Remanufactured Engines – Recommended Break-In Procedure

Are you replacing your old engine with a remanufactured unit? If so, you need to break it in before you can push it to its full power. It’s a straightforward process. This guide has all the information you need about breaking in a remanufactured engine.

What Does It Mean To Break In Your Engine?

In simple terms, breaking in your engine means letting the engine find its groove. By breaking into your engine, you’re easing it into its role. All new engines need to be broken in. This is especially important for remanufactured engines. It’s because remanufactured engines contain some new parts and some original parts.

When you break in your engine, you’re letting:

• The old parts and the new parts to get to know each other
• The new parts to wear a bit
• The piston rings to properly seal against the cylinder bore
• Your engine and transmission to work with each other
• The oil get to where it needs to go
• The coolant to get to where it needs to go

The engine break-in process should last 500-3,000 miles, depending on the type of engine you have.

Do I Really Need To Follow The Break-In Procedure?

Some people believe that the break-in procedure is optional. But that’s a belief that could shorten the life of the engine. It’s necessary to follow a proper break-in process. That is, if you want your new remanufactured engine to last as long as possible.

Why is the process necessary?

Let’s put it this way. Imagine you’re a professional dancer, and you get a new dance partner. Before you and your partner go out and perform on stage, you two need to practice a lot together. This allows you two enough time to get to know each other’s rhythms, strengths, and weaknesses. You start off by doing the waltz together. This gradually turns into doing faster and more complicated dances together, like the tango. This helps ensure a smoother transition. What if you and your partner went on stage and did the tango together without practicing? The show would be a disaster, to say the least.

The same idea applies to engines. The engine contains many different parts that need to work together to operate right. The parts need to work with each other for a bit to ensure smooth performance and proper sealing. For instance, the piston rings are new They need some time to adjust to the cylinder walls.

What Can Happen If You Don’t Break In Your Engine The Right Way?

If you either don’t break in your engine at all or don’t do it the right way, you can run into the following problems:

• Some engine parts can fail early
• The engine can continue to consume oil past the break in period
• You could get piston slap
  • This is when the piston head rocks slightly back and forth in the cylinder instead of traveling straight up and down
• The fuel economy can suffer

How To Break In Your Remanufactured Engine The Right Way

Breaking in an engine is an important job that needs to be done right. If you have a Powertrain Products remanufactured engine, read on to find out how to break it in the right way. You can also find a great graphic that explains each step here.

1. Don’t use synthetic oil for the first 3,000 miles. Be sure to check oil levels at each fill up. The engine may consume 1-2 quarts of oil during break-in.
2. Change the oil after 500 miles.
3. Change the oil again after 2,500 miles.
4. If you can, stick to city driving during the first 3,000 miles. You want stop-and-go with varying RPMs during this period. If highway driving is a must for you, be sure to vary your speeds and RPM every few minutes. If you do live in a hilly area, this may happen by default.
5. After 3,000 miles, your engine will be broken in and can be run on synthetic oil now if you prefer.

Please feel free contact us with any more questions you may have about breaking in your engine.