Rebuilt Engine Question: Break In.
 

I am getting my 2002 Boxster S 3.2 motor back from the rebuilders this week and friends shop said they may have it installed and running by the weekend or early next week. Paying customers get priority over friends who get discounts ;)

The following instructions came from them:

"Use the supplied 30 wt non-detergent for the first 500 km. Do not rev the motor past 5500 rpm. If the motor still has signs of blow-by at 500 km, use 30 wt non-detergent oil for anotherr 500 kms. If the motor has no blow-by use a 5w30 or 5w40 conventional oil until 3500 kms. At this point the motor should be fully broken-in and then use the factory spec. oil."

Question I have is when is it safe to rev above 5500 rpm (mine is a tip)?

I presume this is a standard proceedure for the porsche rebuilds in a colder climate? I understand the need for break in oil as well as using conventional oils to allow the parts to seat properly. I would be interested in hearing from others on the process; worried about the rev part.

Thanks,

Two schools of thought on this one:

Old School - Passive, progressive break-in limiting max revs and varying revs and load over a period of miles, then swap oil and go.

New School - Active immediate break-in - run engine at medium rpms for 15 min after warm, then swap oil and go.

I have used both methods with no ill effects and many trouble-free miles.

I have to admnit I've become a fan of the New School active method because I feel it's more controlled than just going 500 mi. under varying conditions, and if you think about it, lots of motors are built to run right off the bat, some consumer cars and many race engines.

The new car break-in required by many marques has as much or more to do with breaking in the ancillaries, tranny synchros and diff and aren't directed specifically or totally to the engine alone.

With a TipS, you don't control the rpms as well as with a manual, it's easily possible to exceed the recommended threshold unless you are exclusively in manual mode.

I guess what I'm saying is do some surfing and your own research and then decide. The one caveat would be not to negate any sort of guarantee by the rebuilder by not following their advise.

As far as your question, it should be good to go after the initial oil change, but again, ask the rebuilder rather than this board, especially if they're backing up their work.

:cheers:

Interesting that the rebuilder is saying 30 weight oils are ok. I've seen a lot of concern about an oil that thin. It does get hot in TO at times!

For engine break in period only...too thin to run after the break in mileage.

Much thanks. :cheers: :cheers:

I was looking for a lot of info (number 5 is alive) and do like to get multiple imputs. I will get more clarification from the rebuilder (he does give a 1 year warranty) as to when the revs can be brought to normal levels.

Temps next week are going down to near 0 degree C ... :eek: :eek: :eek: :eek:

Hopefully they rise before I put her into storage for the winter.

I've got a '99 with Tiptronic and in "D" it regularly hits redline when I put my foot in it all the way through 4th gear. If you put it in manual you can hit redline in every gear if you want. The Boxer is designed to hit its maximum power output at around 6-6500 RPM and you can really feel the car take off when you hit those RPM's. Don't worry about the motor once it's broken in (however you choose to do it) it's designed to be driven hard.

Folks, rebuilder says at 1,000 km driven, I can then drive normally with the conventional oil. I'll wait till at least 1,500 km before I exercise the motor as I want to ensure that it is properly broken in ....

Out of curiosity, did your rebuilder do anything to address any of the known failure modes, like IMS?

I did not talk to him as it went through my friends P-Car shop. Friend said that this shop is used by many independant P-Car shops in the Greater Toronto Area with no returns in the last 20 years. They do street as well as racing engines on Porsches.

What I gather form various sources is the IMS occurs on original factory engines. Rebuilt ones have the upgrades in them. The original motor on mine has 79,000 Miles on it with a sever case of oil flooding ... PO had filled the crankcase with 4 extra litres of oil. All was well lubricated so to say ...