Seems like just yesterday my baby had less than 100 miles... And now the lease turn-in is coming up at the end of this year... She's got almost 33k miles so far! Engine rattles at startup though...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vgrapfogik8

 

what are you getting next?

 

How did you hack the nag so you can watch DVD while driving ?

 

Yeah, I guess it DOES rattle a little bit, especially with the low oil pressure at start-up.. 7000 RPM on an engine with only 100 miles on it is clear abuse.....especially if you did that a number of times. The rings, valve stems, bearings, and cylinder walls probably got f***ed-up and didn't seat properly. That car will probably end up being a premature oil-burner and fail emission tests....if it isn't now.

When proper break-in recommendations are given for a new car, they are done so for a reason.

 

doesn't matter now...

leased and rented cars are always abused. drive it like you stole it, and let the next owner deal with it...

 

I like to keep my car for mmore 30k miles before having to get rid of it because of problems.

 

another reason i don't buy used cars...

 

well he was cruising already and the car looks like it was warmed up already. but most people dont really care about breaking in the engine.

 

So to what extent are these engines "broken in" at the factory, and what cautions should still be taken in the first few thousand mi?

I never baby-ed my car even when it was new (2008 ES350). Always generous with throttle, but I can't remember whether I got too near the redline for long-term health.

 

Wow time does fly by! So what will you be getting next?

 

In general, you shouldn't exceed 4000 RPMS (varies by engine size and # of gears) for the first 5,000 miles. Especially if the engine is not warmed up. This is why Subaru doesn't like to let people test drive the STi. People have a tendancy to redline it.

 

Just have common sense and dont beat the car, and it'll treat you well.

BTW, I know a lot of people who follows the break-in procedures in their new car, but you have to do some sort of redline at least once in a while. Piston rings need some kind of load to seat. You can't do that if you're driving granny-style. It's also not out of the blues to see cars dyno with higher number by putting some kind of loading on the engine when it's still 'new'. Obviously don't floor the car as soon as you get it. Get it up to operating temperature and slowly increase throttle now and then so the engine doesn't experience thermal shock.

 

dude you abuse a new lexus like that and then expect it not to rattle at start up????

 

An engine, while new, can be "loaded up" without red-lining it, especially if it has a manual or sport-shift automatic transmission. Just accelerate with a moderately heavy foot in a higher gear, which will lug the engine a little and put a load on it while keeping the RPM down. Don't get carried away, though, because low-RPM lugging under a heavy load can stress out the crankshaft and bearings. It can also cause pinging if the computer doesn't have a spark-retarder.

Thermal shock is usually not much of a problem with liquid-cooled engines because the anti-freeze coolant acts as a buffer and prevents large temperature swings over short periods. But air-cooled engines are another matter. When I was flying light planes that had horizontally-opposed air-cooled engines, we had to be careful pulling the throttles back suddenly to simulate and practice engine-out emergencies because the sudden power loss COULD cause shock-cooling under those circumstances, and you could get a failed engine for real.

 

Absolute hogwash. I've built and broken-in MANY brand new engines, and done it very much the same way. Engine fully broken in and producing full power in less than 100 miles. If done correctly there's never an issue - and in fact, if babied, rings won't seat ever, valves will not seat and seal, and the pistons will never hold their proper shape.

Thermal shock is what break-in is all about. Controlled thermal shock. Pistons at full throttle are in a near plastic state. If you don't progressively apply increasing thermal load with cool off periods between loading, the pistons won't ever support the rings correctly, and blowby will be your constant friend.

There's not a thing wrong with Technique's engine and your disparaging remarks are not based in any truth I've seen in the last 30 years of building engines for street and competition.