Hi
I just bought a new 2005 E350 V10. I would like to get long service from this van. I have several questions about break in period. When should I change the oil for the first time? How should I drive during the break in period? When can I quit babying the van? Any other sugestions welcome. I have used Mobil 1 synthetic for years, is this a good choice for oil, I change oil every 3000. I would like any suggestions to extend the life of the engine.
Thanks Mike

 

yamoon,

There are a ton of threads on this very issue. Do a search and you'll find enough info to blow your mind. Specifically look for a post that has Fredvon in it. I do believe he is to be regarded as the V10 mesiah and his word should be heeded.

 

Here is one of my longer sets of thoughts on the subject:

Lift the rear of the truck and while brand spanking new spray all the exposed metal parts underneath with good quality paint. I make all the knuckles black and the drive shafts red. Turn on key, shift to neutral, and release park brake. Have wife, friend, or someone turn one tire slowly while you spray the new drive shaft. Lasts several years if done from new. Water spray usually cleans it well. If you don't do this after 2 months you will see a rusty drive shaft (not a problem) that will tick you off just because it looks bad on a high dollar truck. You would be amazed at the Folks who think Ford provided my bright red drive shafts. Kinda like "curb appeal" when looking at houses. I have folks every week who I know will now "give Ford another look".

Thoroughly inspect, by eye and touch, EVERY nut and bolt underneath the beast. On every new truck I have bought in the last 10 years there is always one or two loose fasteners. This is easy to do, gets you familiar with what is where and it is better that you find the simple stuff now rather than spending a trip to the dealer trying to chase a rattle or problem. I find electrical connectors that are mostly together but I push every one anyway and you will be surprised at the number that you will hear the FINAL CLICK telling you that they are NOW really latched and sealed.

I have posted it before and it always starts a opinion war but here are my ideas on "break in":

Many, Many, I say again M A N Y hot cold hot cycles are the best thing you can do for a new factory assembled motor. On start up try to teach yourself to get in, put in the key, turn to RUN and stop, put on seat belt while the computer boots, NOW turn the key to start, watch the lights and gages and pay attention to the tachometer for a few seconds. The engine will settle back a few hundred RPM, NOW shift to drive and again pause a little with the brakes on. Release the parking brake (you do ALWAYS use the parking brake don't you).

Now spend some time training yourself to NOT turn the steering wheel UNLESS the truck is rolling. I trained myself this technique of steering many years ago and my front ends last years beyond what "normal people" get before ball joints and wheels bearings need replacing. Turning a power steering lock to lock while the vehicle is halted is a BAD thing teach yourself to NEVER do it! Same goes for turning all the way to the steering limit stops. Never ever continue to keep turning the wheel once the mechanical stop is hit, in fact TRAIN yourself to ALWAYS back off a tad when you hear/feel the limit stop.

OK, Lets BED the brakes. You should do this immediately as you leave the dealer, in fact I do a lot of it in his lot (my dealers lot is big enough). Get up to 30mph and when safe do a very hard (not lockup or ABS starting) but very hard braking just shy of a full stop, as you feel the truck about to halt, let off and smoothly accelerate back to 25, 30 mph. Repeat this 4 or 5 times while looking for a clear parking lot or unused back road. Let about 3 or more minutes pass between hard braking series to let the rotors settle to the new temp. Do this in a place where you do NOT have to come to any complete stops with the brakes while the rotors are hot! We are deliberately trying to get the rotors VERY hot.

Once you have a SAFE place to do some more of this, do another hard brake series and get out of it while still rolling as before, but this time just coast to a normal stop. Clear your rear and shift to reverse and get up to a fair clip and do a hard brake in reverse, but again NOT to a complete stop. Do this several times as far to the rear as you can in the selected place but try very hard to NOT bring the truck to a complete stop with the brakes pads holding the very hot rotor.

What we are doing here is "burnishing" the pads, and forcing very controlled and even heating to the rotors and attaching assemblies. There NO such thing as WARPED rotors... BUT there is a condition called material transfer, caused by superheated PADs that leave some of their material on the rotor and causing them to pulsate due to the uneven surface.

For the first few days try to set up your stopping to NEVER bring you to a full stop with the pads HARD clamped to hot rotors. This is hard to do and do not ever forget safety for you and others. If you must bring the monster to a quick and complete stop as soon as you are stopped ease up on the brakes and try to creep if there is room.

Most of the first several days I try to set up stop lights so I have a good buffer between me and cars ahead, I brake fairly aggressively and with a two car buffer ease up and roll out until one car buffer then slowly creep up to the car in front. Usually the light changes before I need to full stop. Not always but this method lets some cooling and no pad to rotor in fixed spot. Do this a couple of times during the first 100 miles and your brake pads and rotors will last a long time and stopping power will be greatly enhanced.

Do not be tempted to try and break in over a weekend with some sort of long trip just to build miles. The setting of the rings can be done in less than 500 miles and takes patience. I must re-state Many, Many hot cold cycles are much better.

For the first 500 miles try to do town type driving. It is OK to be a little hot on the take off. Just refrain from spending ANY time at RPM above 3500 or below 1500 under load (lugging the motor). Deliberately do trips "to the store" where you get her up to full operating temp and while "shopping" she will cool off. Do a LOT of frequent shopping. Don't get everything at the one Lowe's or Autozone "in town". Cruise across town to a buddies house, drink a beer while he is admiring you new ride. Think safety and drink a soda or two for another hour or so while the engine cools and you detox. Repeat for as many buddies as you have. Watch the drinking and driving, your truck can not give you enjoyment from a jail cell.

At least once every driving cycle and after fully up to operating temp, do one good strong take off from stop up to 3500rpm and throttle shift the 5R110 auto tranny. Throttle shifting is when you use enough foot to run the rpms to where you want them then lightly let up and feel the auto shift up, get back firmly on the foot until RPMs are back and continue this through the gears. Practice this with another vehicle to get the feel. After the 500 mile mark do not be afraid to do this up to 4200rpm on occasion. But try to never spin the motor past 3500 unless it is under power and immediately falls off back to lower rpm.

Cruise control is forbidden the first 500 miles! For the next 500 only occasionally to learn how it works and feels. After 1000 you can use it when ever you want.

At 500 miles replace the Factory Motorcraft FL820 and 5w20 with same and enjoy the next 500 miles increasing the drive cycles and shortening the cool cycles. I change oil at 1000 also but admit it is overkill, I just dig doing it and LOGGING it because the rest of the trucks life some other monkey is going to change my oil while I watch.

Every chance you get, pull into a large parking lot and AWAY from every body spend some time in reverse, and straight line 4x4 hi and low. Do NOT turn the truck while in 4X4 on dry ground, just straight forward and reverse.

All my Ford Gasoline motors always take 5 to 8 thousand miles to "break in" where the MPGs get best. Don't even start to be concerned with low mpg figures until she is fully loosened up. With a auto trans, transfer case, 4x4, big rear end, and lots of engine this takes time, be patient.

Train your self to always shut off the radio and heater/AC as part of your normal daily shut down procedures. Periodically change the heater and AC controls to "exercise" the various dampers and doors and modes. If you do this as an **** psychotic obsessive compulsive daily routine then the vacuum actuators will always work.

If you are like me and plan to wear out the factory tires before you switch to better ones consider rotating in the X pattern at the 500 and 1000 mile oil change. After that rotate X pattern every normal oil change. The X pattern tire rotation puts a left front tire spinning forward on the right rear where it will now spin backward. This pattern should only be done on NEW radial tires and not ever done on radial tires driven exclusively in one direction since new and only rotated front to rear same side. Tires break in also and how you start it is how you should continue for life of the tire. Fords spare tires are always on el-cheapo steel wheels and I don't bother to get the spare into the rotation mix. UGLY!

Consider poking around town for the same Ford tires and rims. I found "take offs" at a local tire dealer so I got a second set of tires and rims for my 99 7.3PSD and created a rotation pattern for every oil change that let me get 5 years and 119,000 miles out of the 12 tires. When I sold her the two sets had enough life and the new owner just knew he was getting over on me because the truck had twelve good rims. PSSST I paid $50 each for the "take offs"!

 

I pretty much followed what was described above by Fredvon4. It is a little bit of a pain to follow because you just want to rock and roll right away(!!), but I really feel that it will pay dividends down the road. Good luck with the new truck and enjoy.

P.S.: I have approx 3.9K on the vehicle. Pulled a 7.5K trailer last weekend. Everything was smooth and the brakes worked great. Gotta believe that the break-in helped!

 

Very nice Fredvon4, wish I had seen this information before I put the 2500 miles on my new V10.