Engine Breakin...
Burning Brakes
Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 1,103
Likes: 91
From: South Florida
Greetings..
Have 100 miles down and have to share, I can feel the positive difference in general driving the Z over the '24 Eray we traded, Im stoked, glad I made the trade. Question.. keeping it at and under the 4K rpm.. I have her in the Z mode and manual shifting.. allowing me to clearly watch the RPM and Im not keeping her at a constant speed or RPM... has anyone tried that during the break-in period? See any worries doing that, the Owners Manual isn't that clear of the dos and don'ts? Thanks... God Bless!
Have 100 miles down and have to share, I can feel the positive difference in general driving the Z over the '24 Eray we traded, Im stoked, glad I made the trade. Question.. keeping it at and under the 4K rpm.. I have her in the Z mode and manual shifting.. allowing me to clearly watch the RPM and Im not keeping her at a constant speed or RPM... has anyone tried that during the break-in period? See any worries doing that, the Owners Manual isn't that clear of the dos and don'ts? Thanks... God Bless!
👍
Last edited by LT5 John; Aug 17, 2025 at 03:43 PM.
Drifting
Joined: Nov 2023
Posts: 1,680
Likes: 1,279
I thought my relatively short ride home was the perfect way to start break in. About an hour in rush hour which allowed for lots of variation in speed/rpm/gears…that was the first 40 miles…
Since then I mostly leave it in touring and have been slowly increasing the RPM reached as the miles go by and using the paddles occasionally to change up the RPM… yesterday was probably the first time I really started to get into it and going up to 6,000-6,500 RPM….
Also was easy on the brakes the first hundred or so miles… now I’m about halfway through break in…
For folks driving long distances upon delivery…. theoretically…. many hours staying around a relatively constant RPM range (like cruising for 9 hours at 80…) is not the best way to break in the drivetrain. In those situations I would advise a few hours on the interstate driving between 50-85 MPH and a few hours on B roads driving 30-55MPH with a few full stops (gentle on the brakes).
If I was stuck on an interstate I would occasionally drop a few gears to vary the RPM while maintaining the desired speed.
As mentioned above 6,500 is the Z06 break in RPM limit (the Stingray is 4,500) and considering how this car revs and I don’t know how anyone doesn’t exceed 4,500 RPM 🤣… You have to be crawling in a Z06 to keep it under 4,500 RPM 😏
Since then I mostly leave it in touring and have been slowly increasing the RPM reached as the miles go by and using the paddles occasionally to change up the RPM… yesterday was probably the first time I really started to get into it and going up to 6,000-6,500 RPM….
Also was easy on the brakes the first hundred or so miles… now I’m about halfway through break in…
For folks driving long distances upon delivery…. theoretically…. many hours staying around a relatively constant RPM range (like cruising for 9 hours at 80…) is not the best way to break in the drivetrain. In those situations I would advise a few hours on the interstate driving between 50-85 MPH and a few hours on B roads driving 30-55MPH with a few full stops (gentle on the brakes).
If I was stuck on an interstate I would occasionally drop a few gears to vary the RPM while maintaining the desired speed.
As mentioned above 6,500 is the Z06 break in RPM limit (the Stingray is 4,500) and considering how this car revs and I don’t know how anyone doesn’t exceed 4,500 RPM 🤣… You have to be crawling in a Z06 to keep it under 4,500 RPM 😏
Thread Starter
Intermediate
Joined: Jan 2012
Posts: 46
Likes: 18
From: Port Saint Lucie Fla
Thread Starter
Intermediate
Joined: Jan 2012
Posts: 46
Likes: 18
From: Port Saint Lucie Fla
Hey John.. Maybe see you at car show.. We attend many of the No Name Car Club events, especially the ones at the Winery in Fort Pierce off of '95.. Heading to Melbourne in October for an all Vette show.. I am in PGA Village!
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Burning Brakes
Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 1,103
Likes: 91
From: South Florida
John
Burning Brakes
Joined: Mar 2024
Posts: 775
Likes: 628
From: Los Angeles
Drifting
Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 1,372
Likes: 321
From: Clarksville TN
Not really, if you're retired. We have 6 vehicles in the garage that have been all around the country and not a single interstate mile among them. We've been on some incredible roads, have no windshield chips, PPF damage or broken wheels like our friends who frequent the interstates. We do have a RAM that sees interstates when the bikes are trailered long distance.
Drifting
Joined: Nov 2023
Posts: 1,680
Likes: 1,279
Not really, if you're retired. We have 6 vehicles in the garage that have been all around the country and not a single interstate mile among them. We've been on some incredible roads, have no windshield chips, PPF damage or broken wheels like our friends who frequent the interstates. We do have a RAM that sees interstates when the bikes are trailered long distance.
Maddening. If you don’t travel on interstates I would argue you don’t need PPF.
Team Owner
Joined: May 2004
Posts: 31,791
Likes: 2,415
From: DFW/Long Island
My last 6 Vettes I've bought out of state and drove about 250 miles home the day I picked it up via 95. No issues, just vary speed/rpm and keep it within suggested RPM range.