New Car Break In Procedure
Set a fire, go to jail!
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 300
Likes: 0
Don't have my manual handy, but I think there is info in there. Dealer should also be able to tell you. Things I remember...break in was about 500 miles, no hard accelerating, take it easy on the brakes, no cruise control, don't change oil early as there are supposed to be special additives to help breaking in the car.
Registered User
Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 74
Likes: 0
From: Davis, CA
the manual for my 2003 Accord says 600 miles break-in period. My friends tell me wait for 1000 or so. And is it really true about the oil? Because they're also telling me that I should change oil after 1000 miles, although dealer said 5000?
^New car...2003 BMW 330ci
Joined: Mar 2003
Posts: 1,067
Likes: 0
From: Rochester, NY
I changed my oil after 3500, after 1000 you might screw things up...dont accelerate hard or shift past the 4000-4500 mark(no VTEC), and don't brake hard unless absolutely necessary.
Junior Member
Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 7
Likes: 0
From: Gulf Coast
I'm one of those guys who is very particulare about breaking in my cars. I swear my cars run better and longer than the average. Whenever the car goes in for service, I always ask the dealer mechanics how the car runs compared to other similar cars with similar mileage. Only once was I told one of my cars didn't run better than the average. Also, I'm told my mileage is higher than the norm, and yes, I drive my cars hard most of the time. My 94 Civic with 146K miles, for example, gets 35 city and 45 hwy, again, I'm not driving like Grandpa. My 01 EX Accord gets 28 city and 36 hwy. Anyways, I read years ago the following method, that I use to this day:
BRAKES: Lite braking for the first 50 miles, then no hard stops for the first 500. If this doesn't exceed your owners manuals recommendations, then listen to what they say.
ENGINE: Drive it easy for the first 500 miles. This means without getting higher than 2500 - 2600 RPMs in any one gear. Once you hit 500 miles, slowly increase the RPMs in each gear until at the end of 1500 miles, your driving the vehicle like you'll drive it on a daily basis.
I know this sounds like a long time, but it's paid off (or at least I think it has) for me. It's interesting that I've convinced my wife that this method is the way to go. Rather than screw it up (or believe she did), she lets me break in all our new cars.
BRAKES: Lite braking for the first 50 miles, then no hard stops for the first 500. If this doesn't exceed your owners manuals recommendations, then listen to what they say.
ENGINE: Drive it easy for the first 500 miles. This means without getting higher than 2500 - 2600 RPMs in any one gear. Once you hit 500 miles, slowly increase the RPMs in each gear until at the end of 1500 miles, your driving the vehicle like you'll drive it on a daily basis.
I know this sounds like a long time, but it's paid off (or at least I think it has) for me. It's interesting that I've convinced my wife that this method is the way to go. Rather than screw it up (or believe she did), she lets me break in all our new cars.
