Fellow Green Hybriders, Friday morning I pickup my new #8 in Washington DC. My wife and I then will take 6 days to drive it home. I could really use any advice you have on the "do's and don'ts" regarding the break-in period on this car. Keep in mind, I do have 2650 miles to cover and the weather will be cold. I will post the mileage here at GH as well as any other notable experiences. Thank you for all of your previous help. BTW, $27810 out the door and paying the $2400 tax and lic. in CA when we get back. JCF

 

Wow a cross country pickup drive. Two points are usually made for conventional vehicle breaking-in; easy on the brakes, and no max rpm or sustained constant rpm for the engine. The former certainly is sensible for the Prius (and will probably be in the owner's manual).

The second, you will have only indirect control over. About the only way to get max engine RPM is by steaming up a steep hill. It is surprisingly hard to hold constant RPM (in other words, it spontaneously varies) because the MG1 speed is jumping around to keep the engine under a constant load. So I see little reason to sweat this. Cruise control would keep most vehicles engine speed constant on the highway, but not the Prius. Of all the things we have heard about Prius, "I broke mine in poorly" is not among them.

Just prepare as you would with any car for a road trip. Make sure you have all fluids, hoses, and belts (there still is one) set right. Tires at Toyota's spec as a minimum (including the 60 psi donut spare). Some of us would suggest a bit more tire pressure, but let's get you back to HB first, and then start running your life.

Once in a while, rookies do not tighten the gas cap until it clicks, and are eventually rewarded with an ominous warning light display. Just make it click, and no worries.

Take a corny posed photo at the dealership. Enjoy the trip.

DAS

 

The manual says no max power acceleration during break-in. Also no scheduled maintenance during your trip home. Just get in and drive.

 

Engine break-in is a thing of the distant past. All vehicle engines, once constructed are bench run to make sure they are operational, but also to make sure things like piston rings are set and to cycle oil through the system to remove any particulate from the machining process. These bench run operations are very stressful and are also The vehicle and engine you receive at the dealer is ready to roll and operate in any way necessary.

There is no reason for you to push the vehicle harder than you would drive it normally. That is what manufacturers want you to do in the break-in period they talk about in manuals. However if you are on the highway and need to pass, need to stop hard, or whatever, do it. Do not risk your life or safety for an antiquated line in a manual that is there because Toyota's lawyers have had them put it there.

As a new owner, you should be aware of the gradual set-in of the vehicle and its components. That will happen in time and with normal driving. You will see your FE increase as you pass 1,000, 5,000 and usually 10,000 miles.

Enjoy your new car, but most importantly, just drive it normally and all will be well.

 

I did the long-distance break-in thing, too. I picked up my silver '05 in Muskogee, OK and spent the next 7 days driving almost constantly. Left Muskogee and drove straight to Victorville, CA, where I got the oil changed. Then headed north through the pacific northwest, through Canada, and ultimately ended up here in Anchorage, AK. At 6015 miles I changed the oil again, this time with synthetic.

I've got almost 10,000 miles on the clock and it hasn't used a drop of oil! It's still exactly on the full mark.

The manufacturer recommends taking it wasy for the first couple hundred miles, varying the speed a lot, etc. I did that and it worked out well.

 

I talked to a friend of mine who worked at a Toyota dealership for years, and to be honest is a bit of a Toyota fanatic. She says the break-in period is a myth. You should avoid hard-braking and red-lining throughout your car's life if you can help it, but there's no difference between abusing your car on Day 1 or Day 1000 except the obvious: abusing it Day 1 means you're working with a car you abused that much longer. And in the Prius especially, you're obviously hampering gas mileage, which is a little silly given what you bought.

Rule of thumb, don't abuse it at any point, but if you need to to prevent an accident, well - that's why the pedal goes down so far. And try to get cars that just showed up - some dealers have a habit of flooring new Priuses both for fun and to show skeptical buyers that they have pickup. Every mile is a chance someone else abused the car you're going to be good to.

 

And that is why I specifically purchased a Prius that had just come off the boat. My odometer and the sale statement indicated that I purchased the vehicle with 4 miles on it, just enough to get it from the plant to the boat and then from the boat to the port and from the port to the car carrier.

 

Jerome, I wonder if you had the same little oddity I had - when I got my car it had 4 miles on it (notably it had 2 when I bought it and 4 when I came to pick it up...) but the 2 Trip meters each had 36 miles on them. Does Toyota test the engine for 32 miles then reset the Odometer or something?