Does A New Prius Require The 500 Mile Break-In Period?

Opinions vary, I say just drive it. Most important thing is avoid constant engine speed but constant engine speed is almost impossible in a Prius. Go easy on the brakes and tyres for a couple hundred miles.

 

agreeing with my aussie brother. just drive it. or in my best boston accent fagettaboutit! the brakes are really the only things to be dainty with for a couple of hundred

 

I believe the user manual suggests 600 or 700 miles is the recommended break in period I can't remember. But I agree with the previous two posters, just drive it like a normal person and you'll have nothing to worry about.

 

There is a 600 mile break in period, but you don't have to drive under 50. The owner's manual just cautions about prolonged driving at a constant speed during the break in (this is true of any new car). Just don't use the cruise control for a long trip and during the break in and you will be fine.

 

Don't guess...follow your owner's manual.

 

Paraphrasing the owner's manual: in the first 600 miles (yes, six hundred miles) don't speed and avoid slamming on the brakes. After that you can go nuts and drive like a maniac :_>

 

I just drove it normally, like any other car. Almost 150,000 km and everything is still fine

 

Two No-No's

My 2007 Owner's Manual has two no-no's for the break-in period:

1. During the first 600 miles, avoid full throttle acceleration and racing the hybrid engine.

2. During the first 200 miles, avoid sudden hard braking.

 

Well, it is 4 years old

 

Well, I'm a consulting engineer. I was doing a lot of driving to project sites as far away as Saskatoon and Thunder Bay. Fortunately I haven't had to do that sort of adventure since 2007, I'm in the office or working from home almost all the time

 

I just bought a 2010 Prius and I've already driven over 60mph! What negative effects will that have on my car? I'm getting kinda nervous now since I will be driving into the country on the highway for Thanksgiving on Tuesday! What do I do?

 

You are just going to get back and forth opinion on this. My opinion is if you can follow break in procedures for the first 500-1500 miles, then why not? If your not helping, your not helping...but what does it matter? I'd always error on the side of being conservative.

If you have a big trip, or a daily stretch of freeway and following the recommendations is difficult I certainly wouldn't slit my wrists. I think varying speed is always possible and I think everything else is only potentially helpful but not 100% necessary.

I think anyone who cares enough to ask about the break in period is going to be attentive and careful enough with there car that it probably isn't going to be an issue.

So I'll sit on the fence and say Break In Procedures? Sure follow them if you can, if you can't or occasionally stray? Don't sweat it.

The only aspect inwhich I would care too much about would be trying to vary the speed...I wouldn't use cruise control for a while....

 

Likely... None.

The break in period on cars is not something that can be accurately assessed once you have 100,000 miles on the car. We played this argument out for years on my racing forums and some people adhered to the break in period and others left the dealership lot roasting the tires so to speak and when it came down to engine tear downs you couldn't really say which car had been beaten on and which had been babied. When it came down to which cars were the fastest there was no consensus either. Some of the fastest bone stock Trans Am's I've seen were the ones who left the dealer in a cloud of tire smoke!

IMO, it is best to just go easy for a while (few hundred miles of varied driving) and keep up on your maintenance and not worry about the specifics of the "break in period".

 

I agree with the above poster, just going 60 has probably had no negative effects. It's not really the speed that's the issue anyway, it's more a matter or just taking it easy on the engine. The prius seems (by design) to take it pretty easy on the engine in most circumstances in any case. If you only use easy to moderate aceleration to get up to 60 then really cant see it being an problem at all.