First 1000 miles

[nycrogue]

I've just bought my Rogue SL AWD and wanted to ask you for suggestions on how to drive it first 1000 miles. I read the manual and according to that I cannot drive at the same speed for long periods of time, cannot accelerate fast, cannot break fast and should keep the engine under 4K rpm. Does the speed matter, or I should only be concerned about rpm? Any other suggestions?

Thanks

[sinsan]

BABY IT!!!

The first few thousand miles are crucial to longevity. Everything is tight in the engine and transmission and it needs to be stressed and stretched slowly and gently. All of my new cars see oil changes at 1000, 3000, and 5000 miles and then I use synthetic oil and stretch out the oil changes to 8k to 10k. Also, the first CVT, differential, and transfer change is listed at 30k in the maint. guide, but I'm doing mine at 10k. Engine and transmission tolerances are much better in modern cars, and you won't likely see metal shavings in the drained fluid, but you're still better off taking it easy for awhile. After the initial break-in of at least 5000 miles of very soft driving you can really beat up on it and still expect it to last forever. I would keep the rpm's and speed low (<4k and <55mph) and don't use the cruise control for awhile.

I'm sure there are those who say this ritual is pointless, but I'm working on 300k on my Corolla.

[nycrogue]

Thanks for your advice! 5000 miles break-in does sound extreme. With my driving, it'll take a year before I could reach that point I was thinking to do oil change at 1000 and then do synthetic at 3000. I'm keeping RPMs well below 3K but driving at 55mph might be dangerous on highways with others driving at 70-80mph. I'll try keeping the speed low but I'm not sure if I could do that for a year Any other tips?

[kerrton]

I don't think there is any benefit to keeping under 55 mph, and on top of it that isn't practical or safe if you're driving on the freeway. At 75 mph the engine only revs at around 2300 rpm on level ground which is really quite low, so I wouldn't hesitate to drive 75. The key for break-in is to just vary your rpms and speed often, and keep rpms under 4000. So as long as you're doing that and not hammering on the throttle for fast acceleration, you'll be fine. I wouldn't get too worried, there isn't any secret to it!!

[amr40509]

I suggest you give it an "Italian Tune Up" and drive it like you hate it. Get all of the weak parts broken while under warrenty.
Modified by amr40509 at 6:19 AM 5/15/2008

[nycrogue]

Interesting technique I can imagine doing that on a leased car but I wouldn't do it on a car I actually own. What if some parts start breaking after the warranty has expired?

[amr40509]

SO I guess I'm suposed to believe that you took me seriously?

[nycrogue]

People do strange things, so you never know I'm glad you were joking.

[RiverRogue]

SO I guess I'm suposed to believe that you took me seriously?

Actually, I've heard that technique before done by others.

They say "Drive it like you stole it" though.

Not on my car. It got its first oil change at 1200.

[philipa_240sx]

If you guys want an interesting read on how to break in a new motor/car read this:

http://mototuneusa.com/break_in_secrets.htm

It's not gospel, but it's an interesting take on how engine break-in occurs. I took some of this advice and tried to vary my speed as much as possible during break-in with moderate bursts of acceleration to load the piston rings. I then switched to synthetic oil after 4000km (2500mi) and I haven't had any issues so far.