Taking delivery of a JCW manual mini

Any thoughts on 'run in' or similar ideas?

 

Hey Ralphie...i just picked up my JCW on Halloween....i've been driving it on a day to day basis....meaning one day if im feeling great...i'll drive it hard...other day if im not in the mood...ill drive it normally.....i think it just all depends on the driver...i have been doing pretty well with keeping it under 4500rpm, but i have slipped once or twice and i have gone over 100mph....i always get a guilty feeling because i feel like im doing damage to my engine...bottom line...treat it well, but enjoy it because most likely you worked hard for it...good luck and congrats

 

I just drove the hell out mine since day one. I changed the oil at 3000 miles and the dealer changed the oil at 9500 miles. That is it so far.

 

Hammer it and change the oil @ 1500 then 3000 then every 3000 there after.

Get a forge or helix intercooler,a downpipe and a drop in k&n air filter.

 

Try to keep it under 4k for the first grand, change the oil, then hammer it. The engine is bullet proof. It's all the fancy electronics that will fall apart.

 

+1

 

so keep the revs low for starters then change the oil

is changing oil and easy job on these cars?

 

Follow the manufacturer's break in procedures if you plan to keep it for more than the warranty period. Good luck.

 

+2

 

I've had mine now for over a year with 10k+ miles. I hit the "Sport" button before I was off the dealer lot when I picked it up. I'll never forget that first entrance ramp to the freeway, I knew I made the right choice long before that but that just confirmed it.

Have fun and drive the car, that's what they're built for, especially this one.

 

Ahh I remember the break in days. Not all that long ago! I was so happy to get past that threshold! I was nice to mine up to the 1200 mile mark. Changed the oil and started to have fun.

 

Keep the revs low but don't baby it. Put your foot in it after about 300 miles. You want to force the rings against the cylinder walls. Try not to drive at constant speed, keep moving the gas pedal, while keeping the rpm below 4500 or speed below 100 MPH.

I slipped up too when some guy in a Trans Am cut me off. I was pleasantly surprised when I could stay on his tail up to 100 mph only using half throttle (oK maybe I coasted up to 110 or so). We did a few roll ons with the same result. Later on he killed me off the line though (he should since his car does 0-60 in 4.6). Too bad we dont have 4wd or we would be unstoppable, in Lotus Elise territory!

smoke05s

 

Drive it however you would normally, but like smoke05s said, adjust your speed constantly. I'd add that you should leave it in gear when you come to a stop; will help the pistons seat better, so I hear. Maybe not take it real close to redline either. I guess you don't want to be too hard on the clutch for the first few hundred miles since new clutches usually need a break-in period.

 

At 300 miles the rings have done 95% of the seating they are going to do.

By 20 miles most of the grooves on the cylinder have already been worn down. So if you really want to seat the rings well put your put in when you leave the lot (in higher gears - not 1st or second)

There are many conflicting stories on the best way to break in an engine. I doubt everyone will ever come to an agreement.

 

I've heard that accelerating harder in higher gears at lower rpms puts a lot of pressure on the cylinders and that most wear happens within the first 50-60 miles or so. Letting the motor decelerate (downshifting) is also good instead of going into neutral when coming to a stop.

Who knows how much it really helps, just do what you feel comfortable with.

 

I guess I was being a little conservative with my 300 mile rule. In my bike roadracing racing days we would go about 150 miles easy around the track (maybe keeping it below 8000 RPM) and then start racing (redline was about 14,000). We never had an engine failure and it was an endurance racer that we would run all season (maybe 20,000 redlined miles) without rebuilding it.

I had a friend in high school who had one of those Smokey and the Bandit style Trans Ams. He bought it new. I went with him to get it. He drove off the lot doing a smokey burnout all the way down the street. We went for a drive later that day and hit 140 on the freeway, maybe he had 25 miles on it. I think he replaced the tires before he had 1000 miles on it from them being worn out to the chords! Later on he would race several other Trans Ams the same year and would always win by about a car and a half. That wild break in "procedure", while being extreme in the opposite direction, could have been the difference. He of course totaled the car (hit the chief of police's Caddiliac), so we will never know how long that engine would have lasted.

Smoke05s

 

Absolutely True!

Avoid long 'idle' and steady highway crusing or going for best MPG's.

No need to abuse, but repeated 3/4 throttle acceleration in a gear that will allow several seconds from 2500 to 4500 RPM immediately followed by a closed throttle deceleration back to 2500 is best (have no traffic behind you though).

 

I've always broken in my cars pretty mildly in the past. But after reading this article, I'm not so sure??

http://www.mototuneusa.com/break_in_secrets.htm

I do like to drive my cars pretty hard every once in a while, and I've never really had any major issues, but I would like to see the difference between break in methods for the same car. I'm just not sure how that can be accomplished without someone sacrificing their engine..