Loooong drive coming up

Awesomewheeldrive · Feb 26, 2012

So my talon spun a bearing back in september. I got a new crank, bearings, oil pump, balanve.shaft delete kit, pistons and rings, clutch, flywheel, timing belt, hard piping and fmic, 550cc injectors, mbc 190 walbro, and a 2g maf. I dont have a way to tune it though. i had the crank inspected at the local machine shop as well as them decking the head block and cleaning them. but in 5 weeks i have to move from chicago to arizona where my family is because me and my fiance went our ways. My thing is how should i break in this motor to make sure it will make my 1800 mile drive? I plan on stopping every 2-3 hours to let it cool down because i baby it and i want to check on it along the way. I plan on pushing 16psi out of the 14b. If this was your car, how would you break it in and what would you bring for the car on this journey?

gofer · Feb 26, 2012

I would follow AMS Performance break-in procedures ---> AMS 4g63 Engine Break-In

Bring lots of 10w-40, oil filters, a jack that can get the car up in the air, jackstands, a good toolbox full of the usual tools to take these cars apart, pan to drain the oil in, a gallon of 100% anti-freeze, a gallon of distilled water, and make sure your spare tire is inflated.

Most importantly though, your AAA membership card and a cellphone. I'm sure there's more than can be added, I always have a huge bag of zip-ties, assorted t-bolt clamps, black RTV, electrical tape, butt connectors, and wire cutters/crimpers, too. My car has left me broke on the side of the road though, I fight back and usually get her fixed with my bag of tricks.

Awesomewheeldrive · Feb 26, 2012

Ya my old 1g died from the biss not being adjust and i had to waitan hour for someone to come bring me my other starter. Left the broken one on the side of the highway on accident LOL

. But im going to have my complete tool box.and floor jack. ive got brand new tires and im getting a full sized spare since im awd. Idk i know my last dsm was reliable for a 4g63 but 1800 miles is kinda.... Is makes my stomach turn, in any car. Ive never seen ams break in procedure so i thank you very much for that link. for my break in should i run comp cams high zinc oil or would it be bad for the turbo? I dont know anybody who has used it, but i do trust a name like comp cams.

WES_393 · Feb 26, 2012

I use nothing but 10w-30 dino oil for the break in. IMO 10-40 is a dramatically wide-spread weight for use in any eninge. It breaks down quickly due to the vast differences in molecules which make the oil 10 weight cold and 40 weight hot. That's just my opinion though. I would also break the engine in completely before attempting a road trip.

Here's the break in procedure I followed pretty closely.

Use regular 10W30 oil.
Before you fire up the engine, remove the MPI fuse and crank the engine several times to build oil pressure.
Put the MPI fuse back, start the engine and immediately take it to 1.5-2K to maintain the oil pressure so the lifters fill with oil and the cams bed properly.
No matter what you do, don't let the engine idle.
When the engine warms up and the coolant temperature is normal, bring the RPM to 3K and hold it there for 20-30 minutes.
Let the RPM drop, adjust the idle and timing.
When done, shut the engine off, check for any oil/coolant leaks, change the oil and the oil filter and let the engine cool down.
If everything checks out OK, take the car for a spin and several 30-65-30 mph pulls at stock boost level.
At this point, the engine is fully broken in, but you might want to take it easy for a few more days and keep an eye on oil/coolant leaks, loose bolts and hoses, etc.
Change the oil/oil filter at 500 miles again.

There's absolutely no need to drive 500 miles under 3K or 1500 miles without boosting. As a matter of fact, you can tune the car and race the engine the same day you install it.

But much like gofer said, there is no such thing as "over prepared" when taking a DSM on a road trip. If I could fit a spare engine and hoist in my trunk, I would. Just make sure the engine is broken in properly and you have a crazy amount of tools ready for any problem.

95talongirl · Feb 26, 2012

You have five weeks... why not use some time now to break it in?

Follow the suggestions in the link, change the oil out and go for it. If it makes you feel better, last year; finally got my Talon running. Drive it around town for 500 miles on straight 30W Brad Penn "break in" oil. Changed it out for 10W30 after the 500 miles; then proceeded to take the car to chicago and back 3 times, to the drag strip in WI, and also to Indy and back to Michigan. I think I put close to 4000 miles on the car in three months and it's doing just fine.

Just don't be too easy on the car during the break in; it's been shown that getting on it and creating the variation with RPMs does help the engine. As long as everything went well during the rebuild and everything is in spec, you should be ok. BTW, kept the boost low; i.e stock levels. so it was run at 10-12psi max.

strokin4dr · Feb 26, 2012

Good luck with whatever you decide to do.

92AWDHX40 · Feb 26, 2012

No matter what tools you bring make sure you have back up funds, and a way to get it towed to a shop. Been there, twice at when my dsm broke down Indiana University , 6 hours away parents had to get a uhaul to tow it home, not fun. Repairs to expensive and had my buddy repair it before i learned to do my own repairs.

Colt4G63 also · Feb 26, 2012

Run lower boost, run 450cc injectors, and run a 1g MAF. You have no way to tune huh? Ever wonder why your engine blew in the first place?

Cars are machines designed for one purpose; to haul people and their stuff all over the continent via highways.

If your car doesn't do that uneventfully, then it's not built or maintained properly.

Awesomewheeldrive · Feb 26, 2012

Colt4G63 also said:
Run lower boost, run 450cc injectors, and run a 1g MAF. You have no way to tune huh? Ever wonder why your engine blew in the first place?

Cars are machines designed for one purpose; to haul people and their stuff all over the continent via highways.

If your car doesn't do that uneventfully, then it's not built or maintained properly.

1 you dont have to come off like a jack@$$
2 yeah i do know why the engine blew, its because the guy i got it from overtightened the #1 rod not allowing oil to properly flow. know before you open your mouth and assume i dont know anything.
3 the last 6 cars ive owned are 1g's so i know a decent deal about them
4 i came here for advice not an attitude, because ive never drove this far
5 any dsmer knows that a 2g maf and 550s is a good match because the 550's make up for the extra 20% of air so i think i would be fine without tuning as long as my timing is right

Str8Tune · Feb 26, 2012

You could pay to have your car shipped I shipped mine from Oklahoma to California and it was only $350 dollars

Awesomewheeldrive · Feb 26, 2012

I thought of shipping it but i thought it would would cost way more. Does the place you had ship your car ship cars everywhere?

Str8Tune · Feb 26, 2012

Ya the company is called "All American Auto Transport" theyll pick up and ship anywhere

Awesomewheeldrive · Feb 26, 2012

Sweet, thank you. Im going to check them out right now. Id rather fly and ship the car because the shipping companies have good insurance if anything happens

sciondan · Feb 27, 2012

Just break the engine in before the trip. Last thing you want to do is keep a fresh build at a constant rpm. Change the oil before you go and bring some extra. Stop off at rest stops and check over everything along the way. I'm sure you will be fine.

Awesomewheeldrive · Feb 27, 2012

Im hoping all will be well after the break in. Im hoping to get the engine in this weekend woot!

Ehclipse · Mar 12, 2012

How'd the trip go after all

wrencher · Mar 12, 2012

Another alternative is trailer it yourself.
Get a U haul to throw your crap in & rent a trailer from them too.
Might be costly for fuel, but if you have a lot of stuff seems like a win/win.

Awesomewheeldrive · Mar 13, 2012

My drive will begin in 2 weeks from today. Im dropping im my engine this thursday. Im going to be driving it as much as possible between this thursday and march 26th. Im hoping to put on atleast 500 miles before i start my drive to az. I wish i could rent a uhaul, but unfortunately i cant afford that either after throwing all this money into the car. If would just rent a dolly, but i no longer have my truck. But if for some reason it doesnt run how id like, i do have a place to store it up here in chicago and i could just get it shipped to me when i do have money for that.

Rob10_99 · Mar 13, 2012

I've shipped a few cars, and the distance you want is going to cost you $600-900 and that is about average. Just break the engine in and drive it normal.

reyg · Mar 13, 2012

Definately sounds nerve racking. Whatever you decide have fun.

Awesomewheeldrive · Mar 14, 2012

I think im gonna try the motoman break in method. all the hondas i have built for friends, we warm it up and run it hard and they never have problems, and i mean never. But were talking about a dsm here so idk how it will turn out. Saturday i get my block back and saturday night i will keep posting and taking pics as i re-install everything. I think the motoman method will work well for the engine paint too. Warming it up, driving it hard. Cool it down, repeat. But those are the dyno break instructions, but i live in the middle of country roads so doing 2nd 3rd and 4th gear pulls from 30mph isnt a problem and neither is engine braking.

bertrenolds · Mar 15, 2012

I'm with colt4g63 and you didn't need to be an ass yourself. Sure you can just throw a 2gmaf and 550cc injectors in there and it will run ok and you probably won't blow anything up as long as you keep your boost down but lets be honest, we all know the way to go is to run an aftermarket ECU chip like ECMlink ect. and be able to monitor as well as adjust your fuel for you injectors properly. You should at the least have a safc.
Hopefully you are lucky and you don't miss something in your rush to get it together or have other issues along the way, good luck.

Awesomewheeldrive · Mar 15, 2012

I havent been rushing to get stuff together, ive been buying parts for the last 6 months and i do have a wideband to watch my a/f and some of us dont have the extra 500 dollars for link. Some like me dont have money for a logger and safc. only reason i dont have the money is because im 21, dont have the money for college, and own a house thats 1200 a month not including utilities because my taxes raised last year. Trust me if i had money id get link but cant afford it. And thank you for the good luck. I will need it as i have never drove this far. And in a dsm idk if i trust it.

Calan · Mar 15, 2012

Awesomewheeldrive said:
...dont have the money for college, and own a house thats 1200 a month not including utilities because my taxes raised last year. Trust me if i had money id get link but cant afford it.

You need to get your priorities straight. Move into a smaller house so you can afford ECMLink.

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