Haven't been on here for a while (Oct)
I have a 2008 F250 V10 4X4 LB Crewcab with 2500 miles on it. (bought last August)
Dealer said it was ok to wait until 3K to change oil.
I have always changed the oil on a new vehicle at 500 miles but decided to go by their recommendation this time. When I change it I will go with Mobile 1 Synth. as I run this in all my other vehicles and my boat and it is (IMHO) the best.
I can't seem to get a general agreement on what the breakin period for this truck is ... some say 500 miles (like I always thought) others say it is longer and I have heard (I think somewhere on this forum a while back) that the computer "doesn't release it to get it's optimum milage until after 7500 miles" !!!

Does anybody know what the official breakin period is?
I can't find it in the owners manual.

BTW I now am getting about 9 city and 14 highway on the mileage ... about what I expected ... but I didn't buy this truck for the mileage.

Thanks for any input.

Kirk

 

Majority of break in will occur in the first 100 miles of driving. From what I understand from used oil analysis wear metal in the oil decreases until 20K and then levels of. For fuel economy I have never noticed a difference between 500 miles and 50K as long as filters and plugs are good. My 95 F350 got 10 mpg new and 10 mpg with almost 150K on it. I would change my first oil early.

 

From page 5 of the owners manual:

"BREAKING-IN YOUR VEHICLE
During the first 1,000 miles (1,600 km) of driving, maintain speeds below
70 mph (113 km/h) and vary speeds frequently. This is recommended to
give the moving parts a chance to break-in.
Do not tow a trailer or use your vehicle to snowplow until it has been
driven at least 500 miles (800 km). Refer to Trailer towing in the Tires,
Wheels and Loading chapter for more information on towing a trailer
and Snowplowing in the Driving chapter.
Do not add friction modifier compounds or special break-in oils during
the first few thousand miles (kilometers) of operation, since these
additives may prevent piston ring seating. See Engine oil in the
Maintenance and Specifications chapter for more information on oil
usage."

But I especially like the 70 mph warning for the first 500 miles of towing!

"When towing a trailer:
• Do not drive faster than 70 mph (113 km/h) during the first 500 miles
(800 km) of trailer towing and don’t make full-throttle starts."

 

OK,
Thanks.
Must have missed page 5 along the way somewhere.
So 1000 miles is the break in period if I read it right.

Where is this "7500 miles before the computer releases the engine for optimum milage" comming from? I'm pretty sure I read it on this forum somewhere.

Also is the owners manual online somewhere?

Thanks

Kirk

 

You can download a "FREE" Owner's Manual at Motorcraft website (see link)...
http://www.motorcraftservice.com/vdi...ageid=&gutsid=

On the left column...'click' "Owner Guides". Next screen will have the Owner manuals based on year, make, etc. in .pdf format.

The "un-official" break-in is about 5000-7500 miles. But that is PCM related. Members have reported that once the 5000-7500 mile is reached...the engine comes to life...and the PCM releases all the hp/torque glory!

IMHO...if your SD was purchased in Aug. '07, then you should have changed the oil at least once. Even if with regular Motorcraft 5w20. That is 6-7 months using the same oil. Remember...the "time" factor is against you here...and your oil probably has a good amount of moisture built in right now.

Good luck...but don't wait to change your oil...just so you can use Mobile 1...


biz

 

Plainly put-that's horse****.
There's no "break-in" programming,or other such "low-power" software in the PCM. I read this all the time on here,and just laugh-it's amazing how these myths start.
JL

 

Tell it to the people who've experienced it.

I don't dare call them liars - one of them is captchas who put more time into his '05 than anyone on Earth.

Wrenchtraveler I think also felt it ...

Whether it's the PCM, or something seats in the engine that allows it to reach it's full potential (which makes even less sense), it doesn't matter.

Too many people have reported it for it to be a myth.

 

I'm not calling anyone a liar-I'm saying that there is NO PCM programming for low power output for "xxxxx" miles. There's nowhere for it in the programming,nor does the PCM care what the odometer reading is when it calculates fuel and spark.
It's just that simple.
JL

 

Can you share the entire code base of the PCM in question?

I'd love to look it over

 

Nope,will not. Anybody that does tuning can see the same things I can(for the most part),and can verify this. There is not any type of alternate "low power" programming for break-in.
JL

 

It might not show up as just another fuel/spark map...

Are you saying that down to the assembly-language level, that the software in the PCM doesn't just retard the timing a set amount when the hours are under a certain value?

Again, it wouldn't show up as a separate map. It'd be a simple (using C as an example):

if (hours<150) timing=timing+3; /* Or some other retard value */

This would be in whatever interrupt (or poll) that fires the coil.

I know much about embedded controllers, computer hardware, etc, but I must admit I know next-to-nothing about the Ford PCM.

 

The PCM does not know,nor does it monitor the engine hourmeter in the cluster. The odometer is the same way. There is capability for the new "Oak" based PCM's to monitor and record mileage,etc,etc,but they do not do this. There is no alternate programming there-it does not exist. You're looking at this too hard. Ford (or any other manufacturer) would have to spend insane amounts of money to prove that this "alternate break-in" strategy would not be harmful to the enviroment,would not cause a higher emmissions level, and would not harm reliability. They're NOT gonna do that-the bottom line is profit and meeting all requirements by ALL agencies,and with this type of a PCM calibration,there's no way in hell they would be able to,and there's no way for them to insure that it wouldn't be reactivated from a simple service "reflash".
JL

 

While I don't have a horse in this race I would have to agree with Johnny on this. The only vehicle that I know for fact came with a timer like this was some of the SkiDoo snowmobiles. The dealers all knew it and told the customers not to worry too much about performance until the timer had ran it's course. When I asked the service manager about this reported timer in my pickup he just laughed after he had picked his jaw up off the floor. Some rigs just take a while to lossen up and start to run and get better economy. Hope mine does soon.

 

Actually, all it would have to do is limit the max throttle opening. It wouldn't have to mess with timing at all... Which would mean EPA certification wasn't necessary.

Hmm...

 

I'm gonna say this one last time.
THERE IS NO TYPE OF LOW-POWER PROGRAMMING FOR "BREAK-IN" PURPOSES-PERIOD.
It's as simple as "placebo effect" like when somebody gets one of those Cold air kits that does nothing for power-yet they'd be willing to bet their very soul that they gained power.
JL