is just not possible in my grand i10 Diesel. The manual says to keep engine between 2000-3000 RPM range. In this RPM range in 5th gear, the speed goes above 90 and by 2500 RPM it goes upto 120Kmph.
If i keep 60-70 in 5th, the engine just about starts lugging and gear change indicator asks to shift to 4th gear.
As per hyundai, there is no limit on speed, but they do limt RPM in 2K-3K range.
I would suggest RiGOD to follow your owners manual with regards to run-in instructions for engine RPM limits and speed. If following 60Kmph speed limit in 5th is lugging your engine, it's very bad for your engine. You should drive at optimum engine RPM's indicated in your manual.

I would go with this bit of advice any time: Your owner's manual is much better than all the well intended advice in this thread. Modern engines have come a long way when it comes to running in. Car manufacturers are very conservative what they put in the manual for obvious reasons, so you can't go wrong with that. Of course, you can follow the advice in this thread and it won't hurt the engine, but you won't gain anything either. Some of it is clear rubbish, but again, not much harm done.

Just follow the manual, for everyting, that means running in your engine, maintenance and maintenance interval and whether you need to idle your engine before shutting down in order to cool down the turbo.

There is a saying: "if all fails consult the manual". But really, you should consult the manual first and stick to it. Nobody on this forum, or any car forum for that matter, has any more valuable information to add to it, especially on new cars. At least for these sort of very basic things.

It is just an endless collecton of well intended, opinions. Obviously, this is just my opinion. :)

A few other thoughts on running in. If you intend to own your car for say 3-6 years, sell it on after say 100-135.000km, the running in, and a lot of your maintenance will go a long way to make the next owner very happy. Wear and tear on an engine, unless really abused over a longer time, takes quite a while to take noticable effect.

The one thing you want to try and go easy on as well the first 1000 kilometer is the brakes. Again, consult your manual, but brake rotors and pads need to settle in as well. It takes a while before they deliver the best/optimum stopping power. Your manual might say something like avoid emergency stops. I never understood that. If you need to stop suddenly you should of course, even if it is in the first 10 kilometers you put on your brand new car. Of course, the idea is to try and avoid puttting yourselve in a situation where you might have to execute an emergency stop.

Enjoy your new car! Sounds like you're a carefull owner and that's most likely more than good enough!

Jeroen

Sincere apologies guys, I didn't know that suggesting the owner of a new car based on my experience of running-in is wrong. I know following the owners manual is the best. Didn't know that I should have typed that in the first place.

Note: Since I don't want to give wrong advice to new owners based on my experience, I have asked the MODS to delete my earlier post. Why mis-guide someone the wrong way.



Here is what I do according to owners manual of my Ritz DDiS and Swift DDiS. Though speeds are not mentioned, I put them based on my experience (Sorry for that once again).

60-70 kmph in the DDiS would be between 1600-1700 RPM that is well above engine lugging range. I feel the Fiesta Classic would also have similar engine characteristics if NOT same. That the owner can judge himself by understanding whether the engine is lugging and where it is OK.

Anurag.

This is because new engines should be raced in a linear manner and hard braking means de-accelerating them in a rapid & abrupt way. So, other than the brakes running in, it is also about the engine.