Engine Break-in

[Jeremiah]

Hammerin' down

Originally posted by Badunit

Everytime I do that "hammer down" stuff I end up doing 90mph before I know it. I'm gonna end up with a massive ticket if I keep trying to break it in this way.

Well, now that you mention it ... I decided to "red line it" on vacation, just to see what it would do. I'd always heard tne beef against Cummins is that they were low torque engines that ran out of steam on the freeway. I ran it up to the red line and saw 100 mph on the speedo before backing down.



Fast enough for a tow truck! Fast enough for me. The speed is confirmed by GPS which was watching over me in case the cops weren't.

 

[PBeaudoin]

LMAO.....

Hope not to offend anyone here, However this has to be one of the funniest thread I have read on this site... :-{}

I believe and have always broke in my trucks by driving them the way I will always drive them. City and higway... Fast and slow...

Synthetics as soon as possible, and change them every 5K.

Great site... I addicted

 

[Jeremiah]

Originally posted by PBeaudoin

LMAO.....

Hope not to offend anyone here, However this has to be one of the funniest thread I have read on this site... :-{}

I believe and have always broke in my trucks by driving them the way I will always drive them. City and higway... Fast and slow...

Synthetics as soon as possible, and change them every 5K.

Great site... I addicted

You ain't gonna offend nobody, cuz. OTOH, not tellin' ya what to do, but almost everybody (including Cummins) says use 15W40 dino until it's broken in, THEN switch. Something about synthetic oil not letting the piston rings seat properly. Maybe it WILL break in with synthetic oil, but it might take you 75,000 miles to do it. This especially holds true for those who tow a lot.



My truck is new. I dumped the oil at 1,000 miles, just to get rid of any metal that might be floating around. Then I changed it at 5,000 and found that it hadn't used a bit. I'll change it every 5k from here on out. BTW, I'm getting 20 mpg on my 3500 SWR now, so I must be doing something right. Oo. Oo. Oo.

 

[Pit Bull]

Originally posted by Jeremiah



Then I changed it at 5,000 and found that it hadn't used a bit. I'll change it every 5k from here on out.

Jeremiah. what does your owners manual show for interval? My 2002 states that if the outside temperuture gets below 20-30 degrees you are to change your oil every 3750 miles. My 2000 owners manual did not state this. Weird

 

[Jeremiah]

Originally posted by Pit Bull

Jeremiah. what does your owners manual show for interval? My 2002 states that if the outside temperuture gets below 20-30 degrees you are to change your oil every 3750 miles. My 2000 owners manual did not state this. Weird

My manual is kinda weird, too. It says if driving is stop and go, dusty, la-de-da, etc. , etc. , change it every 3750 miles. Otherwise, change it at 7,000. But I plug my truck in EVERY night, so that oil never gets too cold. Plus, most of my driving is on the highway. That's why I split the difference with the manufacturer and change it at 5,000.



Seems like DC could have been consistent and said change it at 3500 and 7000 miles. I'll bet it was some German who suggested 3750 miles. I'm surprised he didn't say change the upper one at 7128 or some such figure. You know how precise those folks are.

 

[Casey Balvert]

I think that interval is for California trucks. The severe service interval is 7500 miles for 50 states and Canada. Note the little symbols in the owners manual that explain the service intervals. They are very confusing but if you look closely you will get the idea.



Casey

 

[Jeremiah]

Originally posted by CBalvert

I think that interval is for California trucks. The severe service interval is 7500 miles for 50 states and Canada. Note the little symbols in the owners manual that explain the service intervals. They are very confusing but if you look closely you will get the idea.



Casey

H-m-m-m. Severe service oil change is 7500 miles? How about normal service? I'd go look it up myself but the owner's manual is in my baby, which is in the shop getting a ding fixed where a carwash attendant cut too sharp as he drove it out the exit. :{ :-{} Oo. Oo. Oo.

 

[PBeaudoin]

Originally posted by Jeremiah

You ain't gonna offend nobody, cuz. OTOH, not tellin' ya what to do, but almost everybody (including Cummins) says use 15W40 dino until it's broken in, THEN switch. Something about synthetic oil not letting the piston rings seat properly. Maybe it WILL break in with synthetic oil, but it might take you 75,000 miles to do it. This especially holds true for those who tow a lot.



My truck is new. I dumped the oil at 1,000 miles, just to get rid of any metal that might be floating around. Then I changed it at 5,000 and found that it hadn't used a bit. I'll change it every 5k from here on out. BTW, I'm getting 20 mpg on my 3500 SWR now, so I must be doing something right. Oo. Oo. Oo.

I tried something today, driving down the freeway at 70 MPH and I was getting 23. 8 giving it very little fuel. Seems great, however once I hooked up my box trailer weighs approx 6000 lbs it went down to 10. 5. So I believe that the auto in this truck is what hurts my fuel milage? I also agree with everyone here that you should break in an engine with reg. oil for at least 2-3 changes before switching to synthetics. .

My 02 VW jetta TDI came from the factory with synthetics, Why dont they run reg. oils? Do they know something we dont? They recommend changing their oil at 5K. (45 MPG here)

I got a service warranty thru my dealer for $650. 00, with this they change my oil every 3750 mis. and perform all recommended severe service till 45K or 3 years. Sounded like a no lose deal to me.

Oil changes- $80 ea X 12 = $960. alone not counting all other services. . Rear end, trans, cooling, transfer case,etc.....

 

[Jeremiah]

Originally posted by PBeaudoin

I tried something today, driving down the freeway at 70 MPH and I was getting 23. 8 giving it very little fuel. Seems great, however once I hooked up my box trailer weighs approx 6000 lbs it went down to 10. 5. So I believe that the auto in this truck is what hurts my fuel milage? I also agree with everyone here that you should break in an engine with reg. oil for at least 2-3 changes before switching to synthetics. .

My 02 VW jetta TDI came from the factory with synthetics, Why dont they run reg. oils? Do they know something we dont? They recommend changing their oil at 5K. (45 MPG here)

I got a service warranty thru my dealer for $650. 00, with this they change my oil every 3750 mis. and perform all recommended severe service till 45K or 3 years. Sounded like a no lose deal to me.

Oil changes- $80 ea X 12 = $960. alone not counting all other services. . Rear end, trans, cooling, transfer case,etc.....

I can promise you that you won't get 23. 8 mpg on a new TD, and probably not on one that's broken in - that is, unless you're running unloaded downhill in neutral with a tailwind.



And forget that digital wonder over your head: it ain't nowhere close to being correct (mine reads 2-3 mpg high). The digital readout measures by what's going on the last few minutes, not what you've done for that tankful. Go by the ODO and gallons burned and don't forget to take your time topping off the tank. Diesel fuel foams and it might take you 3 or 4 minutes to get the last gallon or two in the tank.



Each engine is different. Your VW diesel has different tolerances. Some engines require breaking in, others do not. Keep reading the posts on this topic; also read the TDR magazine and you will see that synthetics are NOT recommended until a Cummins engine is well-broken in. The one exception seems to be extreme cold weather (-40 F) and then drivers still seem to be using regular oil, but with espar heaters, etc.



Your service contract sounds O. K. Is that for synthetic or dino? A Lithia/Dodge dealer in Denver offered unlimited oil changes for $600, but I imagine that's a rarity. On the other hand, you can go to Wally World and buy 3 gallons of oil for $47 and change it yourself! Don't forget to buy a filter!



My dealer charged me $65 for the first service with me furnishing the oil of my choice (bought from Wally World, naturally), which is Shell Rotella T.

 

[Jeremiah]

Originally posted by Jeremiah

I can promise you that you won't get 23. 8 mpg on a new TD, and probably not on one that's broken in - that is, unless you're running unloaded downhill in neutral with a tailwind.



And forget that digital wonder over your head: it ain't nowhere close to being correct (mine reads 2-3 mpg high). The digital readout measures by what's going on the last few minutes, not what you've done for that tankful. Go by the ODO and gallons burned and don't forget to take your time topping off the tank. Diesel fuel foams and it might take you 3 or 4 minutes to get the last gallon or two in the tank.



Each engine is different. Your VW diesel has different tolerances. Some engines require breaking in, others do not. Keep reading the posts on this topic; also read the TDR magazine and you will see that synthetics are NOT recommended until a Cummins engine is well-broken in. The one exception seems to be extreme cold weather (-40 F) and then drivers still seem to be using regular oil, but with espar heaters, etc.



Your service contract sounds O. K. Is that for synthetic or dino? A Lithia/Dodge dealer in Denver offered unlimited oil changes for $600, but I imagine that's a rarity. On the other hand, you can go to Wally World and buy 3 gallons of oil for $47 and change it yourself! Don't forget to buy a filter!



My dealer charged me $65 for the first service with me furnishing the oil of my choice (bought from Wally World, naturally), which is Shell Rotella T.

Final comment: Depending on how you drive and what you tow, it could take as long as 20,000 miles to break in a Cummins engine. There are varying opinions on this, but the rule seems to be drive easy the first 500 miles, then hook up to something heavy for a few thousand miles. Fireplugs work real good but it pisses off the fellers who drive the big red diesels

 

[Casey Balvert]

Originally posted by Jeremiah

H-m-m-m. Severe service oil change is 7500 miles? How about normal service? I'd go look it up myself but the owner's manual is in my baby, which is in the shop getting a ding fixed where a carwash attendant cut too sharp as he drove it out the exit. :{ :-{} Oo. Oo. Oo.

15,000 miles for normal service but it is doubtful many trucks fall under that definition. Just marketing hype really. Figure on 7500 miles for 99% of us.



Casey

 

[PBeaudoin]

Originally posted by Jeremiah

Final comment: Depending on how you drive and what you tow, it could take as long as 20,000 miles to break in a Cummins engine. There are varying opinions on this, but the rule seems to be drive easy the first 500 miles, then hook up to something heavy for a few thousand miles. Fireplugs work real good but it pisses off the fellers who drive the big red diesels

I am with you 100% on your opinion.

I will run synthetic only after 2-3 oil changes.

As far as the service contract, yes, that is using dino

I was in it for all the other service too. To include every recommended service by the book, thats were it adds up.

Then Mr. Dodge himself can't come back and say that I did not do the services too. This is my 5th Dodge product all but my 02 1500 had transmission, and electrical problems. My 94 only lasted 30 days and I traded it.

So, yes I will run dino oil till 45K (service contract ends) then to synthetics thru-out. My 02 roof gadget was alway within a mile or so when I checked it with a fuel fill up??

If its off 3-4 mpg that means I am only getting 7-8 mpg. . :{ towing that is. . 02 gasser got that

 

[Jeremiah]

Originally posted by CBalvert

15,000 miles for normal service but it is doubtful many trucks fall under that definition. Just marketing hype really. Figure on 7500 miles for 99% of us.



Casey

I am anxious to get my truck and my owner's manual back. I swear I never saw 15,000 miles between oil changes. I did see 3750 and 7500, but that's all. Maybe I need new glasses.

 

[Dean Upson]

Jeremiah



Given the confusion on this issue, I think the schedule is poorly presented. If you don't really look closely it is easy to assume that the California Schedule applies to all. The non-Californian schedule is 15,000 for A and 7500 for the B.



Dean

 

[Jeremiah]

Originally posted by Dean Upson

Jeremiah



Given the confusion on this issue, I think the schedule is poorly presented. If you don't really look closely it is easy to assume that the California Schedule applies to all. The non-Californian schedule is 15,000 for A and 7500 for the B.



Dean

I'll sure check it out. I've never run 7500 miles between oil changes, let alone 15,000. Let's hope the factory knows what they're talking about. Before I did it I'd be inclined to analyze the oil for sure.

 

[Dean Upson]

Jeremiah,



Have you noticed how clean the oil looks on these new CTD's?



Dean

 

[Jeremiah]

Originally posted by Dean Upson

Jeremiah,



Have you noticed how clean the oil looks on these new CTD's?



Dean

For a fact, I did and was shocked! I expected black sooty oil and what came out of the engine at 5K was as golden as it was when it went in.

 

[Big_Daddy_T]

Like they said opinions abound.

Technically I qualify as SUPER DOOPER severe duty cycle. And if you read the book on qualifying for normal duty NOBODY qualifies for normal duty. NOBODY. I found a way to make me happy and save a few bucks. And dont tell me about leaving the dirty oil in the engine because of the filter. I had a hard time letting go of my 2500k oil change interval program that I had used for over 600 thousand miles. so here is the deal I made with myself. I will change the oil every 3700 and the filter every 7500. At 3700 the filter should have quite a bit of life left in it. And if the filter is still up to par then contamination should not even be considered a factor. I have never had an engine fail. I have had several gassers over 250k.

 

[Jeremiah]

Originally posted by Big_Daddy_T

Like they said opinions abound.

Technically I qualify as SUPER DOOPER severe duty cycle. And if you read the book on qualifying for normal duty NOBODY qualifies for normal duty. NOBODY. I found a way to make me happy and save a few bucks. And dont tell me about leaving the dirty oil in the engine because of the filter. I had a hard time letting go of my 2500k oil change interval program that I had used for over 600 thousand miles. so here is the deal I made with myself. I will change the oil every 3700 and the filter every 7500. At 3700 the filter should have quite a bit of life left in it. And if the filter is still up to par then contamination should not even be considered a factor. I have never had an engine fail. I have had several gassers over 250k.

I hear that, cuz. I have a '90 Honda Accord w/325,000 miles on it. I changed the erl and filter every 3,000 miles and perform all the other recommended maintenance at the required time. It still has the original clutch, original engine that runs as smoothly as the day I bought it. I got 155,000 out of the brake pads! I will go back and re-read the TD owner's manual. I imagine I'll come down about where you are, maybe even more conservative. I don't believe in running dirty oil under any circumstances.

 

[Ben Rumson]

Break in ...

Call the Cummins techs at 1-800-Diesels. They'll set the record straight for proper breakin.



They will tell you to work the engine through all ranges, gradually increasing in speed - this includes compression. They will also tell you to get a load on it and head for the hills and get everything "set" inside the engine under varying speeds and load situations.



Best break in is to be used and pressured - not babied.