Hard break in vs Manufacturer recommended | GTAMotorcycle.com

Hard break in vs Manufacturer recommended

-JERICHO-

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I just got a new bike with 0 km on it. I put 45km on it varying the speed and gears but keeping the rpm below 5-7k.

I am reading a lot on engine break ins and came across the "hard break in" method. Can others with more knowledge chime in and let me know which is the better one.

[video=youtube;kCFAyNhRiFY]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kCFAyNhRiFY[/video]

Comment:

"Not one manufacturer recommends this method of mistreating a new engine."

Answer:
It's because they want you to never have a good seal between your piston rings and bore. They don't want you to have good wear patterns on your valve stems either. You will inevitably have the problems of blow by and excessive valve sooting which lowers horsepower in addition to lowering compression. Shortened spark plug life is also the result. The low rpm 1000 mile break ins are there to help manufacturers push more parts to the dealers for engine services and rebuilds. Since the oil is not changed early, abrasive metallic particulates stick around for way too long. Engine life is inevitably shortened because combustion and exhaust gas blow by, higher block and cylinder head operating temperatures, higher oil temperatures, high oil contamination rates leading to acidic/corrosive oil that shortens the life of brass and rubber parts, and impeded oil flow due to sludge. Most of those symptoms will go on plague the engine for the duration of its life because of poor piston ring seating. You can roll the odometer over twice if the engine and transmission is treated right. Going by the manufacturer will inevitably mean rebuild at or around 50,000 miles.

Method:

Turn bike on and idle for 1min. Once the bike is at operating temp.. step 2
find a place where you can go WOT in 2nd gear.. give it full throttle all the way up to rev limit,
then let it over-run back down to lower revs.. and repeat 10 times..
Change oil&filter..
The over-run seats the oil rings so your engine won't burn oil.


http://usu.net/sites/motorcyclebreakin/breakin.html


Is the above true? I want to do what is best for my new engine and its future. Any and all help is appreciated.
 
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"The low rpm 1000 mile break ins are there to help manufacturers push more parts to the dealers for engine services and rebuilds."
Are they serious ???
 
I know we have racers here, and engine builders.. I also came to realize this is a hotly contested issue. Insight through experience is probably going to be the most helpful/realistic.. Experience over theory..

I am inexperienced and reading is leading me to another one of those annoying tug of war topics.

[video=youtube;RZLKwN-MRFg]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZLKwN-MRFg[/video]

He brings up doing dyno run break-ins. Is that something to consider seriously? Engine builders please chime in if you have a moment.
 
My new engines from the builder get 4-5 heat cycles (rpm usually between 2-4000rpm, never lower than 2000rpm), dump the oil/filter, Dyno tune, dump oil/filter, take it to the track and ride it at a reasonable pace for 1/2 the day (keep rpms below 12,000 and no real hard accel), dump oil, ride it like it's meant to be, new oil filter at the end of the day ready for the next weekend. I also dump the coolant/water after the first hear cycles.
 
My new engines from the builder get 4-5 heat cycles (rpm usually between 2-4000rpm, never lower than 2000rpm), dump the oil/filter, Dyno tune, dump oil/filter, take it to the track and ride it at a reasonable pace for 1/2 the day (keep rpms below 12,000 and no real hard accel), dump oil, ride it like it's meant to be, new oil filter at the end of the day ready for the next weekend. I also dump the coolant/water after the first hear cycles.

Then you re-do the valves? On a totally fresh build, rule of thumb used to be power gains after break-in from rings seating were matched by power losses from valvetrain break-in, so it was common to re-do the valves after break it to keep peak power from both perspectives. But that was the days of steel valves, not these surface-hardened titanium valves.
But that's racing, not street bikes.

The idea that this method will mean an engine does not need a re-build at 80,000km is a claim that will go untested.
 
I rebuilt my bike myself and did tons of research and hard break ins is ended up making more sense. Better seal better compression no leaks. So far my bikes been through a season and still no problem.

The downside is that you got to oil change earlier (500MILES)
 
My new engines from the builder get 4-5 heat cycles (rpm usually between 2-4000rpm, never lower than 2000rpm), dump the oil/filter, Dyno tune, dump oil/filter, take it to the track and ride it at a reasonable pace for 1/2 the day (keep rpms below 12,000 and no real hard accel), dump oil, ride it like it's meant to be, new oil filter at the end of the day ready for the next weekend. I also dump the coolant/water after the first hear cycles.

Thank you. So 5 cycles. Oil and filter being the only cost issue here. Also the dyno run, which sounds like a great idea, if I do that last I can get some figures for the bike.

Then you re-do the valves? On a totally fresh build, rule of thumb used to be power gains after break-in from rings seating were matched by power losses from valvetrain break-in, so it was common to re-do the valves after break it to keep peak power from both perspectives. But that was the days of steel valves, not these surface-hardened titanium valves.
But that's racing, not street bikes.

The idea that this method will mean an engine does not need a re-build at 80,000km is a claim that will go untested.

Thank you as well. I can consider getting my valves checked right after I do the break in. Not too concerned about the rebuild at 50000-or whatever, because the cost point is meaningless to me after that long, it would be purely to see what effects it had on the engine itself.

I rebuilt my bike myself and did tons of research and hard break ins is ended up making more sense. Better seal better compression no leaks. So far my bikes been through a season and still no problem.

The downside is that you got to oil change earlier (500MILES)

If all other outcomes are positive and the only negative being a few more oil changes... I can live with that. :D
 
Here is a link that explains it technically with tear down motor pictures. Every time I followed manufacturer break in bike was a total dog.

In fact, with my BMW 2 cylinder the bike used almost a liter every 1000k. Next time I bought new, I followed motoman break in and only added a liter every 5000km with exact same engine layout.

"There's a very small window of opportunity to get the rings to seal really well ... the first 20 miles !! "

http://www.mototuneusa.com/break_in_secrets.htm
 
During the first 600 mi (1000 km) keep an eye on the rev counter, it should never exceed: 5,500 - 6,000 rpm.

During the first few hours of riding, it is advisable to run the engine at varying load and rpm, though still within recommended limit. To achieve this, roads with plenty of bends and even slightly hilly areas are ideal for the most efficient break-in of the engine, brakes and suspensions.

For the first 60 mi (100 km), use the brakes gently. Avoid sudden or prolonged braking. This will allow the friction material on the brake pads to bed in against the brake disks.

So that the mechanical parts of the motorcycle can adapt to each another, and especially so the life of the basic engine parts is not affected, avoid harsh accelerations and do not run the engine at a high rpm for an extended time, especially uphill.

Edit: Ducati Monster 821 owner manual
 
Then you re-do the valves? On a totally fresh build, rule of thumb used to be power gains after break-in from rings seating were matched by power losses from valvetrain break-in, so it was common to re-do the valves after break it to keep peak power from both perspectives. But that was the days of steel valves, not these surface-hardened titanium valves.
But that's racing, not street bikes.

The idea that this method will mean an engine does not need a re-build at 80,000km is a claim that will go untested.

Valves don't get touched. At $100 a pop I don't know anyone that does after a breakin. I also don't know any wsbk/motogp mechanics.

Thank you. So 5 cycles. Oil and filter being the only cost issue here. Also the dyno run, which sounds like a great idea, if I do that last I can get some figures for the bike.



Thank you as well. I can consider getting my valves checked right after I do the break in. Not too concerned about the rebuild at 50000-or whatever, because the cost point is meaningless to me after that long, it would be purely to see what effects it had on the engine itself.



If all other outcomes are positive and the only negative being a few more oil changes... I can live with that. :D
Don't worry about a Dyno. I can't ride they bike around and each time the motors been built its needed a tune asap (cam timing changes, head changes etc.)

Basically what decimis says but I just do frequent oil changes and higher rpms (80-90% of where the rev limiter is). You'd be surprisd at the amount of metal flake that will come out after the first 200km of riding.
 
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No less an authority than BMW enforces a limited-RPM regimen on their S1000RR for the first 600 miles: The ECU limits engine speed to 9000RPM until the engine is properly run-in.

As others have said: RTFM and obey it.
 
If you're going for longevity, break it in by the manual. My 2004 gsxr1000 now has 80,000kms and its running like new.
 
All of our race engines (car) get broke in on the Dyno with warmup then:
.25 loaded pull
.50 loaded pull
.75 loaded pull
100 loaded pull
After that we change the oil and do our regular dyno tuning pulls after a full cool down. All my personal vehicles get broken in as per the owners manual. I have never seen a difference between either methods. With the race engines there is no other way to break them in since they are not street legal and that would be an expensive track day spent breaking in an engine.
 
I replace the oil in my motor with a mixture of Duralube and sand, then duct tape the throttle open and start the bike. I go and eat lunch, it's usually ready by the time I'm done.
 

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