[evander]

All right folks. What's the story on directions to drive slowly (50-60mph) on the first 500 miles of a new car? I remember not exactly following these directions when I bought my car 4 months ago. Now my daughter's boyfriend has purchased a new Camry and is hesitant to drive it on the interstate next weekend (65mph speed limit) . You may ask why I am posting this question? Well, I'm betting money( I can hear it in her voice) that my daughter will want to borrow MY Prius for that trip. Please tell me what I want to hear!

 

[Tideland Prius]

For the Prius:

For first 1,600km (1,000mi)
1) Avoid jackrabbit starts
2) Avoid racing the engine

For first 300km (200mi)
1) Avoid hard braking


For the Camry:

For the first 1,600km (1,000mi)
1) Avoid jackrabbit starts
2) Avoid racing the engine
3) Avoid hard braking
4) Avoid going over 88km/h

For the first 300km (200mi)
1) Avoid cruising at a steady speed (fast or slow)
2) Avoid towing a trailer

 

[Hep]

Avoid the car in front of you when you are peeking at the MFD screen.

 

[evander]

Avoid the car in front of you when you are peeking at the MFD screen.

Now that's an answer I especially like, since this boyfriend called my new Prius "boxy".

 

[richard schumacher]

For the Camry:
For the first 300km (200mi)
1) Avoid cruising at a steady speed (fast or slow)

Continuously changing their speed between 45 and 65 MPH meets this requirement. It will not make them popular with the interstate highway traffic behind them, but it'll be over in about four hours and it does contribute to long engine life. (It's not needed for the Prius because Prius engine RPM is constantly varying anyway and is not a direct function of the road speed.)

 

[evander]

Now that's really interesting. I thought not driving at a steady speed was a joke.

 

[richard schumacher]

No joke, long-standing manufacturer's recommendation. Something about not creating just one set of wear patterns on sliding components in the engine which would add friction under other conditions and/or prevent them from making a good seal. As always, Read The Fine Manual.

Anecdotally: the first 400 miles on my 1986 Mazda 323 was a trip on open interstate which worked out nicely for the break-in. Staying in 5th gear I accelerated moderately to 65 MPH, then released the gas pedal to let engine braking slow it to 40 or 45, and repeat. After 12 years and 100,000 miles the oil still looked like honey between changes and fuel economy hadn't changed. A similar technique (modulo whatever distance Toyota requires) should do the job for a Camry. Of course that nonsense isn't needed with the Prius :_>

 

[evander]

Thanks everyone--including Hep--I passed it on to my daughter who will relaly your responses to her boyfriend. As you may recall, he labeled my Prius "boxy" and has never been totally forgiven. Not smart to a future mother-in-law.