I've searched the forum for previous discussions on the topic of running in a brand new engine but couldn't find reference to a certain web page detailing how and why it is best to run it in hard rather than gently.

This subject seems to polarise opinion and is much debated. Countless other forums have referred to this web page but I want to know what fellow Fiesta owners think and more importantly, how they ran theirs in from new. Opinions from non Fiesta owners welcome too!

What do you think to the method outlined on this web page?

What did you do with your new engine and why? (Please vote)

'The link'

i drove it like i always do, not gentle but i do let the car warm up a bit before going nuts. I buy cars for fun though, not to mess around for a thousand miles when i'll only keep the car for 20k at most. Same goes for my mpg, i would be ashamed of myself if i got 40mpg.

I treated mine to low revs and early shifts basically ignore the erge to fire it up B)

Also, I was advised ( & I did try my best) to avoid short journeys, i.e 5 minutes of driving.

Going in for my first Service this week & between collection and today, the MPG has increased slightly and the engine revs alot more freely.

Most of the damage to the engine is done whilst the engine is cold (I think I got that off an oil advert!) So for the first 1000 miles I let the engine warm up for about 8 minutes before driving. Then after that I'd just drive it as normal.

I read somewhere its the first few seconds until the oil cirulates, gets up the bores and top of the engine. The oil lubricates then wether hot or cold.

There are many different schools of thought about running in, I believe varying the revs, speed is the best way, and not red-lining for the first 500 miles

i dont know where the misconception of needing to let modern engines run in comes from, they do not need it, driving like a granny is actually worse for the engine as when you start giving it a little bit of bean the piston rings can hit on the lip created by pansying around and cause fatal damage. this is a proven fact.

if you neede to run the engine in it would be specified to you upon collecting the vehicle and would also have things such as warning stickers

modern engines are much better in the ways of manufacturing than older more rudamentary engines and have better tolerances

to sum up.

just drive normally

i dont know where the misconception of needing to let modern engines run in comes from, they do not need it, driving like a granny is actually worse for the engine as when you start giving it a little bit of bean the piston rings can hit on the lip created by pansying around and cause fatal damage. this is a proven fact.

if you neede to run the engine in it would be specified to you upon collecting the vehicle and would also have things such as warning stickers

modern engines are much better in the ways of manufacturing than older more rudamentary engines and have better tolerances

to sum up.

just drive normally

I've alwaws known to extend revs during the 1'st 1500 miles, with the engine hot, and don't use the best fully synthetic oil until you feel the motor loosen, perhaps at about 10,000 miles.

I wish I had heard about the biker's advice years ago. At one time cars were filled with a lightish oil for the 1st 1500 miles, but that was a generation ago.

30 years ago, a colleague felt his Escort 1600CVH loosen off, at about 27,000 miles, at the same time he needed a new steering rack. He had been doing a lot of caravan towing, needing rear spring assisters.

Hi

Just a silly question but

What would happen if i drive for a few miles in second right up to the rev limiter.

Jamie

i dont know where the misconception of needing to let modern engines run in comes from, they do not need it, driving like a granny is actually worse for the engine as when you start giving it a little bit of bean the piston rings can hit on the lip created by pansying around and cause fatal damage. this is a proven fact.

if you neede to run the engine in it would be specified to you upon collecting the vehicle and would also have things such as warning stickers

modern engines are much better in the ways of manufacturing than older more rudamentary engines and have better tolerances

to sum up.

just drive normally

When i got my car i actually asked the dealer about running the engine in, and he said basically the same. He said modern engines require you to rev higher at first, so i wasn't complaining at all.

However my Mk3 Golf had a new head gasket, and i had to drive slowly for 500-1000 miles.

Hi

Just a silly question but

What would happen if i drive for a few miles in second right up to the rev limiter.

Jamie

nothing, that's what the rev limiter is for. it limits the revs to a point that you cannot do major damage to the engine. The Mountune upgrade consists of lifting the rev limiter so its clear the engine can rev higher than 6500 without a sweat.

I intended to and pretty much did as the handbook said for the first 1000 miles, though there were a few (ok, more than a few especially towards the end) occasions when I let the revs approach the red line. On the whole though I drove it carefully.

OK so I've had my brand new 11 plate Titanium 1.6 TDCi just over a week. It replaced my 09 plate Zetec 1.6 TDCi which I had from new as well. I decided to go with the 'run it in hard' option under the belief it'll bed the piston rings in better as explained in the link at the beginning of this thread.

Only with the engine fully warmed up I have accelerated up to 5,000 revs (just short of the rev limit) in 2nd or 3rd gear and immediately let off the gas to let the car decelerate to about 1,500 revs on its own without braking. I've repeated this several times and only when safe to do so on quiet roads without a problem until today. I accelerated in 3rd gear, the difference this time being I was going up a hill and had a passenger. Going up a hill and this time with the additional weight of a passenger, of course, this increased the load on the engine and it did not make it to 5,000 revs and settled around 4,500, realising that this was all it would give, just before I could step off the gas, the engine did it for me!

The warning tone sounded and the dreaded "Engine malfunction - service now" message appeared on the display. At this time I was approaching the crest of the hill and a roundabout so was decelerating anyway, however, at the roundabout the engine speed was stuck at 1,500 and would not drop any lower nor go any higher (the accelerator pedal was dead). I needed to get out of the way of car making its way up the hill so tried to pull away but the car shuddered and chugged at about 10 mph until I found a safe place to stop about 200 yards away. The warning message and 'engine cog' symbol were still displayed. I assume the car had entered 'limp mode' to prevent damage to the engine. When I stopped, the revs settled back to normal idling speed and the warning message disappeared. I then turned the engine off to let the engine cool in case it had overheated. I popped the bonnet for a look and to give the engine some cool air but there was no steam or bad smells. After about a quarter of an hour I fired up the engine; it sounded normal, operated normally and there was no warning message. The car had about 300 miles on the clock at the time. It has been fine since.

Does anyone know what might have happened and whether I've caused any damage?

I dont believe as stated that you need to run modern engines in. For work purposes I drive diesel astra's or Focus they get delievered with delievery miles and they are driven at 90% of the vehicles rev range for most of the vehicles service. They get changed at 90000 miles, they are used for emergency purposes so you can imagine they are driven very hard. regular servicing is the key.

I generally just drive gently with my new cars, I do a pretty even mix of urban and country driving. One thing I did notice with my last car is that I drove it normally for about 1500 miles, then I had a long 4-hour motorway trip and after I got back I noticed the car pulled better altogether, it seemed a lot more free.