I was just speaking with a service advisor here in Tall., FL, b/c I am still waiting to receive my truck back w/ a brand new engine. We were talking about the 'break in' period and I told him it would be nice to have the truck this weekend b/c I am going out of town and could put some miles on the truck. He says he just traded in his Harley Edition and bought an 03 Cobra. He then told me that if you plan on driving a car hard, you should break it in hard, from the beginning. He said he had been WOT everywhere, including hitting the rev limiter and power shifting even.

Is this true, should you really beat up the engine during the break in period? Or does this guy just not know what he's speaking of and about the F@#* up his 03 Cobra.

Thanks, any info will help

 

Some say yes, some say no. Who's right? Dunno. Duncare.

Given the "go ahead, step on it" attitude of my salesperson, I figured that the few miles on my truck had been hard ones anyway. So I pretty much abused it from the get-go.

The fact is that modern engines don't really "break in" like older ones.

 

Well, you are the perfect person to have answered this considering I gather info from your site all the time. Thanks for answering my question and for having such an informative web site.

I think i'll just drive it in the middle the first 1000. Some hard, some normal. Definately not ***** to the walls the whole time like the tech person suggested.

Again, thanks

 

I think everyone has heard that addage "break it in like you're going to drive it" and also "if it's going to break, let it break now". I traveled to Yuma to purchase my L new. Long story. Roughly a 185 mile freeway drive back to Phoenix. Pretty much 75-80 the whole way. Seems like a better way to break in a new motor than 5-10 mph in bumper to bumper traffic. Just another thought.

 

Everybody has an opinion on this one, who is right, I have no idea.
I drove my truck easy to the street and did a burnout leaving the dealership. Took it fairly easy for the first 100 miles. Changed the oil and then started to beat on it, because, like what was said, if its going to break, let it break under warranty. Made it to 3K miles and then I let the mods begin

 

God I cringe when I read these posts. That is absolutly not true. While modern engines may not need the time to break in as "old" engines did, they certainly do need a break in period. Everything from bearings to rings and cyl walls to valve train, valves, and guides all have a wear in allowance.

While I don't work for Ford, I can give you my experiance in a nut shell. I worked for about 15 years at an Evinrude (outboard motor) dealership, and I can tell you, there is a night and day difference in 99% of the engines we see that have been broken in properly. Infact the new engines log the engine rpm and load for the dealer to download and track the usage of a perticular engine.
For the past 8 years I have worked with large (30,000 hp) diesel engines, and done several major overhauls. After a complete rebuild of a COLT Pielstick 4 stroke V10 twin turbo diesel, the ship is taken out for a "work up" This involves running for varying intervals and then stopping to check crank web deflections, bearing caps, and so forth. It takes several days of running around the clock at low loads before the engine is capable of "full power" (above 60% load) runs. And this is with a "run in" compound wich is basically an abrasive added to the fuel system to accelerate break in.

So, while I'm not an expert on Ford Mod motors, who would you listen to, an engineer or a lawyer? (Tim, not REALLY a crack at you, mostly just busting on ya cause you are the first to throw out the search police on me!

 

Put it in first and drive around red line for about a grand...lol

Man if I was a service advisor there would be NO WAY I would say what he said. I would just say, something like "Its hard to say the right way to do it, go easy for a few hundred then just do what you want" Including lots of mods!!!

 

I broke mine in a slightly different way...

Left the dealer, pounded the crap out of it, hit up the turnpike and proceeded to hit 135 mph with 7 miles on the odometer..

I now have 7k miles and nothing has blown up on me yet .. And every stop light looks like the christmas tree at the drag strip to me

 

Not so sure I will taking this particular route. However, I cannot go one day without going WOT. God I LOVE boost!

 

Here are the Facts like it or not!

Run it HARD!

Modern engines do not require the same type of break in as the old days.

Due to better machining, materials and lubricants modern engines use a much finer cross hatch on the cylinder walls.

It is this cross hatch pattern that acts as a grinder to do the final fit of the piston rings.
A piston ring does not produce much outward pressure on its own. It is force of compression and the amount of fuel that creates the force to take off the ruff edges and get that perfect fit we are all looking for.

The time you have to do this is very short. Like in the first 25 miles.

Lucky for us that anyone that gets behind the wheel of a lightning knows what these trucks were made to do and wants to find out for them selves. At some point if only for a short while folks want to feel what it would be like owning one and having some fun.

They are doing you a big favor when this happens.

Engines that are broken in hard will as a whole make more power over a broader range than one that is treated like a baby.
Doesn't matter if it is a car, truck, motorcycle or lawn mower.

Heat cycling is another matter and even if you break it in hard it doesn't mean you should not be mindfull of to much heat.
Run it hard for short periods and let it cool. Do not run at constant engine speeds with the same load. Get on and off the gas.
Change that oil and filter as soon as your little heart desires. Don't go the 3k miles and be sure and do it while it is hot to help get all that crudd in suspension out of there.

These are the facts!!!!!
"Peace"

 

Apples and oranges, whip. I said "The fact is that modern engines don't really 'break in' like older ones." In response, you tell me about outboard motors and house-sized diesels.

I suppose that I should have been more specific, e.g., "modern automobile engines." In the era of CNC and sodium filled, multiviscosotized, submolecular, flux aligned materials, the tolerances are so much tighter and the materials so much better right off the assembly line that the old rules for breaking in don't matter as much. And lawyers are never wrong. Just ask one.

So I guess, in a nutshell, what I'm saying is:

 

Ya pretty much. And just for your info...you could argue that both modern outboards and modern house sized diesels are both FAR more modern or advanced that these POS mod motors we have.

 

Could argue? Dude, I'm a lawyer. Pay me enough and I'll argue that Saddam Hussein should be a write-in in the November elections.

 

Most new cars have a break-in program that changes the timing, fuel mixture, and rev limiter for a set amount of miles (ie- 1500 mi). After this, the mixtures and spark is optimized and set to normal tollerences. This makes it pretty much impossible to mess anything up while the vehicle is in its break-in cycle.

Not sure if the F-150 computer does this though.

 

something to think about:
When buying a new Porsche boxster the "break in period is 10,000 miles.

The dealership will NOT change the oil for 10,000 miles.

Why:
the oil has special additives (expensive additives) to assist in the break in period. They recommend no extended WOT blasts.

Conclusion:
can you think of a better (stock) engine manufacturer than Porsche? They say don't beat on it until broke in, I'm not going to.