# Brand new '12 Golf... rules for breaking in engine??



## Justin14 (Jan 8, 2012)

So I finally bought my first VW!! Pretty excited. 

This new 2.5 with 50 miles on it.. how do I break it in? Dont go over 3k rpms? Just guessing. 

thanks 

ps- all the faq seems to be outdated stuff from like 2006 so I just wanted an up to date answer. 

EDIT: Here she is guys.


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## thygreyt (Jun 7, 2009)

rule of thumb is drive it the the way you want it to die: 

-drive like a grampa, and the engine will live to be a grampa.  
-drive it like a 16yr old, and well... it will cause more issues. 

but in all hoensty, i dont really know. lol. 

i broke mine in as a grampa anyways..


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## Justin14 (Jan 8, 2012)

thygreyt said:


> rule of thumb is drive it the the way you want it to die:
> 
> -drive like a grampa, and the engine will live to be a grampa.
> -drive it like a 16yr old, and well... it will cause more issues.
> ...


 A for effort lol. Ok Well I assume grandpa is the way to go but I also heard somewhere that a trip to the land of 6000 rpms is good for seating rings. I dunno. 

I'm coming from a Scion TC. It seems like the 2.5 is very very revvy. What I mean is its winds up and down very fast so that kinda makes learing how to use the clutch tricky. I'll get use to it. At least it doesnt have the throttle lag my tc had. Ugh.


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## psn (May 22, 2012)

More experienced engine types might have more detailed answers for you, but coming from the world of motorcycles (the first vehicle I owned), my usual break-in procedure is the following: 

(1) Over the first several hundred miles, gradually ramp up the max. rpm and throttle (gas pedal) loading used. At first you might never take it over 3500-4000 rpm and 2/3 throttle during a drive, but as the miles roll by, start being a bit more liberal with it. 
(1a) Try to avoid doing high rpm -- let's say anything over 3000 rpm -- or full throttle until the engine is fully warmed up. 

(2) In as much as it's reasonable to do so, use a variety of rpm's and throttle loadings for the first couple of thousand miles. In other words, don't cruise around at 2000 rpm and light throttle all day. But if you have to take a long trip on the freeway, so be it. 

Thus far the above guidelines seem to have worked just fine for any vehicle (car or motorcycle) that I've owned. I've never had anything suffer from excess oil consumption, bad fuel economy, etc. That's about as much as I can say. Lastly, I'm a scientist and can confirm that this is all highly non-scientific.


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## michael_reusser (Dec 28, 2007)

it is described in my owner's manual, have you had a look at yours?


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## Unilateral Phase Detractor (Aug 23, 2005)

psn said:


> (1) Over the first several hundred miles, gradually ramp up the max. rpm and throttle (gas pedal) loading used. At first you might never take it over 3500-4000 rpm and 2/3 throttle during a drive, but as the miles roll by, start being a bit more liberal with it.
> (1a) Try to avoid doing high rpm -- let's say anything over 3000 rpm -- or full throttle until the engine is fully warmed up.
> 
> (2) In as much as it's reasonable to do so, use a variety of rpm's and throttle loadings for the first couple of thousand miles. In other words, don't cruise around at 2000 rpm and light throttle all day. But if you have to take a long trip on the freeway, so be it.


 Good advice, seconded.


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## Justin14 (Jan 8, 2012)

michael_reusser said:


> it is described in my owner's manual, have you had a look at yours?


 Just got the car today. I did look in the manual but didn't see anything. However I was at work and only tried for 15 minutes.


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## Gunbu (Jan 12, 2012)

Lookin good. Glad to see another 2 door black golf. I love mine. 

The main break in rule in the manual states to not use cruise control or steady highway rpms for the first 1000 miles. The clutch break in period is 500 miles. 
But yeah, check the manual too. :beer:


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## jbondbmw (Mar 24, 2011)

Wow, nice car. The wheels look great, I wish they came stock on 2.5 Golf's. I'll be happy when I can get rid of my steelies.


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## psn (May 22, 2012)

jbondbmw said:


> Wow, nice car. The wheels look great, I wish they came stock on 2.5 Golf's. I'll be happy when I can get rid of my steelies.


 +1. Wouldn't mind a set of these for my Jetta.


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## itskohler (Jan 7, 2011)

Judging by the wheel gap I'd say you're driving a Tiguan. But I'm back to stock height now too.


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## Justin14 (Jan 8, 2012)

itskohler said:


> Judging by the wheel gap I'd say you're driving a Tiguan. But I'm back to stock height now too.


 lol heeeeey..  

Actually, this sits WAAY lower in stock form than my tc or civic before that. I'm almost satisfied with where it is. 

It's possible I'll put oem gti suspension on. We'll see.


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## itskohler (Jan 7, 2011)

Justin14 said:


> lol heeeeey..
> 
> Actually, this sits WAAY lower in stock form than my tc or civic before that. I'm almost satisfied with where it is.
> 
> It's possible I'll put oem gti suspension on. We'll see.


 For the money you might as well get some H&R sport springs...


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## Justin14 (Jan 8, 2012)

itskohler said:


> For the money you might as well get some H&R sport springs...


 But ride quality?


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## itskohler (Jan 7, 2011)

Almost stock.


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## Justin14 (Jan 8, 2012)

itskohler said:


> Almost stock.


 Ok. 

I have an extra never used set of HID ballest and wiring. But stock 2.5 headlights. What do I have to do to get hids working?


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## itskohler (Jan 7, 2011)

If you put HIDs in a reflector housing you're a douche.


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## Justin14 (Jan 8, 2012)

itskohler said:


> If you put HIDs in a reflector housing you're a douche.


 Right I wouldn't do that. Guessing I'll need some sort of projector housing. Sounds like $$.


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## itskohler (Jan 7, 2011)

Justin14 said:


> Right I wouldn't do that. Guessing I'll need some sort of projector housing. Sounds like $$.


 ~800 at retrofitsource.com But you have to send in your headlights. 2013 GLIs will be coming out later this year with bi-xenons. Just wait to see if they are as cross compatible as the MKV head lights.


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## Justin14 (Jan 8, 2012)

itskohler said:


> ~800 at retrofitsource.com But you have to send in your headlights. 2013 GLIs will be coming out later this year with bi-xenons. Just wait to see if they are as cross compatible as the MKV head lights.


 Cool thanks. 

I'm new to this so expect a certain amount of hand holding. I'll get it though.


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## itskohler (Jan 7, 2011)

No worries man. :thumbup: 

Lots of knowledge in these forums, it gets lost in the BS sometimes, but its out there.


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## Gunbu (Jan 12, 2012)

Just want to chime in on the h&r sport springs. Had them installed a bit ago and they are awesome. Ride quality isn't bad at all.


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## Justin14 (Jan 8, 2012)

itskohler said:


> No worries man. :thumbup:
> 
> Lots of knowledge in these forums, it gets lost in the BS sometimes, but its out there.


 HondaTech and Scionlife were kinda the same. Anyway thanks 



Gunbu said:


> Just want to chime in on the h&r sport springs. Had them installed a bit ago and they are awesome. Ride quality isn't bad at all.


 Good to know. I'm not dissatisfied with the stock setup quite yet, but when I get to springs I'll remember your comments. 

Thanks


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## MK5golf (Jun 30, 2012)

A few things to keep in mind during break in.... 
1. Vary your rpm. Ex. putting cruise control on the highway is a big no no 
2.Keep engine speeds low. Some people argue that you should kiss redline a few times in order to properly seal rings. I disagree, you picked up your car with 50 kms on it already, theres nothing you can possibly do at that point to "seal" anything any further so please dont even bother 
3.Youd probably want to do your first oil change sooner than the others. For example, in my 2.5 I had a oil change interval of 15000 kms (aproximately 9k miles). For the first oil change i nearly halfed it (did it at around 7500 or 8000 kms) because initially, more metal is going to be floating around in the oil than when the car is older. This is normal for every vehicle and makes sense when you think of it (parts are all "new" and "fresh" and may "shed" a few more peices of metal than usual. 

Keep in mind that your also going to be breaking in every other new part of your vehicle too, including tires and brakes. When you replace either youll still need to follow break in procedures for them. 

Enjoy your Golf! I love my 2.5 and im sure you will too! When its finally all broken in an ready to go listen to that 5 cylinder growl... its an incurable addiction!!!


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## Justin14 (Jan 8, 2012)

MK5golf said:


> A few things to keep in mind during break in....
> 1. Vary your rpm. Ex. putting cruise control on the highway is a big no no
> 2.Keep engine speeds low. Some people argue that you should kiss redline a few times in order to properly seal rings. I disagree, you picked up your car with 50 kms on it already, theres nothing you can possibly do at that point to "seal" anything any further so please dont even bother
> 3.Youd probably want to do your first oil change sooner than the others. For example, in my 2.5 I had a oil change interval of 15000 kms (aproximately 9k miles). For the first oil change i nearly halfed it (did it at around 7500 or 8000 kms) because initially, more metal is going to be floating around in the oil than when the car is older. This is normal for every vehicle and makes sense when you think of it (parts are all "new" and "fresh" and may "shed" a few more peices of metal than usual.
> ...


 Sounds good man. 

Speaking of that first oil change, what is the 2.5's FAVORITE oil? Brand, viscosity and everything. I heard VW's like Castrol but who knows.


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## MK5golf (Jun 30, 2012)

Justin14 said:


> Sounds good man.
> 
> Speaking of that first oil change, what is the 2.5's FAVORITE oil? Brand, viscosity and everything. I heard VW's like Castrol but who knows.


 Catrol is a good (safe) bet for our cars as thats what vw usually used/recomends. Ive changed with it 3 times. All other oil changed (8) i actually bought oil from pennzoil. If you look up "best" oil you may get a link to a forum where all they do is discuss oils and which brands are best. Shell/pennzoil consistently ranks as their top, so id go with the general consensus over there. 

Whatever you do in fact decide to put in though, make sure its to spec (502...wtv and synthetic. Try to stay name brand too!!)


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## Justin14 (Jan 8, 2012)

MK5golf said:


> Catrol is a good (safe) bet for our cars as thats what vw usually used/recomends. Ive changed with it 3 times. All other oil changed (8) i actually bought oil from pennzoil. If you look up "best" oil you may get a link to a forum where all they do is discuss oils and which brands are best. Shell/pennzoil consistently ranks as their top, so id go with the general consensus over there.
> 
> Whatever you do in fact decide to put in though, make sure its to spec (502...wtv and synthetic. Try to stay name brand too!!)


 Ok so Castrol or Shell/Pennziol. 

See my post in "what did you do to your 2.5 today" because there are some concerns I'm having and I hope it's all normal or just due to the break-in process.


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