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Drive it like it's new. Baby the engine, baby the transmission, baby the entire system. Avoid problems when you run it like it's stolen when everything is brand

Drive it like it's new. Baby the engine, baby the transmission, baby the entire system. Avoid problems when you run it like it's stolen when everything is brand new. It USED to be the break-in period was super important. I've been told that it's not anymore, but that comes from salesmen. So. Who knows if it's accurate or not. I also do not know how that applies to the electric motors on a new electric vehicle. But I'm betting that's the reason.

networkchad 3y ago
I’ve always questioned this assumption. Doesn’t the factory do a burn-in test for the engine and drivetrain? I’d be shocked if they really were delivered without any basic bathtub-curve test performed.
- _ea1k 3y ago
  Yeah, if you've ever seen them loaded onto the trucks, it isn't necessarily done in the most careful manner. They don't get babied before delivery in a lot of cases. Having said that, once production is in full-swing, they are unlikely to get full "burn-in" tests. Early production may get a little more for various reasons.
falcolas 3y ago
> I've been told that it's not anymore, but that comes from salesmen. The owner's manuals still recommend a break in period. Modern synthetic oils and manufacturing tolerances reduce the need to be sure, but there's still a whole bunch of parts built at different plants that have never really worked together before. A bit of controlled wear still makes sense to me.
tempest_ 3y ago
Every time I read anything about a "break in" on cars it always felt like people were just repeating old wives tales because I could never get an answer on what the result would be if I ignored it. Will the transmission last 5000 extra kms or the engine will make it from 500,000 to 501,000 km? No one seems to know. Makes it feel like poeple telling me I have to discharge a battery all the way because it has "memory" long after most batteries were lithium ion with a charge controller.
- Loughla 3y ago
  There is no hard and fast rule about how many "extra"miles you get. But every seal, moving part, and wearable component will wear out faster. The reason you don't get a scientific answer is because that's just not possible.
  - tempest_ 3y ago
    Wear out HOW much faster, are we talking 1% faster? 10% faster... etc. The difference between replacing a wearable component at 100,000 km or 101,000 doesn't make a huge difference (ignoring the fact that it could just fail earlier due to one of a hundred different environmental reasons)
lupire 3y ago
https://www.bmw.com/en/automotive-life/break-in-a-new-car.html#:~:text=The%20right%20way%20to%20break%20in%20a%20new%20car&text=Doing%20an%20engine%20break%2Din,100%20mph%20in%20gas%20models https://www.bmw.com/en/automotive-life/break-in-a-new-car.ht.... Stay under 90mph for the first 1300miles (lol that's 2000km), and for tires and breaks, it's good to let someone else drive for you and take the risk of not yet fully functional components.
cityofdelusion 3y ago
Break-in is still relevant. The reason is to 1) let all the moving parts wear down evenly to a stable state and 2) let chemistry changes take place in lubricants and fluids. Things like belted teeth, gear teeth, sleeves, bearings, wheel grease, bearing grease, and more have metal-on-metal action where micro-burrs and such will get shaved down. Fluids will gas-off micro-pockets of air and so on. Anyone that has done car work knows that if you run a magnet through used oil or look closely at used grease that it will be full of tiny tiny metal shavings from this action. It is just more intense during the first hundred or so miles. EVs should greatly reduce the need, but there are still moving parts in wheels and sometimes gears.

networkchad 3y ago

I’ve always questioned this assumption. Doesn’t the factory do a burn-in test for the engine and drivetrain? I’d be shocked if they really were delivered without any basic bathtub-curve test performed.

_ea1k 3y ago
Yeah, if you've ever seen them loaded onto the trucks, it isn't necessarily done in the most careful manner. They don't get babied before delivery in a lot of cases. Having said that, once production is in full-swing, they are unlikely to get full "burn-in" tests. Early production may get a little more for various reasons.

falcolas 3y ago

> I've been told that it's not anymore, but that comes from salesmen. The owner's manuals still recommend a break in period. Modern synthetic oils and manufacturing tolerances reduce the need to be sure, but there's still a whole bunch of parts built at different plants that have never really worked together before. A bit of controlled wear still makes sense to me.

tempest_ 3y ago

Every time I read anything about a "break in" on cars it always felt like people were just repeating old wives tales because I could never get an answer on what the result would be if I ignored it. Will the transmission last 5000 extra kms or the engine will make it from 500,000 to 501,000 km? No one seems to know. Makes it feel like poeple telling me I have to discharge a battery all the way because it has "memory" long after most batteries were lithium ion with a charge controller.

Loughla 3y ago
There is no hard and fast rule about how many "extra"miles you get. But every seal, moving part, and wearable component will wear out faster. The reason you don't get a scientific answer is because that's just not possible.
- tempest_ 3y ago
  Wear out HOW much faster, are we talking 1% faster? 10% faster... etc. The difference between replacing a wearable component at 100,000 km or 101,000 doesn't make a huge difference (ignoring the fact that it could just fail earlier due to one of a hundred different environmental reasons)

lupire 3y ago

https://www.bmw.com/en/automotive-life/break-in-a-new-car.html#:~:text=The%20right%20way%20to%20break%20in%20a%20new%20car&text=Doing%20an%20engine%20break%2Din,100%20mph%20in%20gas%20models https://www.bmw.com/en/automotive-life/break-in-a-new-car.ht.... Stay under 90mph for the first 1300miles (lol that's 2000km), and for tires and breaks, it's good to let someone else drive for you and take the risk of not yet fully functional components.

cityofdelusion 3y ago

Break-in is still relevant. The reason is to 1) let all the moving parts wear down evenly to a stable state and 2) let chemistry changes take place in lubricants and fluids. Things like belted teeth, gear teeth, sleeves, bearings, wheel grease, bearing grease, and more have metal-on-metal action where micro-burrs and such will get shaved down. Fluids will gas-off micro-pockets of air and so on. Anyone that has done car work knows that if you run a magnet through used oil or look closely at used grease that it will be full of tiny tiny metal shavings from this action. It is just more intense during the first hundred or so miles. EVs should greatly reduce the need, but there are still moving parts in wheels and sometimes gears.