[OneFastLotus]

Hmmm..I was looking around the net for websites on breaking in and found this one http://www.mototuneusa.com/break_in_secrets.htm

I hear this site is well recieved so I read up on his break in method.

I noticed a LOT of people suggest changing the oil after the first 20 miles to avoid aluminizing the engine parts. Is this poppycock?

Im picking my car up in Atlanta and driving it home to Louisville Kentucky. I really dont see me wanting to stop after 20 miles, find an oil lube station and have the oil changed. I wonder, will driving 700 miles non stop be harmful to the break in process? Would it be best to stop somewhere and have the oil changed along the way? Can you just pull into a Jiffy Lube with an Elise? I dont know how hard it is to change the oil in one of these cars and Ive never been to a Jiffy lube before.

I was contemplating sending the oil off to have it analyzed after break in. The more I read, the more I see suggestions of changing the oil VERY soon, soma say after only 20 miles, some say at 300 miles, some dont say.

I know Im not the only one driving a car home for a great distance from their dealer.

THe reason why this intrigues me so is that my husband and I both ended up buying new miata's shortly before we met. Same time, same year, same packages. His was significantly slower than mine. Mine had a more "spirited" break in. So I know that breaking in the motor CAN have an effect on the power of the car.


Any ideas for those of us long haulers?

 

[Modern Wedgie]

I agree that a hard breakin is best...the problem is, Lotus and the warranty may not agree. And with "Big Brother" loging our every move on the car CPU, what can we do?

 

[zvezdah1]

Yep, kind of an interesting point.

Always extra careful to break in the various Ducatis I've had over the years, after touring the factory this past July (They actually run ALL the engines on the dyno to redline) the technicians laugh when you talk breakin.

That said, I suspect I'll follow what the Lotus guys say.
Chris

Jenn, how are you going to handle the initial service (which some have said would be at 1500 miles) You'd basically have to turn around when you get home!
Chris

 

[OneFastLotus]

I know! Thats what I dont know either.

What is the first service?


I can do the oil change here at home, but what else do they do?

 

[cerven]

Jenn,

Did I hear correctly that in order to change the oil the bottom pan or plate or part of it has to be removed too? Jiffy Lube might have trouble with that?

 

[offroadr35]

the worst thing you can do on break-in is run it constantly at one rev range. Just change gears some on the highway and be sure to accelerate a good bit too.

I have never really believed in break-in all that much. I usually change the oil once at 2500, then to synthetic at 5000.

-Steve

 

[Randy Chase]

Jiffy Lube is not touching my car. Nope.

 

[zvezdah1]

HI,
Yep, you have to remove the rear diffuser to change the oil. Below is a pic from the service manual for the S2.

I noticed that Hangar111 or eliseparts have a diffuser quick release kit that uses Dzus fasteners, probably the first thing I'll get.

Chris

 

[cerven]

Kidding about Jiffy Lube Randy, but not a job for me to do at home without a lot of effort, a lift or ramp.

 

[Randy Chase]

Yeah.

I quit changing my own oil a while ago. But I am going to go back to it with the Elise.

 

[HoopyFrood]

Im picking my car up in Atlanta and driving it home to Louisville Kentucky. I really dont see me wanting to stop after 20 miles, find an oil lube station and have the oil changed.

Um, not that I'm pesimistic or anything (well, yes I am, but that's not the issue here...), but as you're in the first batch of cars to come to the country, might it not be prudent anyway to spend 20 miles or so tooling around within 5 miles of the dealership before pointing your new car towards home - hundreds of miles away?

It'd give you a chance to feel out the car, have them fix take a look at the odd window rattle or whatever you might discover and do an oil change. With the way LoA is talked up, I wouldn't imagine they'd have any problem scheduling an oil change for you for an hour after you've left the lot...

 

[rtking]

Interesting and yes, very controversial...

I've read that site before, but I'm not sure yet. I remember an old Car and Driver article where they picked-up a new Corvette from the Bowling Green plant and they had John Heinricy in the car with them. (I think John was chief engineer on the Corvette then?) He told them to ignore the owners manual and run it hard. "If you want the motor to be fast, drive it hard right away..."

I've always been conservative when breaking-in a motor. But the reality is that when the car arrives at port and gets shuffled around, there's a very good likelihood that someone's already revved the heck out of it. Especially a high performance car.

I wonder how many miles should be "normal" on the odometer when the Elise is delivered? Is it true that the car is run on a dyno in Hethel prior to getting the "OK" to be released from the factory?

Bob K.

 

[waelsie]

All UK Elises used to do 3 laps of the Hethel circuit before being released to the dealer. If the US ones get the same treatment, you will have lost about 8 miles of your 20 before you even get it.
Changing oil after 20 miles is getting slightly carried away, surely ?
Giles.

 

[stuttgart]

I am also very concern on the break-in procedure. I totally agree proper break-in of the engine will definitely effect the power of the engine and the life of the engine. Most people will say don't drive it to redline in first 1000 miles and don't drive at constant rpm for first 1000 miles. Maybe I should drive it hard like it said on the MotoMan website.

Any suggestion?

 

[cerven]

I'm wondering if we have any choice whatsoever - if Lotus can monitor the engine use (can they? I don't know, anybody help me out?) then it's a matter of following their instructions or possibly voiding the warranty. I'd have to go the warranty route then but maybe unhappily with considerable pissing and moaning.

 

[James A]

The standard that BMW uses, and I think they are conservative, is a break in period of 1200 miles (2000 km). During the break in do not use full-throttle, no more than 5,500 rpm (on a car with a 7,000 rpm red line), do NOT drive at constant RPM. Bring the car in at 1200 miles for an oil change and inspection. When you pick your car up it has a sticker on the upper left of the wind shield with the break in instructions.
Does anyone know what Toyota recommends for the Celica GT-S?

 

[zvezdah1]

cerven,
The onboard diagnostics on the elise will tell them any anomalies that occured since previous service. RPM, speed and other things?

One SELOCer has been going round and round with the factory about this.

Chris

 

[scot]

Engines are broken in at the factory. This is part of the reason why they last so long. What you are breaking in is the drivetrain.

Follow the ducati manual.

Insert key, turn. Press start button. Locate mountains. Go. Drive agressively and don't break/turn hard for at least 100 miles to allow the parts to work properly together. Do not drive at a single rpm for any length of time.

Scot

 

[ConeFusion]

I expect that the break-in procedure will be described in the manual. I don't mean to offend anybody, but it's beyond me why so many people think they know better how the engine should be broken in than the people who engineered and built it.

Same thing about the early oil change. Some cars come with specifically formulated break-in oil that allows the engine to wear in properly. If you change to normal oil immediately, this isn't happening. I'll just follow the recommendations of the manufacturer.

 

[cerven]

Got a new 2004 Mercedes E500 recently - here's some quotes from my Operator's Manual about break-in period (car has 7 speed automatic/manual transmission - 5 liter 302 HP V-8 - certainly not the same thing as the Elise but still worth comparing:

"First 1,000 miles - drive at varying but moderate vehicle and engine speeds; during this period avoid heavy loads (full throttle driving) and excessive engine speeds (no more than 2/3 of maximum rpm in each gear); avoid accelerating by kick down; do not attempt to slow vehicle by shifting to a lower gear using the selector lever; select positions 3, 2 or 1 only when driving at moderate speeds (for hill driving); after 1,000 miles gradually increase vehicle and engine speeds"

It's interesting that they mention vehicle speed too, not just engine rpm and load.

(I think my 740i BMW was about the same - don't remember for sure.) This car beats the CRAP out of the BMW in just about every department as far as I'm concerned, by the way.

Additional instructions for AMG:

"during first 1,000 miles do not exceed 85 mph; during this period avoid engine speeds above 4,500 RPM"

I'd be scared to death to break-in the car hard and risk voiding the warranty. I don't have the cajones (or however you spell it LOL)or money to do that.