This web page has some information which flys in the face of conventional wisdom:

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

I haven't had a chance to examine the physics of the claims... but if the pictures of disassembled engines are actually real, there is something interesting going on.

I wonder if how you break in your engine is a potential cause of the large variations in oil consumption seen by members of our group.

I broke my engine in pretty hard (I really just couldn't resist the incredible performance) and my oil consumption is about 1/4 quart every 2000 miles (I'm sitting at 4500 miles now).

I did one thing that the article recommended, and that was to change my oil very early... I changed every fluid I could get to at about 2k miles... front and rear differentials, engine, and transmission.

I was absolutely AMAZED at how dirty the fluid was after only 2k miles. Especially the differentials and transmission.

Anyway... just something interesting I ran into... It could have some merit, it could be garbage... who knows.

Kind Regards,

Joe West

 

Wow, that's unreal. Has anyone out there broken their engine in this exact way?Someone with dyno access should try to do an independent study...

 

That's been floating around for a long time and I personaly would not try it with a brand new Porsche or any other high end car. The owners book has limitations qoted for the owner to follow because, Porsche is the expert on the engine they build and have probally tried this method and thought that this is not the best way for the engine. Believe me, the pay their engineers plenty of cash to look outside the box. Plus, you would not likely be covered by the warranty after they tear down the engine and down load data from the car to see if you broke in your engine within the parimeters set forth for the consumer.

 

The only problem with blindly following the owner's manual is that it contains some seriously bad advice.

Take a look at the recommended oil change intervals... then, after 2,000 miles go change your engine oil.... or drain your transmission fluid.

Now... you've drained your oil... take a few moments and go pour the oil from the drain pan into a holding container... do it IN THE SUN. See that metallic glint... that sorta looks like metal flake paint? See the color of the oil... how dark it is?

Take a look at your magnetic drain plugs.... see all the metal particles stuck to them?

This is the crap that Porsche recommends you leave in your engine, transmission / transaxle, and differentials for extended periods of time.

No one can argue that this stuff is in ANY WAY good for our vehicles... yet Porsche still has extended oil change intervals.

Why?

Well.... it doesn't take a great deal of thought to understand that the longer you leave in such contaminated fluids, the quicker your vehicle will wear out, and the quicker you (or someone else who purchased your car and happens to own it when the compression starts getting low) will be back at Porsche purchasing a new vehicle.

You see.... Porsche certainly wants your vehicle to last at least until the Warrany period is up... but they have very few reasons to want it to last as long as you and I would like it to last.

Porsche is in the market to make money... they make more money if their cars wear out in a timely manner, and they DO recommend maintanence schedules which will make them more money and cause their cars to wear out quicker.

To summarize:

Don't follow the owner's manual just because Porsche says it is the right thing to do. Use your head... and do whatever makes sense (or ask questions in groups like this if you don't have enough experience to make a wise decision).

Kind Regards,

Joe West

 

Actualy, the engines are run in at the factory before being installed into the cars. They get a 30 minute dyno session where they are checked for operating temps, oil pressures, and max power (run throughout the RPM range). After the dyno run, the engine fluids are changed. The tranny and other parts still need to be broken in and I am sure the engine could be further broken in also.

 

All maufacturers have to appear " green " and recommendeing extended oil/fluid change intervals is their way of " officially " commiting to decreased use of natural resources and contaminating landfills ( since a lot of oil is NOT recycled ). So there is a tug of war between engineering and legal on this issue , I'm sure.

 

If the engines are run like Sloth says, then the engines already had this procedure done and thus the rings should be properly sealed.

Perhaps the recommended break in by porsche is more for the other components like the drivetrain and the engine valve train.

 

In the past , hard break-in was good or bad depending on tolerances/ metallurgy of a particular brand's motors , but always BAD for the differential and tranny where gear/ pinions need time to work in , unless howling is your idea of a sporty sound.

 

Yeah, this is big among sportbikes, but its still controversial, some people claim it worked well for them and even got better dyno results afterwards than other bikes broken the traditional way and no reliability probs, and other say that it can't be good and give 2nd hand horror stories about it. Its hard to substanciate this claim so I'd rather play it safe and broke my bike the traditional way no matter how tempting it was... having to limit the RPM's during brake-in during the first 1600km of your new 1000cc inline-4 is a form of one of the most inhumane type of tortures I can think of.

 

Happened to meet the regional Porsche rep at my dealer just after purchasing my turbo. His recommendations were to run it up to 5,000 rpms in the lower gears and hold it there for several seconds. I followed this advise for both my turbo and the Boxster. Oil consumption in both cars is negligible. Not sure about performance improvement because this is the only turbo I've driven, but damn, it's fast.

 

Bottom line to all, WARRANTY!