I'm getting my Z in a couple of days and I really don't know what's involved in breaking it in. How high should I rev it? How many miles? I need all the advice I can get. Thanks

 

1200 miles , under 3500 rpms is how i broke mine in, redlined a couple of times when around 800 miles

 

i always believed you should break in a car how you plan to drive it in the first place

 

That's what I had heard.

 

uhhhhhhhhh with a crowbar!

 

Hahaha Seriously though I think the consensus on the board is 1200 miles and 3500 rpm's. I'm at 800 miles now and I've probably took it up to 7000 rpm's 5-10 times.

 

·Phase One
Drive very easy in the first 500 miles, but do not lug the engine. Try to rev it between 1800 RPM and 3500 RPM while driving. Do not rev the engine faster than 3500 RPM or so. Drive it in different gears and in as many different engine speeds as possible. Try to avoid driving the car in stop and go traffic or in very long trips while breaking in. Avoid prolonged idling and full throttle operation.

·Phase Two
You may now allow the engine to reach higher RPM. Do this transition slowly and gently. Redline may be approached, but not reached. Continue to drive it in different gears and in as many different engine speeds as possible. Try to keep the RPM above 1500 while driving.

·Phase Three
At this point, the car is broken in. You may begin to drive the car normal. You may use the full RPM range. Give it a few hard runs through the RPM range. Make sure to change the oil at 2000 miles and then every 2000 to 3000 miles. The use of synthetic oil (Mobil 1) is encouraged for the highest engine durability.

 

I'm on my second motor and am following break in recommendations from a Nissan Service Manager and from my Nissan contact. My first motor was toast after 30k using the standard 1,200 mi 4k breakin advice. But, I'm sure that had nothing to do with it.

0 - 500 miles

Warm up the car before driving. Keep it under 4k. Oil change (I skipped this and will wait for 3k).

500+

Slowly start going over 4k. I plan to be at 5k revs by 750, 6k revs by 1000 and redline by 1,200.

I will have my pistons seated before 1,200.

 

What about this?

http://www.mototuneusa.com/break_in_secrets.htm

 

Don't exceed 4K for 600 miles, but vary the engine speed continuously. Above 600 miles continue to vary engine speed, but build up gradually to max HP, 6200RPM until 1200 miles and then just drive it the way you would normally, redlining and all. Never lug the engine under 2K, always keep it above that rpm under load. One way to do it.

 

my break in was hard.
ive read some articles from the forum search and it showed that breaking in hard helps car perform better later. but it really doesnt matter with the new cars these days compared to old cars. jus dont go past redline and if you are gonna rev it high, get the engine goin first(warm it up).

 

hfm, what happend to your first motor?

 

Read the manual.

Follow the manual. Hint: It is published by the people who built your car. They may know know something.

 

It was burning oil. Fluke motor. Dealership replaced under warranty.

 

do you really think so?
cuz i redline my car at least once or two a day.
So if I were to break in a new car, you are suggesting red lining from day 1?
I have heard that before, but would like to understand the theory as I will need to break in my car soon. :-)

 

for the first 1K miles, vary the engine RPM, e.g. don't cruise at the same speed for an extended period of time.

 

baby it if you want...but the way i've learned to break in motors is to do this:

get on a empty highway or interstate, get the car in 4th gear, take it to 3000 rpm, then do a full throttle run to redline. immediately put in the top gear and cruise to a spot you can stop. let the car rest for about 7 mins. repeat 3-4 times.

this doesnt mean that right after this you can redline through all the gears when accelerating 8 times a day. but it makes things a little safer and breaks the car in quicker. i wouldnt do the 8 times a day, foot to the floor thing til after about 500 miles.