New C4S Break-in Advice

Picked up my new C4S last Friday. Porsche manual says to go 2,000 miles below 4200 rpm for break-in. Seems like a long time, but will follow the rules if its best for the car. Any advice from others? Incredible car, but with only 250 miles so far, I still have much to learn about just how great it is.

You have nice problems and I am jealous. Just curious what else the manual says about break-in?

Man, C4S owners breakin out all over the place. Congratulations, j4s. This your first Porsche? Color? Options? Love to see pics. Anyway, if you keep reading the posts, you'll find out what great cars Porsches are, particularly the C4S. Have mine up to 4200 miles now. Go ahead and enjoy the car. Even with the 4200 rpm limit, it is still quite awesome. You don't really need to do full throttle acceleration to get great accleration, so I would follow that too for the first 2000 miles. New cars nowadays are engineered and manufactured differently, but old advice is still good advice. The key to proper break-in is to keep the load on the engine and car variable, and not to hit extremes. Avoid the cruise control, keep shifting, vary your speed at least 10 mph every so often. This will allow all the surfaces to mate properly rather than get caught on a groove. This will also assure that all bearings, pivot points, etc, get their lubication properly distributed and get the wearing in process right. Lugging is a big no-no. No panic stops (unless it's a REAL panic top) until the brakes are worn in (a few hundred miles). 2000 miles seemed somewhat excessive to me particularly since the older Porsche's only required 1000. But, hey, the car is so much fun to drive, 2000 miles came and went so fast I didn't mind it at all.

Its a little tough, huh, j4s...but a little pain for lots of long-term gain. As Palting said (and as well all know), you can still have fun with a new Porsche during the break in period. 4200 revs in 2nd is mucho fun. I can only imagine it in a C4S. Regards.

I kept my rpm peak at approximately 4200 for the first 2000 mi just like the manual says.

I wonder if the long break in is due to synthetic oil. It's so slippery that it delays normal wear. When I got my Lotus Elise 190 R, it was delivered from the factory with a non-synthetic break-in oil which had to be changed at 300 miles before switching to the recommended synthetic for track use. The reason given to me by Lotus America's service technician was the one I gave above. Hence, for faster break-in, an non-synthetic oil was used.This approach isn't practical on a street car, as most of us don't want to go right back to the dealer for an early change.

Congrads! If you dont want to break it in and cant wait. I think you will got lot of us regular 996 owners to swap for a few weeks. Promise to be gentle.

i also followed the rules for 2k mi break in with only an occasional brief spurt to 5k rpm it was less of a hassle than i expected because the car is so capable. i'm impressed that porsche is very careful in their recommendations. what other car company published a comprehensive list of tires for all recent models every year based on testing 1000+ tires a year? none that i know of. i suggest you follow the factory recommendations as closely as possible before you <img src="graemlins/burnout.gif" border="0" alt="[burnout]" /> <img src="graemlins/jumper.gif" border="0" alt="[jumper]" />

Thanks for the advice, I will stick with the factory recomendation for first 2000 miles. This forum has been a great resource for information and enjoyment as I have waited from order date in late December to arrival of the car in late May. 2002 C4S, Seal Grey with black interior, Bi Xenon lights with Bose system, carbon fiber and leather steering wheel, carbon/aluminum shift lever and handbrake, heated seats, parking assist system, supple leather front and back, black mats and tiptronic. Given the nature of a C4S, the choice of tiptronic was a tough one. I wanted a Porsche (3rd after a brief period with more family oriented cars), and an easy and fun drive without the effort of shifting. So far I am very happy with my choice. The tiptronic is easy to use and is very responsive. I'd be interested in other's long-term experience with a tip transmission.

Palting is exactly right. Proper break-in is critical for longevity of a vehicle(or any "piston" driven engine) and can MAJORLY affect long-term durability if not done properly. It's like Jello and kids. If not done properly before setting in, unfixable problems thereafter....

If you find yourself taking the long way home the 2000 miles (or 3000kms in my case) will be over in no time. I thought those first drives gave me a chance to get a proper feel for the car. Funny thing is now that the break in period is over, I still take the long way home!