Do you think there really is a running in period for modern engines and does performance increase with miles ?

What's your experiences.

I asked a question about running in a while back as the manual gives limited info. Many replies seemed talked about the need to properly run the engine in to free it up so as to achieve the best performance and there was talk about the better the running in the less chance of the 1.4TSI oil useage issue.

Best advice I feel was mentioned was to let the engine warm up properly before gunning it and measure it by oil temp, not collant temp.

For me athough a modern manufactured engine will be made to better tolerances than old ones there is still a need to run it in to ensure everything beds in properly. Can't back it up with any statistics or experiences though as I have never run in two identiocal cars in different ways.

It'll have been to the rev limiter a few times before you even take delivery.

Just drive it normally like you would any car. Warm it up before pushing it hard just like you'd do in any vehicle.

It'll have been to the rev limiter a few times before you even take delivery.

Why will it?

Why will it?

Going from docks to boat to transporter. Some muppets will drive them hard off cold in between places or rev the nuts off them. The vRS only revs to 4k in neutral or park. Then there's when engines are bench tested before they even go in the car. Just drive normally from day one, let engine oil get to temp first before booting it and let it wind down a few miles before home

Engines should still be run in properly but since I always buy used cars I have no idea if they've been run in properly or not.

Do you think that new engines are 'tight' and therefore do freeup after 'X' amount of miles ?

Going from docks to boat to transporter. Some muppets will drive them hard off cold in between places or rev the nuts off them. The vRS only revs to 4k in neutral or park. Then there's when engines are bench tested before they even go in the car. Just drive normally from day one, let engine oil get to temp first before booting it and let it wind down a few miles before home

Exactly this. Dont be overly careful with a new engine, just drive it normally. All engines are different, but normally after a few miles they loosen up and yield better mpg

Do you think that new engines are 'tight' and therefore do freeup after 'X' amount of miles ?

absolutely - a fact proven by mpg improving over the first 10K or so

absolutely - a fact proven by mpg improving over the first 10K or so

I suppose there could be an argument that it's best to buy a car with 10k miles on and therefore more economical.

I wonder why the manufacturers haven't factored this into the new engine designs. Of course I realise that a newly 'bolted together'

machine has been produced to very high tolerences and that bearings wear in, but in this day and age, surely new technology can

overcome this to a larger extent, making the car more economical from day 1 ?

Do you think that new engines are 'tight' and therefore do freeup after 'X' amount of miles ?

I hope so! I had a vauxhall insignia over Christmas while my octavia was in the body shop, the insignia had only done 2,400 miles when I got it and even with cruise control on set to 60mph it didn't get higher than 46mpg! Which is abismal IMO.

If you look at the rules for the euro fuel economy test processes, you will see that there are rules governing the maximum number of kms an engine is allowed to be run before the test.

Running in is a matter of getting everything moving smoothly together, bedding rings in, heat cycling the head / block assembly, allowing valve seats to settle etc. Running the engine really hard without this process may lead to long term reliability issues, oil consumption being high, early loss of performance. On the other hand, you can overdo it and not give the engine enough use to seat the rings. It is also not a good thing to do to run in on a good fully synthetic oil, the rings just won't bed in properly.

Ultimately its a case of each to their own. Personally I always take care to run a new engine in.

Chris

Interesting topic this.

Some years ago me and a group of friends went to Germany on our bikes five of them Yamaha R1's (1000cc) and one GSXR 750(750cc).

We maxed them out the autobahn and i pulled 186 mph@ 12,500rpm.

The GSXR 750 just walked away from all the R1'S !!

The guy with the GSXR did not run it in,it was nailed straight out of the show room.

No one could understand why his bike was so fast. He puts it down to the way he rode it from new.

All the R1'S were run in as recommended by the book.

The fastest engines are driven hard from the start in my experience

Well of the friends I have with new cars, the ones driven normal from the start are using less oil than the ones driven carefully.

On a different scale, many years ago my dad bought 2 new tractors at the same time - both the same model and spec. The intention was to run them in but due to one of the other farm tractors going on fire one of the new tractors immediately became the main workhorse.

After that it was always the favourite and would out pull it's "twin" all day everyday. BUT after a few years it started to have engine problems, a coincidence??.........

My own experience is that if you are building a race engine, you will run it hard from the off, but you only expect it to last a season at most and probably less. For road engines, you can sacrifice 2 or 3 bhp in the interest of long term oil use. All the engines I have had from new have been run in sensibly, that is driven normally but considerately, avoiding heavy load high rev running early on and building up the load over time. Without exception I have not had an oil burner doing this and I have run 5 cars to over 150,000 miles and still had good compression and extremely low oil use, never needing to top up between services. Top quality synthetics help here too.

Chris

Interesting topic this.

Some years ago me and a group of friends went to Germany on our bikes five of them Yamaha R1's (1000cc) and one GSXR 750(750cc).

We maxed them out the autobahn and i pulled 186 mph@ 12,500rpm.

The GSXR 750 just walked away from all the R1'S !!

The guy with the GSXR did not run it in,it was nailed straight out of the show room.

No one could understand why his bike was so fast. He puts it down to the way he rode it from new.

All the R1'S were run in as recommended by the book.

The fastest engines are driven hard from the start in my experience

+1 leave the forecourt on the rev limiter.

Exactly this. Dont be overly careful with a new engine, just drive it normally. All engines are different, but normally after a few miles they loosen up and yield better mpg

My mate used to drive cars from germany from the docks into the compound at north shields terminal. He said they are limited to 3000rpm and that the dealer takes the limit off when they are deliverd.

Edited 16 January, 201214 yr by 07 vRS Taxi