Right, i have just got a evo sporting ambient white style pack its sexy ...... i work for glyn hopkin fiat and well i have been told diffrent opinions on running the car in from the mechanics. ive been told to drive it like a baby for 1000 miles avoiding harsh acceloration and high revs and then ive been told 2 rag the ass of it as it will bed evrything quiker and loosen evrything. so far i have driven it for 130 miles like a nun but i can feel it wanting me to give it a little burst.......... whats peoples opinions on running in a new car please advice further thanks

Yeah i heard the same, i found a website in the end that said rag it and it seals the heads properly and generally does it good, and ive been told to drive it carefully etc.


General opinion via forum was not to worry about it, there run in at the factory & things are so precisely made these days compared to older cars just drive it as you normally would.

Personally I tried being nice, but ill admit i might of booted a few times, i didnt hit the limiter but i certainly hit 4.5-5k RPM once or twice in its first 1000, i figure as long as your not on a racing circuit the odd burst here & there doesn't matter.

drive it "normally" when it requires red lining it, do it, when it requires cruising gently do it.... don't be afraid to rev it, especially if its a deisel....

I used to do approx 1,000miles a week for 18 years, and changed cars every 2 years, never driven differently when running in to an everyday drive, i.e if overtaking, or a slip road, or at a track , ect, it will get ragged.... and never had a problem, ran a citroen upt o 150k! (petrol) and the engine was still good as new (gearbox fell out a few times, but thats citroens for you )

had many cars, and now changed jobs, so keeping the GPS, I bought it new, had it mapped at 4,000 miles, it has now done 99,000 miles, and all is well, original turbo/clutch/gearbox ect, drives like new. It was a "showroom" model I bought, I didn't order it, i test drove it from the dealer with 8 miles on, and ragged it then, I've never even had to top it up with oil between its 18k service intervals according to the service manager at my fiat garage, its in good health "because of the way I drive it" (I'm no boy racer, Im old, a time and a place and all that, I never boot it from cold until the temps are up, and never turn it off when its been running hard, always a gentle 'cool down' last half mile home..) variable vane turbos need to be ragged every now and then or you will get problems (not sure what model you have) but my advice is to drive it normally all the time, certainly don't "baby" it, or the engine may never 'settle' properly, I know some people who have driven new deisels carefully never full throttle, never full revs ect for the first 1,000 miles and they have had large oil usage in their cars....

people may disagree, but hey, its always worked for me. Just drive normally

Don't labour the engine, and don't boot it until it is fully warm. Other than that just drive with mechanical sympathy for the first 1000 or do miles.

Ulpian said:

Don't labour the engine, and don't boot it until it is fully warm. Other than that just drive with mechanical sympathy for the first 1000 or do miles.

Click to expand...

Well yeah, very important to drive it nicely for the first 5-10minutes so the engines at optimal temperature up properly.

I'm not 100% sure but i dont think the GSI will actually tell you to drop down a gear if the engines still cold, i could be wrong. Might just be that i drive for a few minutes before i get anywhere that requires gunning it ^^

I would agree drive as you generally would, Let the engine settle and as people sure just ensure engine temps are up and usual regular checks, otherwise enjoy it

A little off topic but would be nice to see some photos

ill upload a picture in a second just few questions.?.im going to go with "normal" driving so like a few of use have said give it a boot when need be. im no rally driver but dont mind a quick boot joining motorways etc thats what a turbo is for . Now for my next question the turbo i have been told when ending my journey let the car run before switching it off to allow the turbo to cool down. i have been doing it but its a pain is it needed? also if it is needed why the hell have they fitted stop start as standard that confused me?????

https://www.fiatforum.com/garage.php?do=user_garage_view&id=39960
would not let me upload so added the url for it

Drive it how you would normally if it had 10,000miles on it. The "run in" urban myth is a load of tosh on modern cars / engines.

The stop start is a big question mark, As for turbo idle just take the last few miles steady. Honestly it's down to personal preference, Many argue it's necessary others just ease off last fuel miles. I asked the same question and after reading about here and elsewhere majority seem to suggest a steady start and finish to journeys

Personally, I always give my cars a gentle time for the first 1000 or so.

Make sure though, you give it some varied driving speeds and not at a constant speed.

All a matter of preference, of course.

Most people tend to boot their car from cold, which will not do it any good in the long term, Turbo or not.

As for the turbo cool down, it's a good idea to do it.

See the end of "Steering Problem?" thread in this section. May help you.