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Break-in time


Guest GalaxyToad

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Guest GalaxyToad

How many people actually put 10 hours on their boats before they pull something?

I'm especially interested in opinion from the people who, for whatever reason, have a new boat every year. Do you go 10 hours, through the rpm limited time and all that or don't you think it's important?

My time demands are so extreme that I'm not going to be able to comply with the new boat, not even close.

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I did it, why start off on a bad foot, if you cant do the break in who knows what else there wont be time for? waxing? cleaning? where do you draw the line?

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How many people actually put 10 hours on their boats before they pull something?

I'm especially interested in opinion from the people who, for whatever reason, have a new boat every year. Do you go 10 hours, through the rpm limited time and all that or don't you think it's important?

My time demands are so extreme that I'm not going to be able to comply with the new boat, not even close.

They kinda break it in at the factory ;)

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How many people actually put 10 hours on their boats before they pull something?

I'm especially interested in opinion from the people who, for whatever reason, have a new boat every year. Do you go 10 hours, through the rpm limited time and all that or don't you think it's important?

My time demands are so extreme that I'm not going to be able to comply with the new boat, not even close.

We were wakeboarding at 3 hours. Didn't use a ton of ballast until we got closer to 10 hours. There were dealer recommendations (WSA in Dallas) even though they seem to differ from the manual.

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I know, warranty-wise I shouldn't say it, but I decided to follow the PCM-Break-In-Procedure, not the "baby-your-engine" Indmar style. And I'm more than satisfied with the performance of my engine (320LCR)! Oil consumption on my engine: zero. Performance: more than good!

Two weeks ago my Response 320LCR outperformed my dealer's 04 LXI with the HH380! It was faster on top end and had also a slightly better holeshot. (I know, the LXI is heavier than the Response but 320 vs 380 hp and the 320 won!) You can imagine the dealer's puzzled face. Crazy.gif

Here's the PCM Procedure:

The break-in period of your engine is the first 25 hours of operation. Proper engine break-in is essential to achieve maximum performance, longevity and minimum oil consumption. During the break-in period, the following operation guidelines must be adhered to.

• After the engine is thoroughly warmed up, and the boat is underway, open the throttle to WOT until maximum RPM is reached. DO NOT EXCEED MAXIMUM RPM. (RPM should cease climbing after 10 to 20 seconds).

• Reduce the throttle to 2800 - 3000 RPM, and cruise at or below this speed for 1/2 hour. Reduce the speed to idle. Go to WOT until maximum RPM is reached and operate for approximately 1 minute. Reduce throttle to 2800-3000 RPM and operate for a few minutes. (Bringing the engine speed from idle to WOT will load the engine and assist in seating the piston rings). This cycle should be repeated from time to time during the first 5 hours of operation, but WOT should not be sustained for more than 1 minute.

• During the remaining 20 hours of break in period, the engines can be run at cruise speeds that are approximately 75-80% of the WOT RPM, occasionally varying the cruise speed by 100 RPM.

...

And here's an interesting link about engine break-in from an old MBO thread:

Break-In Secrets

Edited by Chaabo
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Hard to argue with that link. I ran my Hammy in by the book for 10 hours and now it sees WOT at every outing just to check that none of the ponies have escaped.

The guy from Malibu Australia said to use mineral oil in the engine until it has done 100 hours, then use synthetic - he reckons it is like getting another 20 horses.

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How many people actually put 10 hours on their boats before they pull something?

I'm especially interested in opinion from the people who, for whatever reason, have a new boat every year. Do you go 10 hours, through the rpm limited time and all that or don't you think it's important?

My time demands are so extreme that I'm not going to be able to comply with the new boat, not even close.

I know exactly what your saying....I just picked my boat up a couple of hours ago! The dealership here in California said to me: 10 hours under 4000 rpm and then go have fun, just bring it back before the 20 hour service! My guess is I'll be there first thing Monday morn.... Surprised.gif

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10 hours was nothing. Of course I was chomping at the bit to pull a rider and open it up, but it was great just taking out the VLX, cranking on some tunes, and having a cool one while doing nice, easy laps around the lake showing off the new baby!

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Oh, and what I absolutely forgot to mention in my above post:

I changed the oil right after my first outing!

What "Moto Man" said made absolutely sense to me:

...

Change Your Oil Right Away !!

The best thing you can do for your engine is to change your oil and filter after the first 20 miles. Most of the wearing in process happens immediately, creating a lot of metal in the oil. Plus, the amount of leftover machining chips and other crud left behind in the manufacturing process is simply amazing !! You want to flush that stuff out before it gets recycled and embedded in the transmission gears, and oil pump etc...

...

So I performed my first oil- and filter-change after 2 (!) hours and I highly recommend that for everyone who wants his engine to perform as good as possible! You won't believe how bad the oil already looked after the first two hours of operation! Only a few bucks and about half an hour well spend!

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The moto man link Chaabo provided is great info...it not only gives the info on what to do but also the reasoning behind his suggestions.

I spent 7 years working for the local Acura car dealer through high school and college. Salesmen got new demos every 5000 miles. For the guys that lived some distance away from the store, wasn't uncommon for them to get a new demo every 10-12 weeks. This was a great way to see how break-in affected the performance as I was able to see and drive the cars when they were new, after 5000 miles, and then every so often throughout the life of the car as they came in for service. As you can imagine, some (most) salesmen drive the demos like they stole em.

In all the time I worked there, never once do I recall a car that had problems down the road that could be a result of a hard breakin. More importantly, the cars that were broken in hard were consistently the strongest and best running.

For my SLXi, I made sure to vary the rpms for the first 4-5 hours but used the boat as we do today. When I test drove the MC I had before the bu, I skiied behind it with less than .5 hrs on the clock...never missed a beat.

Good luck!

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I know a guy who broke in his 383 per the Indmar manual. His boat ate oil up to 50+ hours and it does not hit the rev limiter.

I know another guy :) who broke his 383 in using a method similar to the PCM method described above, no oil consumption at all, and it hits the rev limiter. Gobs of power!

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I agree with Boomer - run it like you intend to use it. We got new boats at the schools I taught at every year. we skied them after two hours and I cannot recall a single problem.

wilma

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i recall reading some where that the ECM on newer boats is recording RPM and hours of run time. if the motor should have a problem this info could possibly help in voiding your warranty. warranty issues are a pain in the butt. but it is your boat, do as you will.

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  • 7 months later...

Great information here! Since this thread has been idle for a while, I was wondering for those of you that opted for the "drive it like you stole it" method, did anyone have any problems and/or success stories? My ONLY concern is that mine will be the 1 in a 100 that has some kind of problem and the Indmar guys tell me to take a hike because I didn't break in the Hammerhead according to their recommendations. I get the boat tomorrow, and I'm leaning towards moto man's break-in guidelines. Thanks in advance!

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Todays inboards have so much power you can ski behind them right out of the box and still stay within the break-in guidelines. Barefootin? Well I'd wait a couple hours to do that.

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My ONLY concern is that mine will be the 1 in a 100 that has some kind of problem and the Indmar guys tell me to take a hike because I didn't break in the Hammerhead according to their recommendations.

No real break in needed on the NEW Hammerheads, IIRC.

TRACIE?

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I think there is nothing wrong with driving it the way you will use it, out of the box. Just don't keep it at WOT for the first few hrs. The other thing is, do what feels right to YOU. If you do what feels good to you then all is good.

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The same holds true for the folks who will go out of their way to slick-50 a motor in the first hours of operation. The stuff really works...

They still sell that stuff?? I put that in my 4 cylinder 1985 Mustang, to give it some more kick, results were debatable, but I think I was starting with about 85 horsepower...Based on the infomercial I bought it from, I should have been up to about 100 horsepower :unsure:

Edited by rts
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