ARTICLE: How to Run-In your new car

[abhishek46]

Originally Posted by navdeep.rana

Now what most people say is that if we don't redline your cars engine occasionally (or at least drive it fast), your engine will start setting at that very nature. And what that means is that your car won't be able to drive fast when you will want it to because of the nature of the engine. Is that is something true or just a myth?

I have not come across any scientific evidence to prove this.

The characteristics of an engine will depend on the way it was designed and subsequent wear and tear.
It's difficult to digest how re-lining the car, which will cause even more cause wear and tear, lead it produce more power or be rev-happy.

[deerhunter]

Originally Posted by navdeep.rana

Now what most people say is that if we don't redline your cars engine occasionally (or at least drive it fast), your engine will start setting at that very nature. And what that means is that your car won't be able to drive fast when you will want it to because of the nature of the engine. Is that is something true or just a myth?

I dont know if not revving changes the engine's nature, but i have heard that redlining once in a while prevents/removes carbon build up. I am not sure if this carbon build up theory is scientifically sound, but i have heard this from many people. Maybe this carbon deposit changes the engine's nature, then again i am not too sure.

[supremeBaleno]

Originally Posted by navdeep.rana

Now what most people say is that if we don't redline your cars engine occasionally (or at least drive it fast), your engine will start setting at that very nature. And what that means is that your car won't be able to drive fast when you will want it to because of the nature of the engine. Is that is something true or just a myth?

Just a myth. One point often mentioned is to vary the RPMs during the run-in period - the tbhp run-in list also mentions it. But I don't think any one recommends redlining the car. And not doing so definitely does not limit the top-speed of your car.

[akshay380]

I have heard GTO say this regarding his vtec IIRC. In my case my 65k run Honda Dio has been maxxed most of the KM's after the run in. Service is done myself religiously and I bet it runs smoother than some of the Dios that have been run conservatively but serviced properly. Reason? I don't know!

[abhishek46]

Originally Posted by akshay380

I have heard GTO say this regarding his vtec IIRC. In my case my 65k run Honda Dio has been maxxed most of the KM's after the run in. Service is done myself religiously and I bet it runs smoother than some of the Dios that have been run conservatively but serviced properly. Reason? I don't know!

Not necessarily.
My college days ride was a bajaj boxer, whose engine disintegrated completely due to my rev-happy endeavors within 16K Kms, instead of smoothening out!

Dio/Activa is already smooth. I have personally not come across an UN-refined example. I think you really love your ride too much!!

[Altocumulus]

Not sure about myth or not, but my cars run much more smoother and has better response after a spirited highway run.

[supremeBaleno]

A spirited highway run is not the same thing as redlining a car (the original question).
Lots of folks drive as fast as their car & highway conditions allow. But only a minor %age of that would have ever redlined their car. You can do 100kmph in 5th gear & feel spirited. Redlining would need that to be done in 2nd gear (or 3rd for some cars). Not many do that. And it definitely is not a pre-requisite for your car to be able to hit it's rated top speed when the need arises.

[navdeep.rana]

Thanks a lot everyone for sharing their knowledge! Still people end up saying that a engine that is redlined more often will have better performance (or be a better performer) than an engine that is rarely red lined or driven fast.

[arunphilip]

Originally Posted by Altocumulus

Not sure about myth or not, but my cars run much more smoother and has better response after a spirited highway run.

A spirited highway run is called an Italian tuneup, and is quite different from plain redlining an engine:

The origin of the Italian tuneup comes from Ferrari. Owners would drive their cars infrequently and never run them hard, which causes the engine to build up enough carbon inside to affect performance. Mechanics would perform a "tuneup" by driving several laps around a race track to get the engine hot enough to burn out the built up carbon.

Interesting that I'm commenting about an Italian tuneup, its the second time today. It is usually recommended for cars that are often run on short trips, or at low speeds in traffic (e.g. regular office commute within a city). There's no need to push the car to the redline during an Italian tuneup, but it is important to get the engine running at the higher RPMs it normally doesn't, and let the engine reach its optimal temperature (e.g. a 20-30 km trip on a highway).

[ayankm]

Originally Posted by sairamboko

Hi All! I have my 1st service for my Alto K10 VXI AMT in a week. Should i change the engine oil and oil filter? As per the owners manual, it says Engine oil will be replaced during 3rd service which is 10,000kms or 12 months whichever is earlier. Is it mandatory to change the oil & oil filter?

Hi Sairamboko, an oil change is definitely not required. But might depend on how many kms have you driven.

You can check the levels and top up the engine oil if the need be. This is what I was told by Hyundai service. I am sure Maruti service won't say anything extraordinary.

[Altocumulus]

Originally Posted by sairamboko

Hi All! I have my 1st service for my Alto K10 VXI AMT in a week. Should i change the engine oil and oil filter? As per the owners manual, it says Engine oil will be replaced during 3rd service which is 10,000kms or 12 months whichever is earlier. Is it mandatory to change the oil & oil filter?

Originally Posted by ayankm

Hi Sairamboko, an oil change is definitely not required. But might depend on how many kms have you driven.

You can check the levels and top up the engine oil if the need be. This is what I was told by Hyundai service. I am sure Maruti service won't say anything extraordinary.

Yes it is not in the manual or recommended by the manufacturer, however it is advised. The reason being during the first few hundred kms the friction in the engine components is maximum thereby huge heat is generated which decreases the life of the engine oil. Also there will be metal sleeves present in the oil because of the metal parts rubbing against each other while the engine is bedding in. So it is better to get rid off that oil in the first service. A few hundred rupees ensures you are running clean oil in the engine specially during its initial days.

[R2D2]

When I insisted on an oil change at my car's 1000 km service, the advisor was a bit shocked. He said it's not required till 10K kms, but did replace the oil & filter on my instructions. A few thousand km later I went back and had him change the oil again but this time with synthetic. He was even more zapped. Normally customers hesitate to change engine oil and do it only when absolutely necessary.

As for the Italian tuneup, it does help but one needs to be careful about not redlining the engine too long and too frequently. And diesels, with some exceptions, generally don't like to be revved hard.

I drive at brisk highway speeds with the RPM hovering between 2,500-4000 RPM (petrol engine) in top gear for hours at a stretch which is good enough to burn off most deposits.

[Jeroen]

Originally Posted by Altocumulus

Yes it is not in the manual or recommended by the manufacturer, however it is advised. The reason being during the first few hundred kms the friction in the engine components is maximum thereby huge heat is generated which decreases the life of the engine oil. Also there will be metal sleeves present in the oil because of the metal parts rubbing against each other while the engine is bedding in. So it is better to get rid off that oil in the first service. A few hundred rupees ensures you are running clean oil in the engine specially during its initial days.

Sorry, not sure who advises this. Its totally outdated. There is a reason it is not in the manual neither it is recommended by the manufacturer. The reason is, it is not necessary!

If your engine generates huge heat however during the first couple of hundreds of kilometers you have a huge problem and an oil change isn't going to fix your engine!

Jeroen

[pacman2881]

My Creta manual mentions the following which seems totally opposite from what is normally advised-



Mine is a diesel but the manual is common for both Petrol and Diesel vehicles. 2000 - 4000 rpm looks to be on the higher side even for a petrol.

All along I thought 2000 /2200 rpm is the max advisable. Did they make a mistake while writing the manual or am I missing something?

[a4anurag]

Originally Posted by pacman2881

Mine is a diesel but the manual is common for both Petrol and Diesel vehicles. 2000 - 4000 rpm looks to be on the higher side even for a petrol.

All along I thought 2000 /2200 rpm is the max advisable. Did they make a mistake while writing the manual or am I missing something?

No harm in going to 3000 RPM once in a while. Just keep the RPM varying continuously and do NOT lug the engine.

Keep increasing the RPM limit slowly.

Best is to be in that range as mentioned by you 2000-2200 RPM.