January 14, 2005

• Drive it, perhaps.
• When I got my car, the dealer said not to drive it fast for long (say more than a few minutes) until the odometer hit 500. So I drove surface streets for a few days, went on some nice site-seeing drives. But I wasn't super careful. And Mrs. C., who owns a Rio, just drove it however she wanted to from day one.
• Modern engines don't need the same break-in period that older engines required. The build quality is such today that it isn't such a necessary requirment. That said, it won't hurt to take it easy for the first 2,000 miles or so. Keep the odometer under 4k. Vary your speed often. That is, don't get on an interstate punch the cruise control and drive all day.
• A friend of mine who's a mechanic says that you shouldn't get the RPM up over 4500 during the first 500 miles of use. But that's just a guideline, rather than a steadfast rule.
• Full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, darkness, sunglasses.
• I agree that the breakin period is an antiquated concept from the old days of carborated engines. An important guideline, though, is to change the oil every 5000km (sorry, I don't know from miles anymore). This is especially important in a car's early life, as tiny metal fragments can get in the oil from new parts rubbing together.
• 3k miles, rocket88. with synthetic blends or full synthetic you can go well over that if you want. 'course once you've gone full synthetic you've committed yourself to using at least a synthetic blend forever... the mechanic told my wife and i they really don't recommend going from synthetic back to standard, harder on the engine to adjust down rather than up. which is probably why the dealership offered to fill it with full synthetic when we picked it up. :) not a biggie, not that much more and the car is in good shape because of it...
• I'm curious as to why you haven't asked the dealer this question. Every car is a bit different. but..my answer... keep the tach under 3 or 4k for the first 1k miles...vary the speed while you drive during this period... change the oil every 3k miles, no matter what the manual says..
• Synthetic oils can go longer than 3000 miles before their viscosity breaks down, but sediments will build up in it just the same as regular oil. Because of this I'd still change it every 3000 for the first few changes, at least.
• Don't crash it.
• Stab it and steer
• sex.
• I never understood the 3000 mile thing. On my car, for instance, I have over 170,000 miles on it, and I don't think I've ever gotten an oil change with less than 5000 miles. No unusual problems at all. That's been my experience with nearly every car I've had.
• And to answer the question, have someone vomit in it. No car is broken in without at least one technocolor yawn yawned on the back seat.
• Cum stains.
• I remember being told not to brake hard or accelerate hard for the first 1000 miles. Not too sure why. On a more cosmetic note - some folks like to scotch guard their interiors to make future clean-ups easier. If it's the rainy/muddy/snowy season where you are, and your car's mats are the carpet kind, buying some plastic ones to put on top of them wouldn't hurt. Oops, I see you directed your question at grease monkeys. Shutting up now.
• oh, PY, i thought moonbird said "greasy" monkeys.
• Mule coke across the border.
• Take the next right.
• Park it next to power transformers to give it superpowers. Then drive it through a shopping mall while running from the cops.
• I think you're supposed to do your first oil change at 500 or 1,000 miles. Doesn't seem like many miles, but what you're getting rid of is not bad oil, but small metal filings and chips that may not have been adequately cleaned out during manufacturing. Most car companies will probably say it's not necessary, but it doesn't cost much. Two things you should do religiously to keep the car as new as possible for as long as possible: 1) Change the oil every 3,000 miles, including the filter. If you do this, chances are your engine will last longer than your desire to keep the car. 2) Rotate the tires every other oil change, at 6,000 miles. This will prevent uneven wear that can result in a vibrating (bumpy) ride. If you notice any wheel vibration prior to rotation, get the wheels balanced when they are rotated. By the way, the above links, as well as lots of other good car care stuff can be found at the very informative site called CarCare.org.
• Be vigilant, depending on your warranty, most everything is covered in the first year, maybe even tires and sometimes wipers. Know your car, take pictures if it helps. If anything breaks, cracks, falls off, squeaks, rattles, shorts out, etc. have it fixed by the dealer ASAP. Once the warranty period is over, you're on your own....
• It's a Rio? The first thing you do is TAKE IT BACK FOR THE LOVE OF CHRIST TAKE IT BACK. For the next 7 years while you're paying off your $99/month payment we're going to have twice-weekly "HELP MY RIO IS CRAPPING OUT AGAIN" Curious George posts.
• an '05 Kia Rio Does it dance on the sand?
• Thanks, the_bone, now that is stuck in my head.
• "For the next 7 years ... we're going to have twice-weekly "HELP MY RIO IS CRAPPING OUT AGAIN" Curious George posts." Sshhhh!!!! humor value.
• Great advice, all: actually, I got it on the advice of several people who said that they were actually turning out to be quite reliable with strong loyalty from their owners. That and I'm rather underfunded for more advanced type vehicles. I'm going to print this whole thread and put it under my pillow. I'm going from a car that my friends pretty much laughed at (but I loved intensely) to one so damn new I'm afraid to breathe in it. Your sound, practical suggestions (cum stain, muling coke, superpowers) will be taken to heart and acted on lovingly.
• musingmelpomene- My own experience does not correspond with your impression about Kia products. I bought a year-old Kia Avella (badged in the United States as a Ford Aspire) that had 9,000 miles on it. Since then, I've put on 100,000 of my own miles on it. It's been extemely reliable and thrifty on gas, averaging around 35 mpg the whole time. I've probably put less than $2,000 worth of repairs, including tires & brakes, into it over the 8 years I've owned it. That's not bad. It's not the most luxurious vehicle; I knew that when I bought it. But it runs... and runs... and runs.
• In my mind, the Ford Aspire always translates to "Ass Pyre."
• Myself and Mrs Dotcom are taking our one week old Alfa out for a burn around SE England tomorrow (new to us, not the world ... and it's a diesel ... but it still claims to do 130mph eeeeek)
• doohickie, my impression comes from having had 4 roommates at the same time, 3 of whom drove kias. One was a crappy driver so I understand why his car hated him. But the other two certainly weren't, and they were constantly having problems. Their Rios cost them thousands more than they should have, not to mention the inconvenience of having one's nearly-new car in the shop several times a year.
• I've saved thousands of dollars in automotive repair bills by sleeping with the mechanic, but in return, Mr. BlueHorse has conned me into helping him rebuild several engines, from Vdubs and Mazdas, to diesels, to big Detroit V8s. I feel I have enough grease under my fingernails to venture an opinion on this matter. The difference in recommendations between oil changes of 3k vs 5k miles is partly the type of engine, partly how you're driving it, and partly where you're driving. If you're driving a little aluminum 4-banger on the highway and around town a bit, 3k isn't at all a bad idea, but you can probably get away with 5k after the first 9K miles. Break-in driving is never a bad idea for these engines, even if your dealer doesn't recommend it. The main thing on these is to keep all your fluid levels up and your air cleaner changed. Treat it nice--it's a lot easier to warp the heads or crack the block on a tin-pot engine. If you've got a big V8 like my Detroit pickup, they're a bit more forgiving under "normal" use. But we use it for hauling the horse trailer, moving hay, jamming around the back country and over dusty desert roads, and we change the oil more frequently because it works hard. I know a gal that has 200,000 miles on her Kia with no problems at all. Needless to say, she loves it. The only other comment I would add for breaking in your vehicle is to get a big, hairy, drooling dog for the backseat. Nobody else said it, so it must be up to me: As always, your mileage may vary.
• The owner's manual for my Hyundai Elantra basically said "You don't need to break in your new Elantra. But if you want to break it in anyway, here are some things you can do." Kia's owned by Hyundai now, and I expect your owner's manual says something quite similar. So there's really little you need to do. Still, I would advise an early oil change, say at 1,500 miles, to get all the little metal shavings that will have been knocked loose. Then again at 3,000 and every 3,000 thereafter.
• Everyody else has pretty much already given sound practical advice, but if you want yet another opinion, here's my $0.02. 1- Change your oil every 500 miles for the first 100,000 miles. 2- Always use the highest octane fuel you can get yours hands on. Jet fuel might be worth a shot. 3- Rotating your tires is good. Replacing your tires every 1k miles is better. 4- Drive no less then 250 miles a day for the first 20,000 miles. Be sure to do a lot of stop and go traffic, as that will provided needed variability in the rpms. 5- If you have to drive on the highway, the best speed is 70 mph, preferrably with the AC running. If that's not an option, open as many windows as you can. A friendly message brought to you by ExxonMobil (formerly Standard Oil): Better Living Through Blood Oil
• The first thing you do? Shit in the ashtrays. Oh, wait. It's your car. Never mind.