I pick my new vrs up on Thursday and this is the first new car I have ever brought. People have said that a new car needs settling in for a while before being driven hard. My issue is that I want to stick it in sports mode and drive it like I've stolen it. Please can some one advise on the settling in procedure.

Thanks in advance.

Drive it like you stole it. If you don't smoke the tyres off the dealer forecourt then you ain't doing it right ;-)

I pick my new vrs up on Thursday and this is the first new car I have ever brought. People have said that a new car needs settling in for a while before being driven hard. My issue is that I want to stick it in sports mode and drive it like I've stolen it. Please can some one advise on the settling in procedure.

Thanks in advance.

 

What does it say in the owners handbook/manual?

 

Oh look....

 

 

The engine has to be run in during the first 1500 kilometres.

 

Up to 1000 kilometres (~620 miles)

 

› Do not drive faster than 3/4 of the maximum speed permissible for the engaged gear.

› No full throttle.

› Avoid high engine speeds.

› Do not tow a trailer.

 

From 1000 up to 1500 kilometres (~935 miles)

 

Gradually increase the speed until you reach the full speed of the engaged gear.

 

The red scale of the rev counter indicates the range in which the system begins to limit the engine speed.

 

During the first operating hours the engine has higher internal friction than later until all of the moving parts have harmonized.

 

The driving style which you adopt during the first approx.1500 kilometres plays a decisive part in the success of running in your car.

 

Never drive at unnecessarily high engine speeds, even after the running-in period is complete.

 

On vehicles fitted with a manual gearbox, at the very latest shift up into the next gear when the red area is reached.

Very high engine speeds when accelerating (accelerator) are automatically restricted.

 

With vehicles with a manual gearbox, do not drive at unnecessarily low engine speeds. Shift down a gear when the engine is no longer running smoothly. Observe the recommended gear.

^^^^ This.

 

The Wanderer just beat me to it.

Thanks for the advice,

Basically look after it and it shouldn't give you any problems and it will give you years of unerring service. Abuse it and you could be asking for problems in the future.

Basically look after it and it shouldn't give you any problems and it will give you years of unerring service. Abuse it and you could be asking for problems in the future.

Sound advice!

No need too thrash to get driving pleasure , smooth can be quick!!

I've often found that identical cars can have their performance effected depending on how they are run in. A few years ago some friends and I found that cars that had been driven hard from the beginning had better performance than those where the running in period had been observed. Granted it will almost certainly have an impact on the longevity of certain components but odds are you will have changed cars by the time any issues come to light.

just do the 1000 miles in the first couple of weeks, then go for it

I've often found that identical cars can have their performance effected depending on how they are run in. A few years ago some friends and I found that cars that had been driven hard from the beginning had better performance than those where the running in period had been observed. Granted it will almost certainly have an impact on the longevity of certain components but odds are you will have changed cars by the time any issues come to light.

 

Diesels need to be driven hard to "loosen" them up.  My father-in-law has two identical Peugeot 407 diesels (one is his taxi, the other is his private car).

 

By the nature of taxi driving, he's thrashed the life out of it (racing between jobs) but has treated his private car with kid gloves.

 

The taxi has 187000 miles on it, the private car 43000 and yet my father-in-law says the taxi's performance is noticeably better than his own car.

 

Real world example.

I have to agree with 'JuanCarr' and 'Aodavies2001'. This has been debated numerous times all over the internet (even on briskoda if you search for it) but I'm starting to believe that the 'hard break in' method is the way to go.

 

See this page: http://www.mototuneusa.com/break_in_secrets.htm

 

What manual says about running in an engine is actually not good at all supposedly. Don't pamper it. Warm it up properly then step on it. Your window of opportunity is really small - only first 20 miles! This way you will ensure that rings seal really well.

 

One quote:

The Problem With "Easy Break In" ... 
The honed crosshatch pattern in the cylinder bore acts like a file to allow the rings to wear. The rings quickly wear down the "peaks" of this roughness, regardless of how hard the engine is run. 

If the rings aren't forced against the walls soon enough, they'll use up the roughness before they fully seat. Once that happens there is no solution but to re hone the cylinders, install new rings and start over again.

Edited 9 November, 201312 yr by PekoSI

Diesels need to be driven hard to "loosen" them up.  My father-in-law has two identical Peugeot 407 diesels (one is his taxi, the other is his private car).

 

By the nature of taxi driving, he's thrashed the life out of it (racing between jobs) but has treated his private car with kid gloves.

 

The taxi has 187000 miles on it, the private car 43000 and yet my father-in-law says the taxi's performance is noticeably better than his own car.

 

Real world example.

Yeah, but not a Skoda!!

Have to say from what I hear I agree with PekoSi.

I asked my dealer about running in and he said don't be daft. Harder is better apparently. The guy worked for Audi previously and had met a top tech/engineer and the message from him seemed to echo the advice above. The ring seat better if the engines used hard at the start.

Go figure. Just mind the tyres and brakes might not be as forgiving though.

 

What manual says about running in an engine is actually not good at all supposedly. Don't pamper it. Warm it up properly then step on it. Your window of opportunity is really small - only first 20 miles! This way you will ensure that rings seal really well.

The one big flaw with that is most if not all that 20 miles will have been driven by other people - ie on and off transporters/trains/ships & a dealership. I doubt any of those drivers will care much about piston rings!!!!

The one big flaw with that is most if not all that 20 miles will have been driven by other people - ie on and off transporters/trains/ships & a dealership. I doubt any of those drivers will care much about piston rings!!!!

Or running it in gently??

Wow, mixed bag of results thank you. Seeing as though I will be changing cars every three years. I may tear it down the 20miles of a50 from dealer to mine. Also car is at the dealer now with 0.8 miles on the clock.

Allow it to warm up and then work it quite hard but don't use the top of the rev range, bedding in is best done early in a cars life to make the piston rings match up to the bores and control the oil consumption better. If it were me I would run it quite hard but not thrash it, you don't need to go much above 3000 revs, just put your foot to the floor, make it work and change up in good time. Manufacturers handbook advice is like their engine states of tune, ultra conservative to allow for all circumstances and ensure their backs are covered. Running in really is a thing of the past when manufacturing tolerances were much wider than today. Go and enjoy yourself with your new motor!

You really dont need to run most modern cars in nowadays; some exotic hand-built stuff perhaps but most if not all mainstream engines are run in on a dyno before being fitted in a car.

treat it with some respect use the full rev range once the oil is warm would be my advice.

Auto Express and the record breaking Vauxhall Astra

The idea was simple. Drive a standard family hatch flat out, non-stop for 24 hours, set a host of speed records and prove the durability, pace and economy of the car.

 

He’s also sat in the passenger seat as the first four are driven around Cheshire, completing 60 miles of running in. We run in the last two.

 

The full artical can be found here.

 

http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/vauxhall/astra/66535/auto-express-and-record-breaking-vauxhall-astra

Just drive it normally as you would drive every day, nothing will go wrong.

 

 I drove my Yeti out the showroom and two days later hooked 1500kg of caravan behind it and went away, car is now 100K miles and still runs well.

 

Take a look here if you have a Face Book account that is  LINK

As others have said, a Drive it like you stole it.

That's been my motto for a long time, moreso where dirty diesels are concerned

Sri130 mk2 given death for 240000 miles rolling roaded 5bhp up on standard at end of life. Pampered sri130 with 15000 miles from new tight, flat, unresponsive and 6bhp down (this wasn't the only one at the dyno either) Obviously for few couple hundred take it smooth, and I doubt it's the issue today it was back then,but the cars character was vastly different (bar obvious increased wear).

Edited 10 November, 201312 yr by jtypecav

I'm lucky enough to have had many brand new cars and motorbikes and have always followed the manufacturers running in process.

 

ive never had a issue with any of them so for me its a given to follow the rules.

 

when i eventually get my vRS i will do the same, there's  plenty of time to loosen it up and to be honest 3/4 of 180 bhp is 135bhp ....

i will cope some how!!!!!!

Edited 10 November, 201312 yr by Wasp27