NEW Engine BREAK-IN: Truth or MYTH?

Thanks for all the comments, suggestions and questions. I appreciate them (even though the volume is quite overwhelming). Just a few points to clarify… I didn’t say these new engines are not run at the factory. I know they are started and checked for leaks, etc…, but that is not breaking in the engine. Also, this car was built in Japan. I am not speculating that because it is a Toyota. I know it was built in Japan because all of the paperwork with the car said it was built in Japan. Also, the 0W-8 is an indication it was built in Japan because that is what Toyota recommends in Japan. Here in the US, 0W-8 was still not available when she got the car. I hope that clears up any confusion.

"It's not because I'm smarter than Toyota, it's because we have different objectives." You just won the automotive internet.

My man, breaking myths left and right. Thank you for your content.

Every car/gun/machine, no matter how fine made, needs some kind of break in which means to be used with a reasonable care and maintenance at the early stages. Needless to say, a proper maintenance in its whole life cycle, too. Thanks for your scientifically proven tests.

Finally someone who knows his stuff. I was getting tired of fake gurus and overconfident ignorance to fake knowledge

I just got a new Ford Maverick (Fx4 and tow package). The dealership did not tell me about break-in. When reading the owners manual I found that a 1,000 mile break-in period with a mix of highway and in-town driving is recommended before off-roading, towing, or "aggressive driving".

I bought a new 2005 Camry 2.4. The dealer had some gimmick of "the first one is on us" oil change at 3500 miles. I asked about the 500 - 700 mile "break-in" oil change. They told me that was "old fashioned technology." I changed the oil myself at 700 miles and when I held my trouble light over the 700 mile oil in the drain pan...there were millions of tiny metal particles floating in the oil. I felt good about getting rid of all that metal at an early life of the engine. I owned the car for 15 years and racked up 218,000 miles before I sold it. The engine ran like it was "brand new" for all those miles. Fast forward to 2020...I bought a new Camry 2.5. I did the same thing but, this time I didn't see millions of metal particles in the oil. Still...I felt good about that first oil change. I totally agree with the first early oil change. BTW...while purchasing my new 2020 Camry the financing clown told me they break in the engines at the factory. I knew it was total bullshit because...how can they have the time and resources to break in millions of engines at the engine factory? Many of these dealership clowns will lie to anyone about anything...even their own mother!

I took you advice. Went and changed my oil today at 700 miles. I just bought my 2024 tundra 2 weeks ago. The dealership looked at me like I'm crazy when I asked for an oil change. I also asked for an oil sample. Explaining to them its a new engine. It's breaking in. There will be micro metal particulate in the oil. Long story short. After they changed the oil and inspected the sample of the first 600 miles oil. They found that I was right and gave me a huge discount on that oil change. Anyways I'm glad I changed the oil. Cause regardless of what any manufacturer says I think a new engine needs that 600 miles oil change.

Thanks to you I changed the oil in both my new vehicles at 700 and 1700 miles. It is a great piece of mind knowing its been changed twice before the 5000 miles "first change".

I've always done my first oil change at 500 mile, 1000 miles and then 3000 miles from then on. I've never had an oil related failure in 30 years! This man is spot on with the information he is giving.

Thanks, Lake! Love the science based look at oil instead of all the speculation based info on YouTube and the web. As been said below, keep up the oil myth busting videos!

I’m in the group engine oil and lubrication tech on fb with you and Bryce. Love seeing yalls comments and information. Also greatly appreciate you making this channel to stop a lot of misinformation from these wannabe YouTube experts.

Great Video, thank you for the content! A good friend of mine decieded around 8 years ago to sign a contract to work as an professional soldier for the swiss army. (In switzerland we have mandatory army service for at least 270 days. During this time we get trained by the professional „soldiers“). When he started his new job he and his 20 classmates recieved all together the exact same model of car with an 1.5 liter diesel engine and manual transmission. My friend told me that he was the only one reading the manual about how to treat the car during break in. So he broke the car in and never had any issues with the engine. Most other classmates just drove the car from the beginnin „normal“ or even quite agressiv. After 1 year some classmates said that they had to top of the oil between changing intervalls. My friend drove his car truble free without oil consumption for 4 years and 180‘000km (110‘000 miles) until he recieved a new car. I don‘t have exact data, but the opinion that it is necessary to brake in an ICE engine with an early oil change and to drive it as described in the owner manual.

I grew up working with my stepdad who had a machine shop and was a very good engine builder. He was always very strict about engine break in. When I started rebuilding engines for my own vehicles, I did the first oil change at 100 miles, the next one 500 miles, then another at 1,000 miles. Then every 3,000 after that. Some might consider that overkill, but there are a lot of contaminates during break in.

Toyota had kept 6 monthly service schedule until they ditched it and went 12 months interval, purely because people didn’t want to buy a car that requires them to visit dealership every six months. Not because the engines got more reliable.

I absolutely love watching your videos. Incidentally they really do help out when I tell the missus we're using a certain type of oil in the car and why. Despite being an ASE tech she usually won't listen to my own experience so I just bring up the people I know are experts in their fields and show them to her.

I change my oil sooner than the owner's manual recommends, but like most Toyota owners living in the rustbelt, the frame will fail long before my motor will.

Through the magick of interweb, let me express my THANKS for your videos and approach in general. I've got to admit I found you, Lake, when looking for some updated deepdive into LSPI (found a vid from AERA) and then followed you to Motor Oil Geek, looking for exactly this type of content. Kudos!

I dont want to see anyone throwing any shade or questioning my man Project Farm. He does some of the most thorough at home testing I have ever seen.

Funny youtube recommends this to me now, I just changed the oil at 500 miles on my wife's new Mazda; it was very dark oil for that few miles, we'll see at 1500 but I'm guessing it will look a bit clearer, now you've given the science as to why.