I just bought a 2021 Rogue Platinum in Caspian Blue Pearl with Black roof and to say I'm like a 6 year old on Christmas is reasonably fair. We're taking her home tomorrow.

However, we have been planning to go to Calgary for a long time before I got rear-ended on my birthday that eventually lead to this purchase. We live in Winnipeg. It's a 1,300+ km drive.

Is that okay to do as break in? I'm afraid "breaking" might be the correct term instead of "break in" after (or worse, before) we reach Calgary.

If that's bad, we might have to cancel our trip.

Thoughts?

I heard it’s not necessary anymore and that they are broken in from the factory.

Anyhow, you could probably vary the driving throughout the trip.

Hmm, haven't heard (YouTube) or read it anywhere on the web that they are broken in from the factory. I heard though that Acura NSX does that.

That's what I'm probably just going to do. Variable speed. Might take a 14 hour trip close to 20 but you gotta do what you gotta do I guess.

NinjaBiscuit wrote: ↑

Wed Jul 28, 2021 1:54 pm

Hmm, haven't heard (YouTube) or read it anywhere on the web that they are broken in from the factory.

They're not broken in, but they don't need it like they used to. Machine tolerances and surface prep are so much better than even 20 years ago, there simply isn't any slew of metal chips flying around in the oil after 1000 miles like the bad old days. If you want to do it a favor, stop at a dealer after 1000 or so and change it out, but that's a favor and not a necessity.

Thanks for all your input, guys. I'm getting more excited and confident that we might actually be able to make it to Calgary haha! Back to Winnipeg, it's a toss-up. LOL! Jk.

Don’t know about your time constraints, but sight-see along the way. No need to go from point A-B all in 1 shot. Some small town action. Etc.

Culled from online sources...

Breaking in a new vehicle is really about the engine. The break-in — or mechanical run-in — period is designed to begin to wear the engine evenly and smoothly with low, consistent pressure, normal operating temperature and smoothly flowing oil. The goal is to get the engine's piston rings, which expand, contract and flex, to seat properly on the cylinder walls. If there are imperfections in the pistons or the cylinder walls from the manufacturing process, working the engine too hard and too soon can wear down those imperfections too quickly. That leads to "hot spots" within the engine's cylinders, which can cause problems in the years to come.

Proper, manufacturer-recommended break-in procedure is designed to enable the engine to do what it needs to do. The benefits, are better fuel economy, better performance, less chance of burning or leaking oil and overall longer engine life. For instance, Nissan suggests its GT-R should not be driven at more than 50 percent throttle or over 3,500 RPM (revolutions per minute) for the first 300 miles (482 kilometers).

How do I break-in a new car engine?

Thankfully, the break-in period for a new vehicle doesn’t last very long. An engine should be ready to in 500 to 1,000 miles. If an owner has a long commute, this probably won’t take very long. During that initial period, experts suggest you adhere to the following suggestions:

• Stay out of the red — When someone says ‘redlining the engine’ they are talking about pushing the engine to its maximum RPM. If your vehicle has a tachometer to measure RPM, top-end of the scale is usually denoted by red numbers or an actual red line. For the break-in period, avoid mashing the gas pedal which will push the engine harder than necessary.

• Shift on time — A vehicle with a manual transmission will provide the driver with some extra control. Experts advise keeping the engine out of the red by shifting gears before the tachometer reaches that point.

• Avoid cruise control — Cruise control is one of the most popular features to become fairly standard across the industry. An engine needs to work at different RPM settings to be properly broken in. Cruise control sets the engine at a constant speed which isn’t great during this time period.

And from this Forum: Rogue Break-In Period?

I actually never pass 3500 rpm at the most when driving all my life. I did do an Italian tune up with my rogue many years back. I always thought of the red zone as danger zone and never ever revved it in the 5-8 zone. I’m a Sunday driver and light on the pedal for the most part. Gradual acceleration normally.

Just make sure your engine has the correct amount of oil in it...I've been told some manufacturers short them a quart to save a little money.

Big Red Rogue wrote: ↑

Fri Jul 30, 2021 11:27 am

Just make sure your engine has the correct amount of oil in it...I've been told some manufacturers short them a quart to save a little money.

I've never seen that on any model Nissan.

Sorry guys for not replying back. I forgot my password and just had a time to actually do something about it now.

Anyway, thanks to your replies. Much appreciated.

The Nissan representative from the dealership I bought my Rogue from confirmed that they had been broken in at the plant, so there's no need to baby it. Those are old practices but don't apply to newer engines and manufacturing advancements. Still just 80% sold though. I don't know what to do. I read the owner's manual about break in and it says that no constant speeds, fast or slow, for long periods of time, which is hard to do during a long drive on a highway.

I have another problem. Do I need to install a bug deflector on it? Would that really help with bug guts splattering on my windshield? I've done that trip before - Winnipeg to Calgary and back - and I pity my car because of how dirty it became.
Or maybe wax the hood and front bumper so that when washing it's easier to wash away the bugs?

Thanks for your time to answer my questions, guys.

I'm like Casper, we're not lead footed.

NinjaBiscuit wrote: ↑

Fri Jul 30, 2021 6:03 pm

Nissan representative from the dealership I bought my Rogue from confirmed that they are being broken in at the plant, so there's no need to baby it.

The "rep" is both right and wrong, he's right that there's no need to baby it but wrong because it's simply a matter of modern machining and materials. Doing "factory run-in" would be completely impractical in modern mass manufacture.

NinjaBiscuit wrote: ↑

Fri Jul 30, 2021 6:03 pm

I have another problem. Do I need to install a bug deflector on it? Would that really help with bug guts splattering on my windshield? I've done that trip before - Winnipeg to Calgary and back - and I pity my car because of how dirty it became.
Or maybe wax the hood and front bumper so that when washing it's easier to wash away the bugs?

Good wax will ease the bug-guts off, and a nose-snood only protects the nose. I'd do both.

VStar650CL wrote: ↑

Fri Jul 30, 2021 6:16 pm

NinjaBiscuit wrote: ↑

Fri Jul 30, 2021 6:03 pm

Nissan representative from the dealership I bought my Rogue from confirmed that they are being broken in at the plant, so there's no need to baby it.

The "rep" is both right and wrong, he's right that there's no need to baby it but wrong because it's simply a matter of modern machining and materials. Doing "factory run-in" would be completely impractical in modern mass manufacture.

NinjaBiscuit wrote: ↑

Fri Jul 30, 2021 6:03 pm

I have another problem. Do I need to install a bug deflector on it? Would that really help with bug guts splattering on my windshield? I've done that trip before - Winnipeg to Calgary and back - and I pity my car because of how dirty it became.
Or maybe wax the hood and front bumper so that when washing it's easier to wash away the bugs?

Good wax will ease the bug-guts off, and a nose-snood only protects the nose. I'd do both.

Sorry for being stubborn, but here's my one last question. Do you mean with what you said that there's really no need to break in? If factory run-in seems impractical then there might be a possibility that the Rep was just BS'ing me with it? If yes then I NEED to break in after all. Sorry for being slow but please tell me your final recommendation and I'll stick to it.

Also what is a nose-snood? I googled it and found nothing that relates to the topic.

A nose-snood is a sock for your nose, I doubt there's been one anyplace since the 1700's.

Really, the surface treatments and special coatings they use nowadays, plus the extremely good machine tolerances, mean there's almost no metal that needs to wear away. For example, ring gaps in the old days used to have tolerances that looked like 0.005". These days it's closer to 0.0005", a whole factorial better. In the 70's and '80's after break-in you'd literally see silvery oil when you pulled the plug, now you need a magnifying glass to see anything. There's no harm in swapping the oil out when you hit Calgary, 1300 Km is a decent first run, but quit worrying so hard about the rest of it. Technology has marched a loooooooooooong way since the Pinto and the Vega.

VStar650CL wrote: ↑

Fri Jul 30, 2021 7:07 pm

A nose-snood is a sock for your nose, I doubt there's been one anyplace since the 1700's.

Hahaha! I was just slow, my man. That's exactly what I got from Google, people with something in their nose. I thought, wait a minute, this has nothing to do with cars!

NinjaBiscuit wrote: ↑

Fri Jul 30, 2021 6:03 pm

I have another problem. Do I need to install a bug deflector on it? Would that really help with bug guts splattering on my windshield? I've done that trip before - Winnipeg to Calgary and back - and I pity my car because of how dirty it became.
Or maybe wax the hood and front bumper so that when washing it's easier to wash away the bugs?

Thanks for your time to answer my questions, guys.

I'm like Casper, we're not lead footed.

Sorry to nit-pick here but we try to stay on topic. If you have an unrelated question to your current issue, you should really create a new topic. This way it will be easier to find by others who have a similar question or concern. Thanks.

For easier bug cleanup I use a spray bottle filled with a 2:1 ratio of generic car wash concentrate. Spray down liberally and let it soak in for a couple minutes, then just scrub off with a soft sponge and water. It does a good job of loosening up all the guts so you don't end up scrubbing very hard on the paint. YMMV.