Break in

[Irrivirsible]

Hi,

Just bought a new 2014 Ram 1500 5.7 Hemi. The owners manual says while cruising, full throttle acceleration is good during break in. In other words floor it. I have never done that during break in before with any of my other vehicles. Have you done this with yours.

 

[pld]

Hi,

Just bought a new 2014 Ram 1500 5.7 Hemi. The owners manual says while cruising, full throttle acceleration is good during break in. In other words floor it. I have never done that during break in before with any of my other vehicles. Have you done this with yours.

OOOH YA, it's a hemi Bro! The service manager at my dealership tells me not to forget to floor it every once in a while because it's good for these motors.

 

[MyOhFive]

I put about 3000kms on mine before going past 3000rpm... then i worked my way up to a WOT pull... something doesn't feel right about flooring a brand new engine.

 

[pld]

Doesn't feel right but it sure gets the adrenaline going

 

[rickyrocket]

its under warranty...drive it like you stole it!!!

 

[warwagon98xj]

Full throttle acceleration can be addictive

 

[sicmadek]

I floored mine during the test drive. How else would i know if its worth buying?

 

[RLJ10X]

I'm a firm believer in breaking engines stoutly.

I just got a new KTM street bike. After 2 heat cycles, it got red lined. thats basically what I did with the Wrangler, and the Mustang.

I've read several articles. They seemed logical, to me, so that's the policy I adopted.

 

[Two Dog]

Floor it, you'll like it!

 

[Dubstep Shep]

You need to seat the piston rings. Only one way to do that; full throttle acceleration and motor braking on deceleration.

 

[manonabuffalo]

Floor it, I did on my test drive years ago.....I was sold.

 

[Jmhm17]

Every modern automobile engine is broken in before they even get installed. I believe they run the motors through a few heat cycles at different RPM's. trust me, you "flooring" that motor on your test drive with 1 mile on the OD is not the first time that motor has seen over 5 grand..

Think, if they did not do this how many failed motors they could potentially have in new trucks, running every motor through QC and seating the rings and getting the juices flowing at the HEMI plant is cheap insurance than replacing motors in new trucks and getting a bad rep. No company just builds a motor and throws it in hoping it will turn over..

 

[WaterBoy1]

^ I was under that impression as well. I've owned a LOT of new vehicles in my life, and I've never floored any of them when they were new. I simply do the varying speeds/RPM and never had any problems.

I just have to believe that outside of our enthusiasts bubble here in the forums, the majority of new vehicle buyers wouldn't think to floor their new ride, even if it is the right thing to do.

 

[Jmhm17]

true, I completely understand why people air on the side of caution. And I did as well with a few new vehicles. Im just clearing the air and trying to put some minds at ease if they thought they have done some damage or something. Trust me people ITS OK! haha just drive the truck

 

[Dubstep Shep]

Every modern automobile engine is broken in before they even get installed. I believe they run the motors through a few heat cycles at different RPM's. trust me, you "flooring" that motor on your test drive with 1 mile on the OD is not the first time that motor has seen over 5 grand..

Think, if they did not do this how many failed motors they could potentially have in new trucks, running every motor through QC and seating the rings and getting the juices flowing at the HEMI plant is cheap insurance than replacing motors in new trucks and getting a bad rep. No company just builds a motor and throws it in hoping it will turn over..

Ehhhh, idk about that.

You're talking about a whole additional stage in the assembly process. You now need engine dynos, engine computers, tuning, and more for each and every type of engine you make.

Most automobile manufacturers adopted lean and six sigma practices a LONG time ago, and breaking in the motors there just doesn't fit with those practices.

The idea is that you develop a process where things just don't fail. Besides, engine break in isn't all that important on something like our trucks. On a race motor, sure, but there's nothing fancy about our vehicles.

Unless you can actually come up with some sort of evidence to support your claim that they break them in at the factory, I'll stick with what I know.

 

[preachp]

Hi All,

I am in complete agreement with jmhm17. These engines are run-in at the assembly plant and are broken in before they ever get put into a vehicle.

preachp

 

[Jmhm17]

Ehhhh, idk about that.

You're talking about a whole additional stage in the assembly process. You now need engine dynos, engine computers, tuning, and more for each and every type of engine you make.

Most automobile manufacturers adopted lean and six sigma practices a LONG time ago, and breaking in the motors there just doesn't fit with those practices.

The idea is that you develop a process where things just don't fail. Besides, engine break in isn't all that important on something like our trucks. On a race motor, sure, but there's nothing fancy about our vehicles.

Unless you can actually come up with some sort of evidence to support your claim that they break them in at the factory, I'll stick with what I know.

lets not confuse this with DYNO tuning.. I do not think any of our motors were Dyno Tuned, but they were run. However you have to think the motor is not made along side the truck there is a whole separate factory. I find it hard to believe that there is no run time on the motors just to save time. As I stated its cheap insurance to add an extra step then to replace motors. It is the heart of the vehicle, with everything computerised the margin for error is low but i'm almost positive every motor is run through cycles before it is mated with a vehicle or given a check mark.

There are only 3 motors made at the Saltillo Engine Plant, and since this is their ONLY job I cant see why an additional QA step would not be added to save rebuild cost later on (as well as additional overhead involved). And as for only performance motors being broken in you have to remember the HEMI is made for performance vehicles as well. they are not going to just do a lax job knowing this HEMI is going in a truck, and not a Challenger.

 

[12TrueSport]

This is a highly contested topic. My .02 is that you need to break this truck in like you plan on driving it. I think the break-in procedures put in manuals are helpful to certain degree but they are written by company people, not performance people. That being said, if you plan on enjoying your HEMI then enjoy from the start.

When my new 2015 comes in I will ease into it only because it's getting a lift and bigger tires almost right away. I want to make sure the rear-end is situated before I start really putting my foot in it. I'll take it easy for about 500 miles. That's also when I will seat my brakes. No hard braking for 500 miles but after 500 I will get going around 35-40 mph then stand on the peddle. This is MY method, used on numerous vehicles and my brake performance and longevity is outstanding, even with a lift and 35'' tires.

Go enjoy your truck. The HEMI is awesome!

 

[Dubstep Shep]

It would still require quite a bit of work to get the motors broken in at the factory. Millions of dollars would have to be invested.

But there's also a huge difference between testing a motor and heat cycling and breaking it in. Two totally different operations there.

 

[MyOhFive]

Without walking through the factory I guess we'll never know. I watched a thing on TV on the ford truck factory and they select one truck every so many to put through a battery of tests, but I didn't see a field of engines running on stands anywhere. I'm inclined to believe the only run time the engine sees is after it goes in the truck and gets moved around lots.

On anther note, why is then that ever since the SRT line came out, THOSE cars (even the NA ones) come with a great big tag hanging from the drivers visor warning not to rod the **** out of it for the first few thousand miles..? Those engines aren't THAAAT much more performancey than ours. Especially the old 6.1s.