Break in??

[mickeyblueyes]

I keep reading that it can take up to 50,000 miles to properly break in a Cummins engine. Is this true? What takes place that takes up to 50,000 miles? I have read that new gasser engines come off the line ready to go ,there is no no break in period. What is the difference between these two products that requires one to break in. Or is this urban legend?

 

[HBarlow]

It is nothing but urban or internet legend, take your pick. Our owners manuals clearly state the Cummins engine requires no special lubrication products or special driving techniques for a break-in period. I think the manuals say drive it normally.

Our Cummins engines do seem to loosen up and run stronger over time but I would bet that a dyno or laboratory testing would not document any actual improvements. I think I have read somewhere, possibly a Dodge owner's manual, that the engines are fully broken in after 5,000 or 10,000 miles.

 

[TimothyLong]

I'm with Harvey on this. My '03 "broke in" after about 5K miles. By broke in, I mean that it didn't seem to run as stiff and my fuel economy seemed to go up a bit. Of course, that could be because I learned how t drive it that way too. My wife's '04 took about 30K to get to that point. Like Harvey said, if I would have dyno'ed either one before and after, I doubt the difference would be measurable. It's just a matter of how the engine feels, sounds, and responds to the throttle. You only get a feel for what's normal by driving it.

 

[rbattelle]

Ah, the 'ol FAQ.


Same posting from Vaughn with a bit of commentary.

Cummins used to say it could take up to 20k miles for the engine to break in if you don't work it hard.

Ryan

 

[JFought]

you need to break in for towing!!!! see manual

 

[HBarlow]

you need to break in for towing!!!! see manual

You'll have to provide a verifiable quote from your owner's manual to convince anyone of that.

Dodge Ram owner's manuals for the years 2001, 2006, and 2008 DO NOT recommend an engine break-in period. The only break-in period mentioned suggests driving the truck for 500 miles before towing to allow the differential a slight break in period. Many people ignore this without negative results.

All literature I've ever read states that the Cummins engine requires no special break-in period.

 

[steved]

While there is no special break in procedures required, they can take a while to actually "break in" (as noted in fuel mileage increase).



My 99 took a long time to break in and finally reach its "peak" mileage... but that truck saw almost nothing but highway.

 

[Grizzly]

The best way to brake-in a Cummins diesel engine is to hook up your 5th wheel or TT and go to Alaska and back. That's what I did with my 95, which had 2K miles on the clock when we started off. We did the same thing with the 05, except it had more miles and was 2 years old. They both came back after 11K mile round trip running better and the fuel economy had increased.

 

[JFought]

when i read the owners book, it clearly states something like 500 miles with trailer at 45 or 50 mph max (or something close like that. )-----in reguards to trailer hauling.