Recommended break-in procedure for 900 mile trip?

[Thrumcap]

I'm scheduled for Performance Center Delivery for my e92 M3 ZCP in a few weeks. I know it is recommended to vary RPM's during the 1200 mile break in however my drive home is about 900 miles of highway.
Any advice for how to best follow break-in with all highway miles? Anything I should avoid doing?
Thanks for the help.

[serge]

Been in that situation twice. I took secondary roads. Sustained speed is your worst enemy for break-in period.

[sfbmwboy]

How long is too long for sustained speed? I'm in my break-in period right now and luckily due to commute traffic, I only can keep sustained speed for no more than 10-15 mins. tops. Is that too long?

[Slpnbyu]

My advice, if you have navigation, is to select the following two settings:

1. Avoid Highways
2. Avoid Toll Roads

That will be a good start to improving your break-in. Plus you will probably rack up mileage closer to 1,200 so your break-in won't only be better, it will be over earlier!

[Thrumcap]

My problem is that I really need to do the trip with only one night. I won't have the time to take secondary roads. Would it make sense to regularly alternate gears to run at higher and lower RPMs but keep the same speed?

Originally Posted by serge

Been in that situation twice. I took secondary roads. Sustained speed is your worst enemy for break-in period.

why is sustained speed not a good thing?

[Thrumcap]

Originally Posted by ///Flash

why is sustained speed not a good thing?

I assume this means sustained engine speed not speed over ground. If so, I would think I could drive at 80 mph but alternate between 2-3 gears to vary RPM?

[LiM3y]

Originally Posted by Thrumcap

My problem is that I really need to do the trip with only one night. I won't have the time to take secondary roads. Would it make sense to regularly alternate gears to run at higher and lower RPMs but keep the same speed?

I just went through 4-5-6 sequences for a few minutes each time on my highway commute. It's something to do...

[JCtx]

Originally Posted by ///Flash

why is sustained speed not a good thing?

Nothing is going to happen to the car. I also had to travel 680 miles home, and no way I was going to take an even longer route. What I was doing (traffic permitting) constantly for the first few hundred miles was to let off the gas, let the car slow down, then speed back up, loading the engine a little. Later on I was just speeding up and slowing down more gradually. That's enough in my book. And never took it over 4K rpm. I did it in one day, but barely; you'll have to do it in 2 for sure.

Just remember that for practical purposes, your tranny (except 6th ) , brakes, etc. will only have the equivalent of 100 miles or so of break-in. Tranny (especially manual) will take a few thousand miles to shift significantly better. Good luck.

[Thrumcap]

Thanks for the replies!

[Jasonnator]

TrackRat's post is spot on. You not only want to vary engine speed but also engine load. Staying at say 75 mph and simply switching gears will obviously change the rpm but won't significantly change the load. Vary the speed in conjunction with gear changes and you will be as close to simulating around town driving as you can on the highway. Maybe throw in some extra on/off ramps FTW. Congrats on your new purchase!

[Gazi]

Just want to know would you use the manual option on the auto gearbox during engine break in?