break-in period?

I don't have an specific insight in breaking in electric engines, but based on my knowledge of breaking in IC engines it seems like it'd be unnecessary. Breaking in a ICE is mostly necessary for getting a good seal between the piston rings and the cylinder walls; the piston rings are designed to spring out against the cylinder walls to provide a tight seal, and since there's no such thing as a perfectly smooth surface the rings and cylinder have to wear against each other to basically wear off the high points and wear into the grooves. Other parts of the engine wears into place, but the cylinders are the ones that really need to be babied.

dtich said:

has anyone heard/read/know about a recommended break-in period in driving a new model s? any roadster owners with valuable insight? i assume, maybe incorrectly, that because there are many fewer, MANY fewer, moving parts in an all electric compared to an ICE car that the break-in is fairly unnecessary. however, perhaps axel bushings, rotor/stator, etc... i don't know. what is the recommended practice?

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At the very least you want to avoid hard starting and stopping for the first 300 miles so that the mold release can be worn off the tires and the mounting lubricant given a chance to dry. (Note you can get rid of the mold release quickly by driving about 25 miles over a gravel road--sorry about the paint)

I think you'll need to combine multiple things.

I'll start: tires 200-500 miles (I think).

Whoops, I guess I've been bad to my past two cars. I'd never heard of this. Fortunately, the list from Popular Mechanics includes mostly ICE-only things, I think? Cylinders, bearings (??? I know zip about cars, sorry), oil, manual transmission. Most of the other items they list, they say don't need a real break-in period (brakes, interior, paint), at least that's how I read their somewhat self-contradictory tips.

I'll be following this thread with interest. I want to treat my Model S right. . . .

kendallpb said:

Whoops, I guess I've been bad to my past two cars. I'd never heard of this.

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It's only in an extreme situation that there would be a problem. But it's somewhat like the fireside chat with Elon where he talks about totaling his $1M car. Famous last words were "Watch this". Mold release makes the tires slippery and tires can spin on the rim surface if the lubricant isn't dry. Not jamming on the brakes helps the pads seat as well (unless Tesla pre-seats them at the factory).

There's one other tip. Do a first rotation of the tires at 1,500 miles. This will allow all the tires to have a turn on the driving axle early in their life. What this does is promote even wear throughout the life of the tire, which can sometime make a considerable (means 30% or more) difference in the total tire life by reducing uneven wear. (Whether it does or not depends a lot on the tire and the vehicle.) The first "early" rotation is the most important rotation. The rest are just so that the tires will all wear out at the same time. It's always best to put on tires in sets of four because that gives the best handling.

For the Roadsters, TM completed the motor/battery break-in on a vehicle dyno. You are free to stomp on the pedal as hard and as often as you want from Day 1.

As for tire mold/release, I was just at the racetrack w/ my motorcycle yesterday and within an hour after having brand new tires installed it took exactly 10.08 miles (4 laps) for the tires to scrub in and work perfectly (granted they were on warmers before riding). I've never had a tire (car or motorcycle) spin on the rim - maybe I just have always used competent installers?

You should go through a brake bedding process - to my knowledge TM did not do this.
Hawk Performance Brake Pads: Motorsports Frequently Asked Questions Since the parking brake will be automatically engaged when you park the car, I would drive at a leisurely pace for 10 minutes or so using the brakes as little as possible before parking.

Otherwise, just go enjoy your new car.

strider said:

For the Roadsters, TM completed the motor/battery break-in on a vehicle dyno. You are free to stomp on the pedal as hard and as often as you want from Day 1.

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Do you happen to have any official posts (blog/forum/?) on this subject? I'd like to pass it along to my Tesla rep as a starting point for a conversation about "first month with" my Model S. Thanks.

brianman said:

Do you happen to have any official posts (blog/forum/?) on this subject? I'd like to pass it along to my Tesla rep as a starting point for a conversation about "first month with" my Model S. Thanks.

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Nothing in writing. After our Roadster test drive our rep took us back to the assembly area for a "factory tour" (we were at the Menlo Park dealer/service/Roadster assembly site) and showed us a car that was hooked up to a dyno for final prep or something (can't recall exactly what she called it). That car was the one we ended up buying. When I picked up the car I asked about break-in and she said that it was already done and to just go enjoy the car. Needless to say I was romping on the accelerator a lot that day and never an issue arose.

jerry33 said:

Do a first rotation of the tires at 1,500 miles. This will allow all the tires to have a turn on the driving axle early in their life. What this does is promote even wear throughout the life of the tire, which can sometime make a considerable (means 30% or more) difference in the total tire life by reducing uneven wear. (Whether it does or not depends a lot on the tire and the vehicle.) The first "early" rotation is the most important rotation. The rest are just so that the tires will all wear out at the same time. It's always best to put on tires in sets of four because that gives the best handling.

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This actually sounds familiar to me (not necessarily something I've done, blush, but something I've heard of). Thanks.

dtich said:

has anyone heard/read/know about a recommended break-in period in driving a new model s? any roadster owners with valuable insight? i assume, maybe incorrectly, that because there are many fewer, MANY fewer, moving parts in an all electric compared to an ICE car that the break-in is fairly unnecessary. however, perhaps axel bushings, rotor/stator, etc... i don't know. what is the recommended practice?

thanks for any thoughts.


dt
P708 finalized and waiting with bated breath......
los angeles

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It is good for the batteries if you run a few cycles (10 is good enough) with low discharge rates (no hard acceleration).

The motor and controller don't need any break-in.

Would anyone actually avoid stomping the pedal for 300 miles!?

I believe to seat the brakes TESLA will do some rapid acceleration and decelerations...

You do not get to choose if your car has been rapidly accelerated in the first 300 miles...

Our 2008 Roadster has decreased 5 miles in range since new and it was ripped on right out of the truck that delivered her...

No concerns here...

Just for an entertaining note...

I had a customer tell me that her Kia dealer told her that her break-in period was 6,000 miles for her Soul... She should not exceed 3,000 RPM and not use cruise...

Amazing... no wonder they can sell those things for less than $15,000! They don't even machine the engines!!!!!

@NEWDL - I hate to nitpick spelling but this one's worthy: "deceased" -> "decreased". The sentence basically stops at word 5 with the current spelling, and motivates a Hallmark card.

Update: Original post fixed.

brianman said:

@NEWDL - I hate to nitpick spelling but this one's worthy: "deceased" -> "decreased". The sentence basically stops at word 5 with the current spelling, and motivates a Hallmark card.

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Happy to fix that for you...

contaygious said:

Would anyone actually avoid stomping the pedal for 300 miles!?

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It's only six commuting days. Not a lot.

The day I took delivery of my Roadster I was going > 90 MPH on 101 before I noticed it - no break in period mentioned (the odometer was 364 however). I can only imagine that the Model S will make that more likely as 90 MPH with the top down is pretty windy, you're not going to experience that with the sedan. (Though if you pick up a Model S from the factory I-880 asphalt is so bad you'll probably feel it.) If anything the driver (i.e. you) will need breaking in for driving such a beast.