First of all, I am a new owner of 06 Max SE. I went to the dealership for an oil change today. While i was chatting with a mechanic, he told me that Max' engine has already been broken in right out of the factory so that we don't need to watch for the redline. Is that true or simply BS?

 

welcome and congrats on your new car...hope you enkoy it as much (or maybe more) as most of us do...

well, same thing i was told when i got mine but i didnt want to take any chances so i decided to go easy...no grandmom easy but just carefull not to be rough eith my max for the first 5000 miles...it wwas quick anyway ...less than a mon th so it didnt kill me much...

enjoy your new ride !!

luigi

 

Thanks for the suggestions. I guess I will be more patient than I was.

 

prob. not necessary, some say break it in how u drive it, Nissan says what is already covered in old threads on this topic. also, in the manual.

 

F that, I would drive it easy for the first 1500 at least... and I did so when I got mines new..

 

i say let it rip!!!!!! well... i guess after 1000 miles, at least...
enjoy our new max... and have fun.. safe fun that is...

 

I agree and did so myself, but is it really worse than never opening the manual?

 

I did read through my owner's manual, but the mechanic sounded so confident and I guess I was blown away by his "expertise"

 

yea i was easy on mine up to about 1000, i might have floored the guess once at 600 miles doing like 65 just to feel it...once i hit about 1000-1200 it was all up in smoke from there....the tires that is.

 

I waited until @1500 miles. I wasn't too concerned about the inner workings of the engine and the potential metal shavings, I wanted to make sure all the gaskets and connections were sealed and tight before I blew something out.

 

Well, I know it is common to run an engine in the factory prior to installation and they probably redline it for a few minutes to check for problems. Also keep in mind that the dock workers, or whatever drivers that drives the car from factory>boat>dealership probably contributes to the "already" broken in part.

 

I won't put so much trust in mechanics, especially at the dealers.

I took it easy at first and dump the factory oil & filter at 1000 miles as precautionary.

 

Well, RHMax finally said what I was thinking throughout this thread: So many folks here not pleased with dealer service departments, yet we consider taking the word of one of those we fuss and fume about over the word of the owner's manual.

Oh, well.

I personally drove mine gingerly for around 500 miles, reasonably up to 1,250 miles, then very gradually 'upped the ante' until I reached 2,500 miles. At that point, I took my Maxima to a very deserted road (over a hundred miles from home) and let her run over 110 mph several stretches, watching for any type of problem or unexpected beavior. She was perfect.

Since then, I have done nothing but everyday normal driving.

 

i drove mine easy for the first 1000 miles, but like most of us say, DRIVE IT LIKE YOU STOLE IT!

 

For the first 50 miles, drive it hard. It is necessary to properly press the rings into the cylinder walls. After that, take it easy for 1000 miles. Change your oil at 200 miles, then again at 1000 miles. The first oil gets gritty easily. You don’t want sandpaper in your engine.

 

^^ I changed mine at 1200 and it was sparkling clean. Maybe you're hard 50 miles of torture shaved a few lbs giving you grit?

boat? My Max came by truck from Smyrna, TN USA. Only had 7 miles when I test drove it the day after arrival, and 16 miles after my test drive and dealer checked it out when I bought it the next day.

 

The 6th gen is made in the US? Haha my bad...

 

I'm afraid I'm not as patient as others here. I just couldn't resist when I have a car that can pass with attitude!!! And driving in MIA I usually have to do that alot...

I did change my oil at 1000 mi as suggested, and am sticking to a 3500 mi interval from then on. I'm debating wether I will change to synthetic oil before the recommended 20k miles.

The only bad thing I've noticed is that my pully's make noise when the engine is cold. The squeak goes away pretty quickly and when I left it overnight at the dealer they didn't detect it...actually that's a story in itself. I left the car overnight and they didn't hear the squeak the next morning. By the time I went to pick up the car, when I started it up, the squeak was there. The service rep heard it and went to get the mechanic. By the time the mechanic came out the squeak was gone. They said to just let it be, because there wasn't anything that wasn't working. If it's a problem with a pully it will eventually get worse and they will be able to tell where the problem is. anyway...ot...

what were we talking about?

 

I would go easy but let me tell you about the car plants - the yard drivers are absolutely brutal and the only driving technique they know is "let er rip". I've seen this at 90% of the assembly plants I've been involved in (probably 12 assembly plants in total). It is so bad that they've even had deaths in the yard (no joke) where "pedestrians" were run over. That is why it's a mandate to wear a bright flourescent vest in the yards at all times now in most plants......

Just passing on some info that most of us haven't seen or believed would happen in an assembly plant.

 

I've been ripping the A$$ out of mine since day one, Zero problems and still under warrenty...

 

Having toured several assembly plants in different parts of the country over the past forty years, I can vouch for what xavalanche said.

The first time I saw a spanking new car come off the end of the assembly line (an Olds at Doraville GA in the 1960s), and the man that got in it to take it to the parking lot squealed the tires first thing, I was aghast.

But I have since seen that at several plants, so assume it is normal. At least he was not redlining the car, or doing 100 mph.

 

This is what the owners manual for 2004 maxima says...

BREAK-IN SCHEDULE

During the first 1,200 miles (2,000 km), follow these recommendations to obtain maximum engine performance and ensure the future reliablity and economy of your new vehicle. Failutre to follow these recommendations may result in shortened engine life and reduced engine performace.

- Avoid driving for long periods at constant speed, either fast or slow, and do not run the engine over 4,000 rpm.
- Do not accelerate at full throttle in any gear
- Avoid quick starts
- Avoid hard braking as much as possible
- Do not two a trailer for the first 500 miles (800 km).

 

I read the same thing at Band Camp, but boyz will be boyz...