718 GT4 "Run-in Period" - Confused! - Page 2 - Boxster/Cayman - PistonHeads UK

Hi all, Took delivery of my GT4 a couple months ago and I'm starting to get a few hundred miles under my belt on it, and really enjoying it so far! However, I just wanted to ask what people have done for the "Run-in" period? My car is currently sitting at around 500 miles mark. Reason I ask is because everywhere I look, I seem to get a different answer to the question! - This is my first ever new car, so trying to care of it as much as possible as I've never had to run in a car before! Also want to keep it for as long as I physically can, unless I have the opportunity to purchase something more spicy like a GT3! - The manual says that the car should be kept below 4k RPM until 1865 miles on the clock (this is what I have been following so far), but doesn't mention anything after that? I assume you can't you ham foot it to the redline the second it hits that milestone and just have to gradually increase the load, however the manual doesn't seem to provide any guidance on that? I've also seen online that people are saying that this is a general statement for all 718 models, and they done it differently on their GT4? - When I picked up the car, the Salesman said that there was no need to run in the car, but to take it easy for a couple 100 Miles to get used to it, before going all out - no specific guidance was provided. I have emailed them asking about this same subject, but received no reply, almost like they are only interested in taking my money! - I've also seen online that people are following the advice of Andreas Preuninger who is one of the main GT department engineers, who stated the following running in process for the GT4: Break in schedule, according to Andreas Preuninger, (in miles): up to 300......5000rpms up to 420......5500rpm up to 540......6000rpm up to 660......6500rpm up to 780......7000rpm up to 900......7500rpm Redline after about 1000 miles. As you can see, all of these guidance's seem to conflict, so having never run-in a car before, you can hopefully understand why I may be a bit confused! Another point which I don't seem to have the answer for, is once the "run-in" period is complete, do I need to have a "run-in service" done to the car? - Again I have asked about this to no avail to my dealer. I'm looking at booking up a track day in the next month or 2, and want to make sure the car is correctly run-in for it, so any advice on what anyone else has done on here would be much appreciated, and hopefully wont confuse me any further!

Ok I have a 4.0 GTS and like you the sales person said no running in , when I got home & read manual it quoted the figures you mentioned , being honest I managed 1500 miles before I thought sod it and tried redlining it ,nothing exploded. There is no service requirement at the end of running in period I confirmed this with the service dept at OPC

Follow the manual, it's not just the engine that needs breaking in gently it's all the other components. Don't labour the engine, keep the revs between 3-4k as much as possible. The odd foray into higher revs isn't going to hurt, better that than cruising at 1800rpm in 6th or 7th. Job done. I had an oil change around 1800 miles after running in, but only because the car was up on the ramps anyway and I thought what the hell. It's not needed though as it's not in the service schedule. Edited by Twinfan on Wednesday 11th May 08:58

I agree that trying to maintain reasonably light loads at the expense of slightly higher revs is the way to go, as is gradually extending and then relaxing the pace over distance and time. Varied driving also feels better than sitting at any particular speed and gear on a motorway ... and an oil and filter change once the bedding in is completed made the most sense to me. The idea from AP of extending the virtual red-line over the running-in period also makes a lot of sense and maintains the sense of progressing through the comparative tedium of running in. It also helps to familiarise the owner with their new car

ChrisW. said: I agree that trying to maintain reasonably light loads at the expense of slightly higher revs is the way to go, as is gradually extending and then relaxing the pace over distance and time. Varied driving also feels better than sitting at any particular speed and gear on a motorway ... and an oil and filter change once the bedding in is completed made the most sense to me. The idea from AP of extending the virtual red-line over the running-in period also makes a lot of sense and maintains the sense of progressing through the comparative tedium of running in. It also helps to familiarise the owner with their new car I agree with all of this common sense stuff . It is a bit of a drag because 3000KMs takes quite a bit of doing. I usually book a European road trip to coincide with the new arrival. Sweden for my new Spyder this year, Bordeaux for a booze cruise in the GT4, Track day at Guadix Spain for the last GT3 it was run in by the time we got there! A tour of French chateau for wedding venues in the R8 etc etc. The added benefit is that you get to know the car at the same time. I do lift the rev ceiling over the running in period rather than do it all at 4000 then bang it up to 8000. No empirical evidence that my engines are any better for it except I generally have very little to no oil consumption between services. Not a drop required in either of my 4.0L flat sixes yet despite fairly hard use and some track work.

In my mind, the manual is wrong. Only up to 4k revs for how many miles?? Then 8K........ I guess they had to write something -maybe even they couldn't agree! A bit of mechanically sympathy is all that's required without getting too specific. When I picked up my GT4, chatting with the guy in the workshop he said take it easy for 2-300 miles, then she's good. I went conservative on that and, as it turns out, within about 500 rpm of what AP stated. If the running in was critical to the engine / gearbox longevity then it would likely be dialed into engine management software but it's not, which tells me a lot.

My 28000 mile GT4 (run-in by me) uses 100ml per 1000 miles including track days ...

Thank you for all your replies, its seems that everyone seems to do it their own way by the looks of it! I also agree that keeping it below 4k RPM for 1865 miles seems a bit absurd, especially when the car is built to be thrashed, so its against the cars own ethos! I'm dying to explore it properly on a track day! I think what I'm going to end up doing, its keeping it below 4k rpm for 1k miles and slowly build the revs up from that point onwards, as I'm already halfway to that marker anyways. From that point onwards, I'll gradually increase the load up to the full 8k

The only thing I haven’t seen mentioned above, and I personally feel is far more important than sticking to certain revs at certain mileages, is that the engine isn’t laboured and isn’t revved above 4-4.5k RPM until the engine oil is fully up to temp. That goes for any car with any mileage on it. You will do more damage to the car using high revs when everything is cold than you will not following a strict running in process.

jackwood said: The only thing I haven’t seen mentioned above, and I personally feel is far more important than sticking to certain revs at certain mileages, is that the engine isn’t laboured and isn’t revved above 4-4.5k RPM until the engine oil is fully up to temp. That goes for any car with any mileage on it. You will do more damage to the car using high revs when everything is cold than you will not following a strict running in process. I think you are absolutely right here, but to be fair the advice in the handbook does include an instruction to avoid short journeys, minimise cold starts, take longer journeys and to “drive at low speeds when the engine is cold”.

F12DDE said: I also agree that keeping it below 4k RPM for 1865 miles seems a bit absurd, especially when the car is built to be thrashed, so its against the cars own ethos! I'm dying to explore it properly on a track day! I pretty much did 4k revs for 3k kms but a lot of that was on twisty mountain roads, so that was fine. However, the de-restricted autobahn to and from the Black Forest wasn't easy when you can only sit at 4k revs! Luckily, that is two years in the past now!

F12DDE said: - I've also seen online that people are following the advice of Andreas Preuninger who is one of the main GT department engineers, who stated the following running in process for the GT4: Break in schedule, according to Andreas Preuninger, (in miles): up to 300......5000rpms up to 420......5500rpm up to 540......6000rpm up to 660......6500rpm up to 780......7000rpm up to 900......7500rpm Redline after about 1000 miles. Stuff like this makes it pretty obvious how unscientific it all is. I mean, it just so happens that 1,000 miles is the right distance. What a fortuitously nice, round number. I'm fairly sure modern engine production involves taking a small sample (one in 100 or 1,000 or whatever) and bench testing the bejesus out of the thing. Maximum revs for more than a fleeting moment. Also pretty sure if the engine passes it gets puts in a car and sold. In practice, my instinct for mechanical sympathy would prevent me from beating on a new car and I would reluctantly run it in. But I'd be pretty sure while doing so it wasn't making any difference to anything.

Avoid low load and low revs for long periods. For me it's first 500 miles of keeping below 4k RPM, but try to keep varying the load and engine speed. Then start creeping the revs and load up a bit, but keep varying them. Avoid revs above 4k RPM when the oil is below 50 celcius whatever car you are driving, and no matter how well run-in it might be. It's an unnecessary load on the oil pump. 1000 miles onwards, just drive it but avoid the red line as much as you can. 1800 miles onwards, stop worrying about any of that, it's as run-in as it will ever be. My 981 GT4 had the archetypal "poorly run-in" engine when I bought it. It had around 6000 miles on the clock if I remember right. Consumed more oil than I had expected, had an issue with light throttle "pinking", just never felt quite right. Just coming up to 14,000 miles and all of the "feel" issues are gone, oil consumption is now minimal, haven't heard it "pink" once this year. All I have done is to drive it sensibly until fully warmed up, and try to treat it with a little mechanical sympathy. That does include a fair bit of revving to maximum RPM on the track as well as on the road. It's not about pussy-footing, more about understanding when is an appropriate time to explore higher revs and engine loads. You can do almost as much harm by being too gentle with an engine - they do need to experience some load to run in. Manuals for my last couple of Porsches have been pretty clear on how to run in, but the sections take a little finding, and are maybe too easy to misinterpret and go too gentle with the car. I will never fathom why so many sales people say that cars don't need running in, when the manual is so clearly at odds with that. Manufacturer's manual vs. sales guy? I know which I'd trust better. Liam

Thank you all for the further replies, again interesting to see how all of you have run in your cars in different ways! I would've loved to do a road trip to some twisties in Europe with it, however with work commitments etc. this wasn't possible. Maybe a good run out to Wales is needed one weekend to experience it on some tighter roads at lower revs. Would be a nice way to get some mileage on the car as I'm south east England based. I've always been quite anal with the Oil temp as many others of you have mentioned, I personally always let a car finish its cold start sequence before even turning a wheel (I'm sure the neighbours also love the noise ), and keep revs down until the car is in the right temperature ranges, no matter what car I am in!

I ran mine in (GTS 4.0) per the book, although like a lot of people the sales guy said there was no need. FYI they clearly don’t follow the book at the Porsche Experience Centre as the 4.0 I was ragging was well within the running in range

When I got my first new GT4 I asked for clarification on the FB forum. All sorts of opinions, the one that stuck out most was the guy who took delivery of his new car in the morning and did a track day in the afternoon.

finmac said: When I got my first new GT4 I asked for clarification on the FB forum. All sorts of opinions, the one that stuck out most was the guy who took delivery of his new car in the morning and did a track day in the afternoon. That made me laugh. Buy it, enjoy it. Respect to him whoever he was.

An engine builder once told me the first 20 mins were the most important and to ensure it wasn't heavily loaded but to use the throttle readily to half max revs, with plenty of lifting off/coasting with the throttle closed to scavenge the bores while the rings bedded in. He was happy to change the oil at 50-250m of the above and then get on it with new fresh oil. Ring bedding is the main requirement initially that's all.

The first 20 minutes of the engine's life are well out of our control! I do find it interesting that opinions vary so widely on this topic, and that the car's own handbook is disregarded so readily.

By making the running in 1500 miles, it means hardly any GT cars would be claiming on engine warranty. Most haven’t done that in two years

Mine's just over 2 years old and is pushing 9k miles. If you've got 'em, drive 'em...

Planning on visiting Wales on the upcoming bank holiday to try and get some Mileage on it, Got my first ever trackday booked for July, so need to get it run in! Not going crazy out there, just some nice scenic driving, just hoping that not too many people have had the same Idea...

Twinfan said: Mine's just over 2 years old and is pushing 9k miles. If you've got 'em, drive 'em... Totally. 6k in 12 months, crack on and enjoy!

Just put some more oil in my GT3 (992) which is now on 5000 miles. Ran it in to the letter and it uses about 500ml every 1000 miles (including track use). My 718 GT4 I hammered it from day 1. It never used a drop.

My GT4 uses 100ml per 1000 miles including track days ....

ChrisW. said: My 28000 mile GT4 (run-in by me) uses 100ml per 1000 miles including track days ... Doesn't that concern you, or is it within limits? As for 500ml every 1,000 miles that sounds like a rebuild coming. Is that usual for GT3 consumption? Edited by DJMC on Tuesday 24th May 15:33 Edited by DJMC on Tuesday 24th May 15:43

DJMC said: Doesn't that concern you, or is it within limits? As for 500ml every 1,000 miles that sounds like a rebuild coming. Is that usual for GT3 consumption? Edited by DJMC on Tuesday 24th May 15:33 Edited by DJMC on Tuesday 24th May 15:43 No, it’s perfectly normal and will probably do 6 figure mileage without any issues. High compression, high revving naturally aspirated engine used as intended.

Yep, and the new 4.0s in the GTS/GT4 like a bit more of a drink compared to the older stuff. Perfectly normal for them too. Mad Scientist's was/is an outlier

Good to hear. Just topped mine up, used 500ml in 3000 miles.

DJMC said: ChrisW. said: My 28000 mile GT4 (run-in by me) uses 100ml per 1000 miles including track days ... Doesn't that concern you, or is it within limits? As for 500ml every 1,000 miles that sounds like a rebuild coming. Is that usual for GT3 consumption? Edited by DJMC on Tuesday 24th May 15:33 Edited by DJMC on Tuesday 24th May 15:43 I think 1 litre per 10,000 miles is very good .... accepted that I change oil on average every 3,500 miles to allow for track days ....

Mad Scientist said: No, it’s perfectly normal and will probably do 6 figure mileage without any issues. High compression, high revving naturally aspirated engine used as intended. It may say 0.8l per 1k km / 600 miles is in spec. But, personally, if I had a modern F6 car that was consistently using that much, I'd be fairly sure that there's a problem. Nearly a litre in 600 miles is a lot . Suspect those figures in the book are designed to keep punters out of the OPC until the thing is pretty much dead / provide some leeway to allow OPCs to say 'all perfectly normal as per the book, go away' and reduce warranty claims.

Why is that high oil consumption normal? Where is it going? It must be squeezing past the rings and out the exhaust surely? So either they're loose or worn or there's some method in the 4.0's madness? Comparatively my 2.7 981 has never needed any oil in 58k miles. Apart from capacity, what's the difference in oiling these two flat sixes?

Well as far it goes my car will be a year old in 3 weeks & has just over 3k on it , not needed to put any oil in

DJMC said: Why is that high oil consumption normal? Where is it going? It must be squeezing past the rings and out the exhaust surely? So either they're loose or worn or there's some method in the 4.0's madness? Comparatively my 2.7 981 has never needed any oil in 58k miles. Apart from capacity, what's the difference in oiling these two flat sixes? If you check your handbook you will see a similar level of consumption is also deemed 'normal'. It's not particular to the 4.0.

The common consensus is that it settles down as the miles increase. I've topped my car up twice in 9k, so that's 1ltr of oil. Although it has had two oil changes in that time. I'm expecting consumption to be minimal for the rest of this year.