Break In Period on new Pilot

3379 Views 10 Replies 10 Participants Last post by xyzzy, Oct 23, 2002

jcamarillo

Discussion Starter · Jul 1, 2002

We are finally going to put some miles on our Pilot this upcoming long weekend, and I have some questions regarding engine break in. According to the owner’s manual engine break in should last about 600 miles and there are certain things one should and should not do during these first 600 miles. My question is regarding something that I do not recall seeing in the manual: driving for extended periods at a constant speed (i.e. on cruise control). I have been told that this will damage a new engine. Has anyone heard this before, and do you know if it applies to the Pilot? What would the consequences be? Blown engine?

Save

1 - 11 of 11 Posts

davisdog

· #2 · Jul 2, 2002

it is true that for the break in period of just about any car (600Miles is reasonable) you should avoid driving at a constant speed for extended periods of time (ie don't leave cruise on for a long trip down the highway)...just lets the parts break in relatively evenly at different speeds/rpm's

Save

SpartanPilot

· #3 · Jul 2, 2002

We have a 2000 CR-V and the manual says the same thing for it. I got a new job right after buying the car and started a daily 45 mile round trip commute (all highway).

To tell the truth I forgot about the "vary your speed" note. I have been driving it from day one with the cruise pegged at 70 mph. I have had ZERO trouble with this car.....46500 miles so far!

BTW.....we just put in our lease order for a New Pilot...anyone want to buy my CR-V?

Save

Len

· #4 · Jul 2, 2002

jcamarillo said:
My question is regarding something that I do not recall seeing in the manual: driving for extended periods at a constant speed (i.e. on cruise control). I have been told that this will damage a new engine. Has anyone heard this before, and do you know if it applies to the Pilot?

I specifically asked our dealer, and he stated that Honda's new "break-in" oil and other engine modifications have made the old requirement of avoiding constant speeds for long periods of time unnecessary. The only recommendations are what's in the manual.

Save

PrG

· #5 · Jul 3, 2002

Yes,

but as a general rule during the brake in period it it generally good to vary your speeds and not stay at one speed for a prolonged period of time. This has nothing to do with the oil but rather for the seals to settle and allow proper engine wear. I'd do it ... it's not the dealers car anymore.

PrG

:29:

Save

Monkey8

· #6 · Jul 3, 2002

SpartanPilot said:
We have a 2000 CR-V and the manual says the same thing for it. I got a new job right after buying the car and started a daily 45 mile round trip commute (all highway).

To tell the truth I forgot about the "vary your speed" note. I have been driving it from day one with the cruise pegged at 70 mph. I have had ZERO trouble with this car.....46500 miles so far!

BTW.....we just put in our lease order for a New Pilot...anyone want to buy my CR-V?

properly not , especially when you done that during the breakin period.

Save

SpartanPilot

· #7 · Jul 4, 2002

Drive 'em hard

If my car is going to blow up...I want it to happen while its under warranty. I drive them the way I'm going to drive them normally. I have all the scheduled maintenance performed when it is called for.

These are machines, not tempermental Hollywood Divas!

Save

BC-Pilot

· #8 · Jul 4, 2002

Re: Drive 'em hard

SpartanPilot said:
If my car is going to blow up...I want it to happen while its under warranty. I drive them the way I'm going to drive them normally. I have all the scheduled maintenance performed when it is called for.

Great point JC - I couldn't agree with you more - but I'll be driving mine hard ONLY after the first 600 miles are through. The warranty IS 3 years after all......

PLUS I'm into this vehicle for the long haul.

Save

WannaPilot

· #9 · Oct 23, 2002

Bringing back an old thread......

Quick question regarding the break-in period....

So far I have a little over 100 miles on my Pilot.... I was always under the impression (can't remember why) that during the break-in period, you shouldn't drive faster than 55 MPH..... is there any truth to this? Driving 55 MPH is making me and other drivers around me crazy! :3:

Thx in advance......

Save

PILOTinginCO

· #10 · Oct 23, 2002

Drive Like You Mean It!

I Cant' Drive 55! (hey, that's catchy - could make a song out of that)!

I've always heard that if you break in your new vehicle like a pansy-it will always act like a pansy and be a constant headache. Now, I'm not saying you should try and break land-speed records in your new PILOT during the break-in, but Honda has an amazing history of building incredible engines, so I can't imagine that the engine in the PILOT/MDX/Odyssey being prone to falling apart if you don't break it in properly.

During my break-in (which consisted of a road trip from Las Vegas to Denver, CO), I varied speed on my PILOT between 55 and 80mph, although I admit I spent most of my time at 80!!!

I now have 3,400 miles on my PILOT (after owning for 5 weeks) and my PILOT runs just as smooth as the day I picked it up.

I LOVE MY PILOT, and my wife's 88 Accord LXI with 176,000 miles on it. Incredibly, my wife's car runs nearly as well as my PILOT.

Geez, I wonder why Honda has such a loyal following - maybe it's because their cars DON'T SUCK?!?!?!?

FORD Motor Company - are you listening????

See less See more

Save

xyzzy

· #11 · Oct 23, 2002

It's actually much more important to keep the RPM's down during breakin than to worry about overall speed. You can be going 40 and have the engine running at higher revs than if you are going 65 if it hasn't upshifted yet. The Pilot runs at relatively low RPMs even at 70 MPH. Just don't "gun it" and vary your engine speeds (no cruise control for long distances) and you'll be fine.

Chris

Save

1 - 11 of 11 Posts

This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.

Top Contributors this Month