New engine break in

[hcfsimon]

I'm going to have my new bike very soon. I google alot on the web to find proper break in method. There are too many version and they each have their own logic.

 

Any guru here can share some knowledge and experience? I really dunno which method to follow..

 

Here are some examples...

http://www.lazymotorbike.eu/motorcycles/breakin/

http://ashonbikes.com/content/running

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

[iankoh]

your new bike should come with a manual, it probably will tell you how to break in your engine.

[ohayo]

gonna see the cc. If its just class 2b bike. Just ride normally and changed engine oil at the appropriate interval. If its class 2A and above, of course its a different story since the bike is capable to go very fast at every gears

[Isopropyl]

i just did a mix for the fun of it. according to mototune, the first 20miles(32km) is the most important. so i just warm up, then wack for about 15-20km or so. then i just ride my normal style. slow and sweet for the rest

 

breaking in hard is quite dangerous on the road as it invovle sharp accelaration and strong engine break. make sure you do it during non-peak hour. even for a 2B bike at gear 3, you will be passing the 100km/h mark before full throttle.

 

it just a 2B bike. don't need to do so much. i suggest just run in softly will do for practical and functional reasons. most people are doing it this way and their bike run just fine till the end of their COE. i did it for fun but after gaining the experience, i won't bother to do it next time round.

[hcfsimon]

Few years back, i run in my CBR600 followed the manual. After run in, i go try top speed, can hit only 265-267km/h (full stock, no mod at all). That is the meter reading, so actually speed should be lower. The FC of the bike is like 200-210km to hit reserve. I think all those numbers are not impressive at all...

So this time i want to run in differ from the manual. i may not use the mototune method. Its abit risky. I think most likely use this 1 http://www.lazymotorbike.eu/motorcycles/breakin/

oh ya the bike i going to buy is z1000. I fall in love with it at first sight

[Kaoiwas]

Few years back, i run in my CBR600 followed the manual. After run in, i go try top speed, can hit only 265-267km/h (full stock, no mod at all). That is the meter reading, so actually speed should be lower. The FC of the bike is like 200-210km to hit reserve. I think all those numbers are not impressive at all...

So this time i want to run in differ from the manual. i may not use the mototune method. Its abit risky. I think most likely use this 1 http://www.lazymotorbike.eu/motorcycles/breakin/

oh ya the bike i going to buy is z1000. I fall in love with it at first sight

 

And i repeat. EXCELLENT CHOICE!

[Pandoras Kitten 3]

Mototune USA's technique can be used for all types of engines big and small.

 

I put a type R logo on my Phantom for a reason. Break in using mineral oil, 100-500km change intervals, hard break in (after thoroughly warmed up) at Lim Chu Kang, the result is an engine that never complains at full torque all day, every day for the last 20,000kms. The ring seal is so good, this is one of the few Phantoms that doesn't suffer from excessive oil consumption when using synthetic oil (model specific issue). Infact, the engine is still more or less in perfect condition despite frequent and daily abuse during extended convoy ops that may last up to 8 hours on the road, and also may involve stressful hard acceleration all the way if I'm marker/sweeper.

 

Don't mention the derestricted intake, improved exhaust and aggressive carb tuning (& sometimes water injection). Stuff I won't do on a gentle, softly educated bike that will probably break apart after I take over and ride

 

I used Mototune's technique to produce maximum compression because I chose a fairly outdated, low tech, underpowered 200cc chopper as my main commuting and local 'sightseeing' bike. Treating it like a racing engine makes perfect sense from the "desired performance" perspective.

 

If you want to ride hard, you gotta do something to prepare it for a life of eternal torture. Mototune does that perfectly

Edited December 6, 2010 by Pandora's Kitten :3

[hcfsimon]

Mototune USA's technique can be used for all types of engines big and small.

 

I put a type R logo on my Phantom for a reason. Break in using mineral oil, 100-500km change intervals, hard break in (after thoroughly warmed up) at Lim Chu Kang, the result is an engine that never complains at full torque all day, every day for the last 20,000kms. The ring seal is so good, this is one of the few Phantoms that doesn't suffer from excessive oil consumption when using synthetic oil (model specific issue). Infact, the engine is still more or less in perfect condition despite frequent and daily abuse during extended convoy ops that may last up to 8 hours on the road, and also may involve stressful hard acceleration all the way if I'm marker/sweeper.

 

Don't mention the derestricted intake, improved exhaust and aggressive carb tuning (& sometimes water injection). Stuff I won't do on a gentle, softly educated bike that will probably break apart after I take over and ride

 

I used Mototune's technique to produce maximum compression because I chose a fairly outdated, low tech, underpowered 200cc chopper as my main commuting and local 'sightseeing' bike. Treating it like a racing engine makes perfect sense from the "desired performance" perspective.

 

If you want to ride hard, you gotta do something to prepare it for a life of eternal torture. Mototune does that perfectly

 

1 of my concern is... Will the warranty be voided if i use this method to run in?

[ezzyoiler]

technically...yes. if differ from the manual

[hcfsimon]

technically...yes. if differ from the manual

 

So which method u recommend most?

[Pandoras Kitten 3]

I don't buy brand new right now but even if I did, I find the gains in throttle response and long-term performance well worth it. Compare two bikes side by side, the Mototune one always wins, as the website's claimed 30 years of race engine building proves. There's, in my experience, no risk of doing a hard run in so long as the engine is properly warmed up. Or, get Team HKL Racing at Bukit Merah to do a dyno run-in for you. Safe and guaranteed max. compression/piston ring seal.

 

Infact if you have an Italian bike, the engineers had redlined the bike at the factory dyno before it's delivered to you. They sing sopranos at the factory in a sort of initiation

 

Lets say you have bought over a used bike that has had a gentle run in as per the manual. It's a lazy horse. Well, everything is still tight and all but throttle response is below average. Start whipping the horse's ass with a big stick and you'll notice the horse starts to obey your wishes better. Suffice to say engines are designed to deliver a certain amount of torque/hp and running them at very low throttle encourages the formation of various deposits and full oil flow may never be delivered (applicable for big engines, say, Blackbird - I have heard of cases of valve damage from too-gentle usage, imagine that!)

[ezzyoiler]

So which method u recommend most?

 

good question...

i have been trained in a certain way...the proven way..

 

the answer is obvious...

with the loads of experiences at the manufacturers design and test..i am sure that the so called hard options have been considered...

i never like to be a guinea pig...

i let smart alecks to be one...and i will embrace it once it becomes main stream procedure..

[Pandoras Kitten 3]

I haven't blown anything up yet and I love enjoying putting out 150% potential from the poor old 200cc single banger day in, day out. Yes I have had "doctors' opinions" taken and am way overdue for valve clearance, chain tensioner, etc checks but the thing is completely happy being trashed.

 

Hard break in is completely safe, more or less, otherwise Mototune USA won't be such an established site for street&race tuning tips.

 

I would probably have destroyed my engine if not for race break in then synthetic oil all the way.

[BLACK COMET]

I haven't blown anything up yet and I love enjoying putting out 150% potential from the poor old 200cc single banger day in, day out. Yes I have had "doctors' opinions" taken and am way overdue for valve clearance, chain tensioner, etc checks but the thing is completely happy being trashed.

 

Hard break in is completely safe, more or less, otherwise Mototune USA won't be such an established site for street&race tuning tips.

 

I would probably have destroyed my engine if not for race break in then synthetic oil all the way.

 

Second to that. But I feel after the hard run in. do a full valve clearance and chain tensioner check. Tighten all the loose bolt and it's good to go.

[chris 525]

If you want your engine to last and serve you well, then follow the manufacturer's manual for best results.

 

Most engine run-in's require 1600km on the clock, with 2 oil changes on the way.

 

Then it says in the manufacturer manual and various websites that you need to vary the engine revs using different gears, to exercise everything over their different operating range. Just riding at one continuous speed aong the highway for most of the breaking in time is not considered a smooth break-in.

 

How many days does it take to complete 1600 km, maybe 1 month. What is the big rush ?

[Raptor]

Hard run in.

 

All my bikes did their run in on the race track. Max rpms on top gears.

 

Manufacturers run in requirements are from day one since 1940s. The need to update their manuals. Today's engine parts are manufactured to a very high degree of accuracy unlike those days.

 

The process of running in is to wear off the mismatch parts and to seat and match the parts... with today's precision engineering..the parts match perfectly.

[Lexanez]

The first thing I did when I collected my GSR 400 was to had it towed to a Dyno and did a hard run-in on it even before I started to ride on the road.

 

I chose it because I believed it to be a logical choice. Given that piston rings are required to seal into the pistons by wearing off on a file-like structure on the cylinders (This wearing down works both ways).

 

A longer period of wearing down the rings doesn't make sense at all! Might as well get it done while it is able to.

 

Thing to say, been riding my GSR 400 for 1 and half years. Never had any trouble with the engine and everything is still in great shape! Also, riding up North at high speeds proves to be quite comfortable for both me and my engine.

[hcfsimon]

Wow so many different opinions. Its really a never ending debating topic.. Actually i dont mind hard run in, but what about the warranty if anything happens?

[Lexanez]

Probably, anything that deviates from the manufacturer's specifications will cause the warranty to be voided in the event of any failures.

 

I don't know about you but I don't think I would want any failures to happen in the first place. However, you will need to search for an opinion of your own. Read more, search the whole world wide web if you can. After all, there are still time before the collection of your new Motorcycle (On that note, Congratulations!).

 

My bike was parallel imported and does not comes with warranty other than that offered by the shop which I purchased my bike from (in other words, completely useless).

[Pandoras Kitten 3]

Wow so many different opinions. Its really a never ending debating topic.. Actually i dont mind hard run in, but what about the warranty if anything happens?

 

I may be a different sort of consumer than most but if I actually buy something brand new I'd have done dozens of hours of research on the machine/product/whatever.

 

Screw the warranty, I can fix it myself if I wanted to Techniques like hard break in, in my opinion, prepare the bike for severe service much better than trying to be gentle and never getting maximum potential out of it. Face in, all engines are going to be trashed, anyway.

 

"Unlocking" the machine's maximum potential means I can cruise at max. safe speeds at a stupidly low throttle setting, or at least, mine's tuned to run that way (don't need fast throttle if I get max torque in the mid range). Various other (2B) bikes I've tried, "well maintained" examples obviously ridden very gently, don't deliver as much 'kick' as my own. I end up riding them at full throttle all the way. The latter is not optimal for longevity, especially considering 2B bikes are trashed constantly to get anywhere in a reasonable timeframe.

 

Just one tip for hard break in - warm up the engine first. Not that puny 1 minute warm up while you put on your gloves and helmet. Work it gently for around 15 minutes first to get all the parts and oil to operating temperature, then start your main 'exercise'.

 

Just like going to the gym.

Edited December 16, 2010 by Pandora's Kitten :3

[Raptor]

Before even the bike comes to you... the bike is started up and revved on a dyno to the max rpm through all the gears as a final check at the last part of the production process before its crated and sent to the showrooms.

 

And you think their recommended run in method of not exceeding the rpms should be followed?

[ludacris10]

Question. If i change piston head must i do breaking in?

[Pandoras Kitten 3]

@ludacris10 - without looking at the engine, I'd say yes, if you use a new piston you have to use new piston rings and these need to hone in to your cylinder walls before the engine produces max. compression.

 

Try to break in using mineral oil, change frequently, as Mototune says.

[chris 525]

For engine break in, at the end it comes down to your money.

It's your bike and your money.

 

If you follow the manufacturers guide, then you are on a better footing if the bike develops problems during the warranty period. The manufacturer may be using an archaic system based from 1940, but they are guaranteeing their product so need to cover themselves.

 

However if you follow the hard break in, dun expect any of those people who are advocating it to help pay for towing and repairs if it goes wrong for you.

 

So in this respect, I am of the old skool

[outdoorchap]

is the hard break in method recommended for scooters as well?