Break-In Dillemma

[jreese86]

I know I mentioned this in my intro thread, but I could really use some advice. I'm picking up a leftover 2008 FZ6 soon, and I have an issue. The dealership is a little over 2 hours and 130 miles away. The route consists of 1 mile to the turnpike, 121 miles on the pike, and about 9 miles between the turnpike and home. One thing I've always heard about break-in periods is that they should not be done at a constant speed on the highway. Unfortunately, I really don't have a choice in the matter. The ride home almost doubles in time if I take back roads, and even though I have a ton of warm gear, 4 hours just isn't feasible in 40 degree weather. Not to mention that by the time I got halfway home it would be dark and the temperature will drop into the 30's.

What can I do while on the highway to improve the quality of the break in? I'll have someone in a car following me, so I figure I can bounce around between 55 and 75mph pretty safely, but that won't have me shifting gears or using the engine to decelerate very often. Any suggestions? I haven't road since November, and the FZ6 is quite a bit faster than my GS500F was, so I'm not looking to ride too aggressively. Not to mention the high windchill factor in relation to speed...

Any help is appreciated, thanks.

 

[wrightme43]

Tote it home in a truck or on a trailer???

Shift frequently from 3-4-5-6-5-4-3 take every exit and on ramp back on.

Change your oil and filter as soon as you get home.

Seriously though, waiting a few days to pick it up, or trailering it home would be best, then going over the whole bike with a fine tooth comb, then break in around your home area.

 

[dako81]

Tote it home in a truck or on a trailer???

Shift frequently from 3-4-5-6-5-4-3 take every exit and on ramp back on.

Change your oil and filter as soon as you get home.

Seriously though, waiting a few days to pick it up, or trailering it home would be best, then going over the whole bike with a fine tooth comb, then break in around your home area.

Do what he says.

 

[jreese86]

I planned on having the oil changed right away for sure.

I don't have a truck....or a trailer. Nor do I have one available. Unfortuneatly this is Ohio, it won't be out of the 40's/50's for another month at the least.

I'm hoping there isn't much traffic, that way I can randomly slow down to 40 here and there (with my girlfriend playing bike-shield with her car behind me) and then accelerate up to 75ish. Even if I'm staying at a steady speed, will just shifting/downshifting 3-6 help alot?

One thing I may be able to do is take backroads for about 10-20 miles and make sure to do alot of shifting/stopping/accelerating/decellerating before I hop on the highway. Unfortuneatly it's the turnpike, so theres only offramps for rest stations (30-40 miles apart) and exits where I would have to pay and turn around. Given the ridiculous amounts of layers I'll have on, digging out money is a close to impossible task.

Thanks for any ideas though, it all helps.

 

[dako81]

You can rent a box truck/u-haul or the like and load it up inside of that. Just make sure you have some tie downs.

You could even rent it for half a day, and with fuel only be out $50-$60.

Seriously, check into it. It may be easier than you think. Check out enterprise, they rent small trucks like colorados or rangers, the dealer should have a ramp and you can make dew back at your place. Just need some tie downs.

 

[mglowe]

I'm not going to disagree with the others that have posted but I had a similar situation when I got mine, though half the mileage you have. Mine rode mostly interstate home and I have not seen any ill effects.

I believe that, simply, follow the manual and you will be fine. My reason... I personally have not seen any proof otherwise.

 

[dako81]

I looked up enterprise in Akron, and it's right about $80 a day for a pickup (pickup to them which is like a colorado, NOT truck which is 1/2 or 3/4 ton truck and costs more) and there's 13 locations available in Akron with pickups available.

If you're under 25, have a close friend or family member rent the truck for you. It will just be easier (if they're willing to help you and have dealt with rental companies/situations like this before). You have them rent it (pay them for it later), and when they're asked if they're going to be the only one driving the truck have them say yes. And have them buy the extra $15 a day anything can happen and you're covered insurance.

I had my dad rent an '05 pathfinder for me to take to prom, I was driving my date, and a friend with his date and we split the cost. I had him get it for the whole weekend, and the day after prom which was saturday night we took it mud bogging all day. Lets just say we got it stuck and it took two half ton chevys to yank it out. Oh and they go 72 boucing off the rev limiter in top gear in 4-lo, and limit at 115 in high. They're also pretty quick for an SUV. It had to 4.0l v6. We washed it in the car wash, but it only really got the top and sides. There was visibly caked mud underneath the ENTIRE undercarraige, with twigs, pieces of corn stalks, and weeds hanging out. They didn't do anything, we never got a call, nothing.

Anyways. It may cost a little bit of money to rent the truck, but it would probably be worth it, just for the fact of not riding that far in 40 degree weather.

 

[Cali rider]

Just ride it home as is. As long as the bike has been prepped correctly (oil and coolant levels verified) it won't affect the potential lifespan of the motor AT ALL!!! I would be more concerned about bedding in the brakes and scrubbing the sides of the tires than whether the engine speed has stayed constant for 20 minutes straight.

Just my opinion as usual...

 

[urbanj]

Vary the load. It's more important. Don't let the rpm's sit constant. you can change the gear you're in and the amount of throttle. If it makes you feel any better ride with your flashers on and just keep it in 4th or 5th and keep accelerating and decelerating.

if you run it at high rpms with no load all thats happening is the piston is going up and down fast but there is no combustion pressure forcing the rings against the wall (break in) thats what glazes the cylinder. so ride home and concentrate on what you do with your wrist. spend as much time as you can applying 30 - 80% throttle in any way you can.

I had mine at red line the first day but at about 75%. i never went WOT to red line. i would run it up from 4000 rpm to about 10000rpm.

Oh and make 100% sure the bike is warm. once the coolant is up to temp run it lightly for a couple more miles to make sure the oil is up to temp. Then let her rip.

 

[Smittyboy]

UP to temp... Means... what'd be ideal? when the no's start appearing on the temp gauge, or what numerical value should he wait for?

 

[dako81]

UP to temp... Means... what'd be ideal? when the no's start appearing on the temp gauge, or what numerical value should he wait for?

If it were me, I would let the fan cycle at least one time before leaving, but if it is 40 degrees out this may take awhile. I would let it at least get up to 180 or so for a few minutes.

 

[reiobard]

i rode mine home when it was 19 degrees out and 2 hours on the highway. I did as much shifting as i could. 55-75mph in various gears will give a pretty good range of RPMs.

 

[jreese86]

Thanks guys. I think I'm just going to ride back roads for 10-20 miles and make sure to give it lots of varied RPMs before getting on the highway. I read somewhere that the first 20 miles is whats really important. I don't know how true that is but it makes sense. Once on the highway I'll just make sure to keep switching gears and changing speeds as much as possible.

 

[CanadianFZ6]

I know I mentioned this in my intro thread, but I could really use some advice. I'm picking up a leftover 2008 FZ6 soon, and I have an issue. The dealership is a little over 2 hours and 130 miles away. The route consists of 1 mile to the turnpike, 121 miles on the pike, and about 9 miles between the turnpike and home. One thing I've always heard about break-in periods is that they should not be done at a constant speed on the highway. Unfortunately, I really don't have a choice in the matter. The ride home almost doubles in time if I take back roads, and even though I have a ton of warm gear, 4 hours just isn't feasible in 40 degree weather. Not to mention that by the time I got halfway home it would be dark and the temperature will drop into the 30's.


Any help is appreciated, thanks.

It's heat early on that is a new motor's worst enemy... If a new motor still tight from the assembly line experiences say a traffic jam in 30C (that's hot for you Yanks). This would be the worst case scenario... You will be fine by doing what Steve (Wrightme43) says... Vary the engine speed and don't idle the bike for too long (even though it is cold out). The good news is your bike will be pretty much broken in by the time you get home....:thumbup:

 

[CanadianFZ6]

Thanks guys. I think I'm just going to ride back roads for 10-20 miles and make sure to give it lots of varied RPMs before getting on the highway. I read somewhere that the first 20 miles is whats really important. I don't know how true that is but it makes sense. Once on the highway I'll just make sure to keep switching gears and changing speeds as much as possible.

That is true... 90% of the break-in happens very early on. The largest engine and transmission irregularities will be removed within the first 20 miles or so. By the way, don't be afraid to redline it once in a while. If you think about it, the quicker you get the rough edges and crap out of the engine and into the filter the better.... Up to redline and back down then vary the rpm....

 

[CanadianFZ6]

If it were me, I would let the fan cycle at least one time before leaving, but if it is 40 degrees out this may take awhile. I would let it at least get up to 180 or so for a few minutes.

What would be your theory behind this? When an engine is new and tight, heat is the worst thing you can inflict on the motor.... Get it up to operating temp, yes, but... Everything is tight already, you don't need heat to expand piston (just an example) too much that might cause them to scuff the wall...

 

[dako81]

What would be your theory behind this? When an engine is new and tight, heat is the worst thing you can inflict on the motor.... Get it up to operating temp, yes, but... Everything is tight already, you don't need heat to expand piston (just an example) too much that might cause them to scuff the wall...

The piston is probably one of the first things in the engine to start getting warm, and probably one of the first things in the engine to get up to its operating temp. This means it is first to expand, pushing the rings into the cylinder wall. The cylinder walls have water behind them along with more material, and will heat up slower, creating a condition as the bike is starting to warm up a little bit, where an up to temp (fully expanded) piston is running up and down in a bore that is not fully expanded or up to temp.

Once the engine has fully warmed up, and cycled the thermostat (which allows cool water to flow back into the passages in the head and behind the cylinder walls SHRINKING THEM DOWN ONTO THE PISTON/RINGS, remember the piston is only cooled by the intake charge so the cooling water will have no effect on the piston temp) enough to heat the entire cooling system, the system is at an equilibrium of sorts where the pieces are up to a spec'd out temp range where the tolerances in the engine are engineered to work together properly. This means less stress on the engine. So, as it warms up there is more stress on the engine than when it is actually warmed up.

Excessive heat is bad for a new engine because imperfections that haven't been worn away or polished down can create hot spots that the cooling system cannot keep up with, that's why wide open throttle is not recommended for a period of time. Wide open throttle means the engine is converting as much heat as possible into kinetic energy, meaning at wot the engine is producing as much heat as it possibly can, which can create hot spots on a new engine.

Operating temp does not come close to this capacity issue, and it brings the engines internals into spec with each other. Then, combustion pressure may be used during the break in procedure to seat the rings.

So, you're half right, sort of.

Break In Secrets--How To Break In New Motorcycle and Car Engines For More Power

For every method, it says in red letters for the first step to let the engine warm completely before performing any procedure of break in, and this is because of what I described above.

 

[urbanj]

The piston is probably one of the first things in the engine to start getting warm, and probably one of the first things in the engine to get up to its operating temp. This means it is first to expand, pushing the rings into the cylinder wall. The cylinder walls have water behind them along with more material, and will heat up slower, creating a condition as the bike is starting to warm up a little bit, where an up to temp (fully expanded) piston is running up and down in a bore that is not fully expanded or up to temp.

Once the engine has fully warmed up, and cycled the thermostat (which allows cool water to flow back into the passages in the head and behind the cylinder walls SHRINKING THEM DOWN ONTO THE PISTON/RINGS, remember the piston is only cooled by the intake charge so the cooling water will have no effect on the piston temp) enough to heat the entire cooling system, the system is at an equilibrium of sorts where the pieces are up to a spec'd out temp range where the tolerances in the engine are engineered to work together properly. This means less stress on the engine. So, as it warms up there is more stress on the engine than when it is actually warmed up.

Excessive heat is bad for a new engine because imperfections that haven't been worn away or polished down can create hot spots that the cooling system cannot keep up with, that's why wide open throttle is not recommended for a period of time. Wide open throttle means the engine is converting as much heat as possible into kinetic energy, meaning at wot the engine is producing as much heat as it possibly can, which can create hot spots on a new engine.

Operating temp does not come close to this capacity issue, and it brings the engines internals into spec with each other. Then, combustion pressure may be used during the break in procedure to seat the rings.

So, you're half right, sort of.

Break In Secrets--How To Break In New Motorcycle and Car Engines For More Power

For every method, it says in red letters for the first step to let the engine warm completely before performing any procedure of break in, and this is because of what I described above.

This is how I break my engines in as well. As do the OEM's.

But the piston is cooled by the heat transfer from piston skirt to cylinder wall/liner to coolant as well as oil. It can be splashed up or fed up through the rod or squirted at the piston from oil jets mounted in the block aim up. The oil jet method is the best way.

 

[Red Wazp]

What are you buying? A porch pooch?
Just ride it!
Vary the rpms and have a ball!
Wait until after the 600 mile oil change for the wheelies and smokey burnouts.

 

[dako81]

This is how I break my engines in as well. As do the OEM's.

But the piston is cooled by the heat transfer from piston skirt to cylinder wall/liner to coolant as well as oil. It can be splashed up or fed up through the rod or squirted at the piston from oil jets mounted in the block aim up. The oil jet method is the best way.

This is true, however the surface area is very small where the skirt touches the wall (since they're different diameters), leaving a very small area to transfer heat. Oil jets do also help cool the pistons, but it is my understanding that not all IC engines have these? So, for my purposes of explanation, the main source of heat transfer is the cool intake air charge across the top surface area of the piston (which is what has been cooling pistons for ages, and in some cases such as 2-stroke engines cooling as well as lubing the crank, rods, and pistons from every angle).

I'm open to learn more as well about how effective the oil jet cooling is. And feel free to call me out if something is wrong!