[mankid247]

I am going to do ed on an m235 sometime in the spring and seeing as how I would get a chance to drive on some fast roads and what not wanted to push the car a little, one thing that I was wondering is how far can I push it speed and rpm wise without having to worry about the break in? My brother is a big enthusiast and he just got a new 335 in the fall and would not go over 3-4 thousand rpm for the first 1200 miles

[Roundown]

Originally Posted by mankid247

I am going to do ed on an m235 sometime in the spring and seeing as how I would get a chance to drive on some fast roads and what not wanted to push the car a little, one thing that I was wondering is how far can I push it speed and rpm wise without having to worry about the break in? My brother is a big enthusiast and he just got a new 335 in the fall and would not go over 3-4 thousand rpm for the first 1200 miles

Two schools of thought on this:

1. By the book: until 1200 miles, keep revs low and varied (i.e. don't drone away at 2k rpm on the highway) and never, ever approach WOT in any gear.

2. Race Car Style: gun it from day one. Score the cylinders early and it'll be good for life.

In either case. Do what BMW requires of M cars, get the fluids changed after break in (oil, 6MT fluid and particularly the diff fluid if you LSD). With all the metals burrs in the first run oil, it's money well spent.

[M.barnes]

Under 4k for 1200 miles is run in on m235i then oil change.

[Lucky13]

Please don't turn this into the 1,000th when do we need to change the oil threads. Literally this has been discussed on every vehicle BMW makes and about every 6-8 weeks when a new person buys one and doesn't use the thread search.

[ska///235i]

The question here is not if the engine will get properly broken-in buy rather if you're out on the autobahn and not live it.

I did ED back in 2005 and drove my car to 140 mph...no regrets and still have the car today

Also when they QC the car from the factory do dino up to 120mph

[mankid247]

Originally Posted by ska325xi

The question here is not if the engine will get properly broken-in buy rather if you're out on the autobahn and not live it.

I did ED back in 2005 and drove my car to 140 mph...no regrets and still have the car today

And that's what I was looking for... Did you work up to it or did you put the throttle down more or less?

[ska///235i]

Originally Posted by mankid247

And that's what I was looking for... Did you work up to it or did you put the throttle down more or less?

Didnt redline it or at least not long

[Sy546]

its more important to break in your brake pads and tires semi-gently. first couple of hundred miles

[Greenkirby21]

If I was doing ED I would go on the autobahn and nurburgring! That's why you are there right

As long as you don't kill the car, I think you should be ok! Just make sure the engine is warm

[mattssi]

I've NEVER done a break-in period on a vehicle. If you did ED, you'd be losing out. Drive it like it should - nothing will happen. If they can't make a car that can be driven hard off the lot - f em.

[Math]

Originally Posted by mattssi

I've NEVER done a break-in period on a vehicle. If you did ED, you'd be losing out. Drive it like it should - nothing will happen. If they can't make a car that can be driven hard off the lot - f em.

+1 on this!

[Vervain]

Originally Posted by mattssi

I've NEVER done a break-in period on a vehicle. If you did ED, you'd be losing out. Drive it like it should - nothing will happen. If they can't make a car that can be driven hard off the lot - f em.

[Ganxxta]

Just a small heads-up for everyone doing ED:

Most parts of the german Autobahn are limited, be careful to go only full-throttle on unlimited parts, otherwise you might loose a few $$$

Have fun.

[Ramos]

Or you could do 140 MPH without redlining the car or ever exceeding 4000 RPM

[ska///235i]

Originally Posted by Ramos

Or you could do 140 MPH without redlining the car or ever exceeding 4000 RPM

No way you can do 140 w/o exceeding 4k rpm...impossible

[wdlfbio]

ED for a 328xi, hit 100 often but not 120 mph until after 1,200 miles. Second ED Z4 35is, didn't abuse redline, but waited for 160 mph until 1,200 miles. Plenty of spirited driving until the 1,200 mph. Next car might be the 235i and that will go from Munich to the Ring. If it blows up, that's what warranty is for .

[Ramos]

Originally Posted by ska325xi

No way you can do 140 w/o exceeding 4k rpm...impossible

It depends on gearing, on my ED trip driving my brand new E90 335, I was cruising along on the autobahn at 120 MPH at around 3500 RPM in 6th gear.

[w3rkn]

BMW break-in:

Start the car and let it idle at least 5m before driving, then.. when it is @ operating temp.. it is yours do what u want.


Very simple!

[Red Bread]

Originally Posted by w3rkn

BMW break-in:

Start the car and let it idle at least 5m before driving, then.. when it is @ operating temp.. it is yours do what u want.


Very simple!

Just about the worst idea, as undue idling is hard on a car, five minutes of idling is almost certainly not enough time to heat the oil and this will also do nothing for transmission temps.

Just ignoring break in protocol, the best way to warm up a car is to actually drive it. That way the transmission also warms up with the motor. Ideally, you'd rely on an engine oil temperature gauge, not a coolant gauge to determine when it's safe to bring the revs up. This is what recent M cars indicate with the variable redline. Most BMW manuals give you guidelines of what the oil temp should be at before exceeding 4k rpm and redlining.

[w3rkn]

Originally Posted by Red Bread

Just about the worst idea, as undue idling is hard on a car, five minutes of idling is almost certainly not enough time to heat the oil and this will also do nothing for transmission temps.

Just ignoring break in protocol, the best way to warm up a car is to actually drive it. That way the transmission also warms up with the motor. Ideally, you'd rely on an engine oil temperature gauge, not a coolant gauge to determine when it's safe to bring the revs up. This is what recent M cars indicate with the variable redline. Most BMW manuals give you guidelines of what the oil temp should be at before exceeding 4k rpm and redlining.

?

That is not what I have said. I said START your car and leave idle for 5 minutes, before you drive away every morning, every night, every time. (specially if u have a turbo engine)

Then, while you are out & about driving casually, when the engine is at nominal, then u can have fun with it, and have no qualms. That doesn't mean take it to the track, or bounce it off the rev-limiter, it just means u need to know when it is ok to step into a fresh engine.

[nunka]

Originally Posted by w3rkn

?

That is not what I have said. I said START your car and leave idle for 5 minutes, before you drive away every morning, every night, every time. (specially if u have a turbo engine)

That's exactly what you said, and he's acknowledging that and saying it's bad. The official word from just about every BMW owner's manual (take that for what it's worth) is do not let your engine sit idle for any significant amount of time before driving it. Wastes gas, invites condensation build-up, does not actually do much warming up, etc etc. You "warm up" your car by driving it gently until it's at operating temps.

[dmboone25]

Originally Posted by nunka

That's exactly what you said, and he's acknowledging that and saying it's bad. The official word from just about every BMW owner's manual (take that for what it's worth) is do not let your engine sit idle for any significant amount of time before driving it. Wastes gas, invites condensation build-up, does not actually do much warming up, etc etc. You "warm up" your car by driving it gently until it's at operating temps.

This is such an interesting conversation to me - I was at my Ducati dealer the other day and was having the same convo about my bike (I ride in the winter), so I was curious about his thoughts on the topic.

He said that you should let the bike warm up for a few minutes, especially in the cold. Mentioned that "allows the oil to heat up" before you start actually driving.

I have never let any of my cars or bikes warm up - unless it's for a minute or two running back into the house to get something in the morning. Not because I am mechanically inclined, but because I know it wastes gas.

Would there be any kind of difference between how you might handle a bike vs. a car in terms of warm up ? Just curious to see what you guys think.