Breaking in a new engine

[Papa Weeley_imp]

I'm sorry, but I'd have to see some kind of empirical evidence for this line of thinking; that just doesn't make sense by anything I've heard or experienced in 45 years of riding and working on bikes. Echoing what someone else said here, your buddy owed your wife a new bike. No way "riding it to redline a few times" would ruin a perfectly good, easily ridden motorcycle engine - particularly a Honda in-line four sportbike engine.

[Toddman_imp]

Um...aren't they setup to not exceed redline? Revlimiter and all that? How can you break an engine that should be able to run all day on a racetrack. I mean, if you know anything about motorcycles, you know what a double R is, right? I was with him. He didn't ride any harder than i rode my ZX12r and I didn't suffer any engine problems. In fact, I'd speculate that I probably rode harder than he did. So what is your point?

[the Ferret]

I just googled Oil burning issue in Honda CBR1000RR and actually it seems to be quite normal regardless of how they are broken in or ridden. There must be 100 threads on it.

https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl#q=Oil...+CBR1000RR

http://www.motorcycledaily.com/2012/07/m...cbr1000rr/

[kmoney_imp]

It should be noted too that engines are meant to burn a certain amount of oil anyway. Some is meant to weep through valve seals to lubricate valve stems and some is vaporized when it is splashed or squirted up near the tops of the cylinder walls (the area of the cylinder wall closest to where combustion occurs gets incredibly hot).

As long as it's not fouling plugs and you're not topping it up an unreasonable amount between changes who cares? My CB reliably uses 500mls between changes and I consider that normal.

[Cormanus]

Toddman, with respect this is a thread about breaking in an engine—that is how you run it for a brief period when it's new and you drive out of the showroom. The manual for the CBR1000RR ([url=http://www.hondampe.com.au/docs/owning_a_honda/owners_manuals/motorcycles/32MGP6130_CBR1000RR14%20OM.pdf]see here) says on page 16 that you should ride the bike conservatively, avoid heavy acceleration and braking etc, etc for the first 300 miles.

Sounds like your (ex) wife broke it in perfectly so it's hard to see that as the problem for what happened later. You seem to be saying that it you don't thrash the guts out of the engine from the outset, you'll have problems.

Break your bike in how you like. Me? I'll choose to continue to belive—probably naively—that the manufacturer is not a complete moron and knows what it's saying when suggesting you follow some guidelines for the first few hundred miles.

[Ulvetanna_imp]

Um...aren't they setup to not exceed redline? Revlimiter and all that? How can you break an engine that should be able to run all day on a racetrack. I mean, if you know anything about motorcycles, you know what a double R is, right? I was with him. He didn't ride any harder than i rode my ZX12r and I didn't suffer any engine problems. In fact, I'd speculate that I probably rode harder than he did. So what is your point?

The guy owed someone a new bike because he just rode it? All he did was ride it the way it was designed by Honda to be ridden?

There are a lot of guys on this forum who seem to be unacquainted with high RPM and think it's bad for the bike. It ain't bad for the bike, there would not be a redline up there if it was. I think I mighta bounced my CB1100 off the rev limiter a couple times. Does not use any oil now; used some for the first few thousand miles but again it is air-cooled. Now, I have not needed to add a drop since last change, a couple thousand miles.

As I mentioned elsewhere I just did the 8K mile valve clearance check, all 16 are right on the money.

As the ferret mentioned, there is a known issue with some of the earlier CBR1000RR's with excessive oil consumption.

The entire history of these inline fours is high-RPM and performance. Reason wife never used oil is she never rode the bike other than in cruise mode. It was never broken in which is Toddman's point and he is 1000 percent right.

Ride the bike any way you like, of course of course; but don't claim the bike can't be ridden at high RPM because it's bad for it.

Some guys are just not comfy with that kind of riding, they enjoy the wind in their helmet, the smell of roses, the camaraderie of a warm ale at the end of a long ride.

I have never smelled any roses and I don't drink ale. I love the smell of race gas in the morning. It is almost like we are riding two different motorcycles, but both good.

It should be noted too that engines are meant to burn a certain amount of oil anyway. Some is meant to weep through valve seals to lubricate valve stems and some is vaporized when it is splashed or squirted up near the tops of the cylinder walls (the area of the cylinder wall closest to where combustion occurs gets incredibly hot).

As long as it's not fouling plugs and you're not topping it up an unreasonable amount between changes who cares? My CB reliably uses 500mls between changes and I consider that normal.

WOW! Half a liter beween changes? Mine uses zero oil between changes and as I mentioned I run it at redline, almost always between 4-8K. And once again, all valves perfect at the 8000 mile check. My Harley did not use anywhere near half a quart betwixt oil changes and I went 5,000 miles like the manual said.

So did you break it in like the book says?

I just googled Oil burning issue in Honda CBR1000RR and actually it seems to be quite normal regardless of how they are broken in or ridden. There must be 100 threads on it.

https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl#q=Oil...+CBR1000RR

http://www.motorcycledaily.com/2012/07/m...cbr1000rr/

It's common but it ain't normal. Not for a Honda, anyway. Lot of angry owners. Heard they cleared all that up 2012 with some design changes. Was thinking about a CBR1000RR SP at one point so did some research.

Um...aren't they setup to not exceed redline? Revlimiter and all that? How can you break an engine that should be able to run all day on a racetrack. I mean, if you know anything about motorcycles, you know what a double R is, right? I was with him. He didn't ride any harder than i rode my ZX12r and I didn't suffer any engine problems. In fact, I'd speculate that I probably rode harder than he did. So what is your point?

With you all the way. Run a ZX-10R, track a Gixxer. They are made to live up there.

My bike's already broke in, but I've been watching this thread because of the way the original question was phrased, as it included references to high-mileage bikes. It raised a question in my mind which I don't think has ever been asked or answered on this forum:

What happens if we don't break it in? Specifically, what happens to a bike if it's ridden hard (red-line shifts, etc.) from day 1?

9000 miles, burns zero oil between changes, valves all in perfect adjustment. That is what happened to my bike so far anyway.

[Cormanus]

Um...aren't they setup to not exceed redline? Revlimiter and all that? How can you break an engine that should be able to run all day on a racetrack. I mean, if you know anything about motorcycles, you know what a double R is, right? I was with him. He didn't ride any harder than i rode my ZX12r and I didn't suffer any engine problems. In fact, I'd speculate that I probably rode harder than he did. So what is your point?

The guy owed someone a new bike because he just rode it? All he did was ride it the way it was designed by Honda to be ridden?

There are a lot of guys on this forum who seem to be unacquainted with high RPM and think it's bad for the bike. It ain't bad for the bike, there would not be a redline up there if it was. I think I mighta bounced my CB1100 off the rev limiter a couple times. Does not use any oil now; used some for the first few thousand miles but again it is air-cooled. Now, I have not needed to add a drop since last change, a couple thousand miles.

As I mentioned elsewhere I just did the 8K mile valve clearance check, all 16 are right on the money.

As the ferret mentioned, there is a known issue with some of the earlier CBR1000RR's with excessive oil consumption.

The entire history of these inline fours is high-RPM and performance. Reason wife never used oil is she never rode the bike other than in cruise mode. It was never broken in which is Toddman's point and he is 1000 percent right.

Ride the bike any way you like, of course of course; but don't claim the bike can't be ridden at high RPM because it's bad for it.

Some guys are just not comfy with that kind of riding, they enjoy the wind in their helmet, the smell of roses, the camaraderie of a warm ale at the end of a long ride.

I have never smelled any roses and I don't drink ale. I love the smell of race gas in the morning. It is almost like we are riding two different motorcycles, but both good.

It should be noted too that engines are meant to burn a certain amount of oil anyway. Some is meant to weep through valve seals to lubricate valve stems and some is vaporized when it is splashed or squirted up near the tops of the cylinder walls (the area of the cylinder wall closest to where combustion occurs gets incredibly hot).

As long as it's not fouling plugs and you're not topping it up an unreasonable amount between changes who cares? My CB reliably uses 500mls between changes and I consider that normal.

WOW! Half a liter beween changes? Mine uses zero oil between changes and as I mentioned I run it at redline, almost always between 4-8K. And once again, all valves perfect at the 8000 mile check. My Harley did not use anywhere near half a quart betwixt oil changes and I went 5,000 miles like the manual said.

So did you break it in like the book says?

I just googled Oil burning issue in Honda CBR1000RR and actually it seems to be quite normal regardless of how they are broken in or ridden. There must be 100 threads on it.

https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl#q=Oil...+CBR1000RR

http://www.motorcycledaily.com/2012/07/m...cbr1000rr/

It's common but it ain't normal. Not for a Honda, anyway. Lot of angry owners. Heard they cleared all that up 2012 with some design changes. Was thinking about a CBR1000RR SP at one point so did some research.

Um...aren't they setup to not exceed redline? Revlimiter and all that? How can you break an engine that should be able to run all day on a racetrack. I mean, if you know anything about motorcycles, you know what a double R is, right? I was with him. He didn't ride any harder than i rode my ZX12r and I didn't suffer any engine problems. In fact, I'd speculate that I probably rode harder than he did. So what is your point?

With you all the way. Run a ZX-10R, track a Gixxer. They are made to live up there.

My bike's already broke in, but I've been watching this thread because of the way the original question was phrased, as it included references to high-mileage bikes. It raised a question in my mind which I don't think has ever been asked or answered on this forum:

What happens if we don't break it in? Specifically, what happens to a bike if it's ridden hard (red-line shifts, etc.) from day 1?

9000 miles, burns zero oil between changes, valves all in perfect adjustment. That is what happened to my bike so far anyway.

But it isn't right, is it? It was 'broken in' according to the manual. What you and Toddman are saying is something quite different: that you have you have to ride it hard AFTER you've broken it in or you'll have problems. Again, it's a curious view. while I have no argument with the proposition that the bike ought to be perfectly happy running at the redline, I don't see Honda telling us to run it there to avoid problems.

[kmoney_imp]

WOW! Half a liter beween changes? Mine uses zero oil between changes and as I mentioned I run it at redline, almost always between 4-8K. And once again, all valves perfect at the 8000 mile check. My Harley did not use anywhere near half a quart betwixt oil changes and I went 5,000 miles like the manual said.

So did you break it in like the book says?
[/quote]

Yup, I did. Chalk it up to variance I guess. I use 4-500mls between 6000km oil changes. I do ride this thing hard as well, hitting red-line at least a few times per ride and winding it out in second and third on the highway to keep up (well, not get left behind anyway) with some of my sportbike friends.

[Ulvetanna_imp]

WOW! Half a liter beween changes? Mine uses zero oil between changes and as I mentioned I run it at redline, almost always between 4-8K. And once again, all valves perfect at the 8000 mile check. My Harley did not use anywhere near half a quart betwixt oil changes and I went 5,000 miles like the manual said.

So did you break it in like the book says?

Yup, I did. Chalk it up to variance I guess. I use 4-500mls between 6000km oil changes. I do ride this thing hard as well, hitting red-line at least a few times per ride and winding it out in second and third on the highway to keep up (well, not get left behind anyway) with some of my sportbike friends.
[/quote] 10W30? I use 10W40 semi-synth now.

[kmoney_imp]

Motul 300v 10w40.