s26singh

How many drivers here have followed the break-in period as per the manual vs. how many have followed their own rules?

My own experiences:

1. For my F82 M4 I followed the manual. At around 7000 kms on the odometer started to hear engine knocking/ticking noise Took it to the dealer few times; was a total waste of time as they could not figure it out.

2. For my 981 Porsche Cayman: I waited ~400-500 kms, and then I drove it as I normally would - passive aggressive but no redlining. Sold that car at ~19,000 kms on the odometer - not a single problem.

My plan for the E63 (once I take delivery) is the same as the Cayman - baby it for 400-500 kms, let major parts break in a bit; and then drive it as I normally would, day to day.

Thoughts?

bobblehead

since I owned the car, I follow the break in recommendation. If I lease it, then most likely not. "Let's see what this baby can do ... soon after I left the dealer's parking lot" LOL.

s26singh

I am leasing so less headache regardless of how I approach things, but the Cayman I owned - and talking to petrol heads it was a 50/50 response - where half were for break-in and half were for no break-in.

Dagger9903

I'm buying and going to take the middle road:

1st 50 miles - prescriptive working of the engine hard several times, but not creating excess stress for the entire system. I'm thinking, post solid warm up, 2nd and 3rd gear on-ramp accelerations and freeway decelerations (during low traffic times) at 60-75% WOT up to <5.5K but no shifting. Very smooth / progressive roll-on and roll-of the accelerator. Create some real pressure in the engine at peak but don't overly stress the transmission or overall system. Nothing hercky jercky and no hard starts or redlining.

51-250 miles - drive it variably, but no redlining or race starts. No hard on-throttle or abrubt off throttle. Regular, smooth shifting through all the gears. Probably keep it <4k RPM regularly

251-750 miles - No redlining or race starts, start to be more comfortable doing somewhat harder shifts but nothing at WOT. Drive it up to 5 / 5.5K RPM but roll off throttle at higher RPMs to smooth shifts

750 miles - Start to really drive it hard once in a while, but nothing "brutal". Ok to hit some harder shifts at 5K+ RPM

1000 miles - all clear

I literally made that up from various research, so value it at what you paid for it =)

Carac

I was always under the impression it was more for the transmission, diff, etc.

BC-2

I followed the break-in instructions 80%. The 20% difference was at the 800 mile point where I let the engine RPM climb above 4.5K for brief periods (no redline though). The main thing is to vary the speed, RPM and load during this time. Worst thing you can do is to just drive on the freeway at a constant speed and RPM.

Dagger9903

Depends on whom you ask I think. There is some literature out there about better valve sealing under high load / heat / pressure that helps with longevity. Others say the valves are sealed from the factory or that tolerances are so tight these days it's not a necessary procedure.

Otherwise I do think the "break-in" process is for the engine / tranny / diff to all sync together mechanically.

WIKDWGN

I drive my cars how I plan to drive them for their life of ownership from day one. This includes cars I've bought new and engines I've built myself. I used to follow the easy break-in suggestions, but found in my personal experience that engines seem to run just a bit better if run hard from day one. A buddy and I tested this on a couple cheapo knock-off pit bikes. He ran his hard straight out of the box and I broke mine in slowly. His ended up being a little faster than mine. Exact same bike, bought at exact same time. Only difference was the break-in. You probably won't notice any difference in performance on the E63 if slowly broken in / driven hard from day one. I just think its 1k less miles of fully enjoying your new beast

s26singh

Thanks for sharing your experiences; I think I will opt to follow your school of thought.

CanuckE63

I lease my vehicles so they get regular treatment from day one. That's not to say i go out of my way to cause problems, but they don't get babied at all. Never had any issues, the next owners though...no idea

E634Me

I followed the manual.

But as I took European Delivery I chose to end the break-in at 1500 km rather than 1000 miles which allowed me to finish the break in early.

Not my fault that the German manual writers can't do proper unit conversions. I'm pretty sure the German engineers can . . .

If the car were delivered to the US I'd have had to wait a little longer ;-)

cprx7

This question seems to come up quite often. If and when you buy your E63S pay attention to the stickers on the inside of your windshield as it will provide detailed info on "How to break in your new car".
If MB puts there its because it's the right way of driving your car for the first 1k miles.

Dagger9903

While this is true, you gotta be naive if you don't think lawyers and potential liability don't have SOMETHING to do with that definition of "right".

jkob5

I followed my c63s break in instructions about 90%, and I'll probably do the same with the E. I don't think it makes too much of a difference, though I do with these engines were broken in at the factory like some exotic companies do.

kcjonz

gearboxtrouble

I think there's something like a 50/50 split between gearheads on this matter with no real middle ground. I've had better experiences with the cars I've broken in gently than the ones I've been aggressive with (generally all BMW M cars). The biggest long term difference was the complete lack of oil burning/consumption in the cars that I broke in gently. I generally take it easy for the first 800 miles or so, keeping the engine under 5000 rpm and generally driving in comfort/eco mode and keeping transmission stresses light. The next 200 or so miles I increase loads until I redline a fully warmed up car a few times to make sure it isn't a lemon. Then I always take it in for a post break in service (BMW mandates this) and get the diff oil and engine oil changed. After that I drive normally.

kponti

Wouldn't matter, the cel seems to be ignition or fuel related. Your break in method won't change that

84 GTI

+2

s26singh

I plan to drive this car as I normally would from day 1 - will not follow break-in routine. My lease is 3 years; will keep you guys informed if any issues pop up over the years.

Vic55

Ill chime:

11 AMG's all done with hard break in from date of delivery:

Warm up the engine oil
Run the car up and down the rpms but never hold it in any section for long periods
Use all the gears; street driving helps here as freeways are for cruising and more stable rpms. And I rip the car- no mercy.

The goal of this is to force piston rings against cylinder walls so these metal parts can seat before the bores’ honing marks are worn away. Done properly, this supposedly results in an engine that produces more power and lasts longer. I have had no issues with any of my 11 Benzes with this except when I pushed the mod bug on my 2004 E55 (my choice).

These are my experiences with a decent amount of AMG's; other opinions are valuable none the less.

Slugsy

Dagger9903

Very helpful. Any thoughts on hard shifting, or shifting at high rpms under load? Or do you run through the gears more one at a time or otherwise avoid hard shifting?

Vic55

I have no problem hard shifting once the tranny temps are up to snuff. I do this during the first few hundred miles to set the rings in the pistons.

I usually run the car in sport plus which runs the rpms up higher and then if they sit too long Ill manually up shift.

kcjonz

Slugsy