rebuilt 440 engine break in

[Charger72SE]

ok, so I'm a couple weeks from getting my rebuilt 440 back and I'm wondering when to do the engine break in.  The Wisconsin winter is coming and I usually put the Charger in storage and fire it up once a month and don't drive it because of the salt, sand and crap on the roads.

so can I break the engine in by just running it in the garage or should the car be driven on the road to break it in?  I've got a tach so I can watch the rpm's.   If the car has to be driven, am I better off just waiting for spring? 

thanks

[cudaken]

 Paul, are you starting the 440 or the guy that did the rebulid? If you are starting it at home first thing is cam break in, 20 minutes at 2000 RPM's and then change the oil.

After that do what you engine bulider tell's you as far as how hard to drive it and how far. Will depend on the rings. You will want to very the RPM's, no curse control.

You break in the engine on the road.

                                              Ken

[Charger72SE]

yep, that's what I thought - break in needs to be done driving the car around and not just running it in the garge all winter

I won't be able to wait until spring for the break in, so looks like the Charger is gonna get a little dirty this winter!

the engine rebuilder said he would be there for firing it up the first time, so I'll take him up on it and follow his directions

thanks, buddy!

[cudaken]

 Mopar to you Paul. By the way let us know how good it run and parts you changed. Looks like I will not have a running 440 this winter.

                                                 Ken

[Chryco Psycho]

once the initial 20-30 min run is done you can store the car & start it once a month with no damage & next spring put the miles on to seat the rings etc

[Charger72SE]

OK!!  thanks, Neal, that's a better plan!! 

talked to the engine builder today and the balancing is done and he's going at it to finish the job.  Hopefully I get it back next week.

[BigBlockSam]

yea , i would put the motor in now. it's better to run an engine every couple of weeks, then for
it to   lay around,   make sure you bring it up to temp for a while . to eliminate any moister

[cudaken]

 Paul, drive the dam thing and just stay out of wet spots.

Did you get a warranty and if so is it by miles or time?

By the way, what did you do as far as HP up grades?

                            Ken

[Paul G]

Breaking in a new or rebuilt engine can be a controversial subject. I tend to agree with the thinking on this site. http://www.mototuneusa.com/break_in_secrets.htm . I friend of mine used this method with his brand new Yamaha FJR this summer. He got the bike with 1.5 miles on it and broke it in using the Motoman technique. The bike runs great.

Read through it and see what you think.

[Charger72SE]

well I got the 440 back today from the shop and I can't wait to get it back in the car this weekend!  It took longer than expected but so far I'm very happy with the work.  The engine rebuilder let me work with him in the shop a couple Saturday mornings and I have faith that this will turn out all right.  He's been rebuilding engines for over 30 years and said he will be there for the initial start up and later if there are any problems.

thanks for the heads up on using GM EOS for the cam break-in.  Hopefully, we'll fire it up next week.

here's a couple pictures - I have some touch up painting to do including the water & fuel pump

[Chryco Psycho]

looks awesome !!

[cudaken]

 I hope to have mine melting tires soon as well. Wish you the best Paul. What did you do to the 440 anyway?


                              Ken

[firefighter3931]

Very Nice !  

Ron

[Charger72SE]

here's what was done

30 over bore on the cylinders
new 440 3.75 " stroke forged crank from 440source
SpeedPro 2355F forged pistons with Moly rings - 70-72 Six Pack pistons raises the compression from 8.2 to 9.4
Melling MTD-2 Cam (1 up street use, 1200-4700 power range) - engine builder has had great luck with them & it uses current springs & rockers
Mopar Performance stainless steel Valves
new water pump, high volume oil pump, timing chain
new Clevite bearing all around

I wanted to stay pretty much stock, but up the hp
since the engine only had 48K miles on it, we wanted to keep what was in good shape (piston rods, valves springs, rockers, etc)

be aware that the 440source crank is weighted to use new lighter rods & pistons and NOT stock rods and pistons.  The engine guy had to ADD weight on one side and SHAVE weight on the other to get the crank balanced.  It was a BIG pain in the ass - good thing he held to the price he quoted me for balancing.  He's been building engine for over 35 years and he put 20 hrs into the balancing alone.

so a couple buddies are coming Saturday to get the engine back in the car.  I'll need a few days to get everything back together and the builder will be out to fire it up Thanksgiving weekend.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that everything works out!

[cudaken]

 Paul, with it only being a 48,000 engine, did your bulider have any idea to what caused the 440 to fail?


                                     Ken

[Charger72SE]

nope, not sure if the piston rod bearing went and caused the engine to overheat or if the water pump went and caused the bearing to go.  A couple of the main bearings were starting to get chewed up - I shut down the engine before they went.   

we drop in the motor tomorrow morning - can't wait to get that done!

[cudaken]

 Motor got hot?

Good luck today and hope get her lite.

                                    Ken

[Charger72SE]

worked 3 long days over Thanksgiving weekend and got the 440 in and all back together again.  The rebuilder comes out on Wednesday to fire it up for the 1st time.  We poured the GM EOS over the cam before closing everything up and I filled with 20W 50 to protect the cam and engine during the cam break-in.  He's going to cut open the oil filter after the break-in to see if there's any metal.

thanks for the heads-up in a different post saying Fram oil filters don't have the filter capacity others have.  I got a high end Bosch filter to catch any pieces.

Tomorrow I'll crank the engine with the ignition wire off the coil to move the oil & coolant around the block.

anything else that I need to know?  hoping all goes well!

[Chryco Psycho]

personally I would not crank the enigne , just fire it up , cranking it will wipe the lube off the cam

[cudaken]

 Just waite till the holes fires. Cranking will not help anything and as Neil said just wipes the oil off. Bet case it fires on the first hit. Good luck Paul and drive the dam thing!

                                Ken

[Charger72SE]

thanks guys for the advice!

tonight I double checked everything - no fluid leaks anywhere, all electrical hooked up, dash instruments worked when key turned to ACC, etc.  I did disconnect the coil and turned it over for 2 seconds to make sure the starter cranked.

looks like we're good to go for tomorrow!

cross your fingers,

Paul

[Charger72SE]

well, we fired up the 440 today and all went well!  we ran it for 20 minutes, the oil pressure stayed at H the whole time and the temp stayed normal.  the 10 degree weather we have in Wisconsin, kept things from overheating 

this week I'm going to drain the oil and take the filter to the engine builder to cut open for inspection

one or more of the belts squealed like hell, so I have to find out what's up

a couple questions -

the first 500 miles are real important for break-in - when do you get out of the danger zone on a new rebuild??

how will I know if the cam, pistons & new crank are all matched up correctly?  what should I looked for while driving it?

thanks much

[cudaken]

Paul, you won't like my answer This is what I seen at a engine installion shop I ran. We where doing 10 to 18 engines a week.

30% shoot crap on start up.
10% with in 100 miles like mine.
20% at 500 miles
15% at 2500 miles.
15% before 5000 miles
10% before 10,000 miles.

We never had a 10,000 mile motor come back unless the owner did something stupid. Had one couple that did not change the oil in 15,000 miles? Guess are Saturn engine was not as good as the orginal one. It lasted 32,000 miles with out a oil change

Well, to me 10,000 miles is at the keeper mileage. Reason I was bitching at one of the guys here that was going to rebulid a 10,000 440?

                         Cuda Ken

[BigBlockSam]

how will I know if the cam, pistons & new crank are all matched up correctly

when you slam that pedal down and feel the motor go through it's power range, smooth and strong.  you'll know   

[Charger72SE]

thanks for the replies!

so Cuda Ken, since I drive the Charger around 700 miles a year I'll be 60% there next year!!   actually, I'm really hoping I'm good to go for a long time

BigBlock Sam - smooth & strong is good - hesitation & stumbling is bad 

[cudaken]

 I would usel a word that people use for cats Paul. But with only driving mine 2000 miles in the last 5 years   will shut up.

To me 10,000 miles is the mile stone, if it makes it 10,000 then it is a keeper. Yes with only 700 miles a year you will be safe for a while. If mine had not been crused, I would have had 700 in the last 2 months.

                                                                      Ken

[Runner]

if your using moly rings, the engine should be fine after the cam brake in period. a few heat cycles and your ready to mash the loud pedal.

[cudaken]

 Runner, I can contest that But has nothing to do with Pauls

                    Cuda Ken

[Runner]

well, once the rings are seated the parts inside arent giong to get any stronger the longer they sit in the block.   

[Charger72SE]

yep, they are Moly rings on the 2355F SpeedPro pistons - good to know break-in on them is faster

Ken, 700 miles ain't much per year - but it's my first restoration and I want the Charger to last a looooong time

one thing that was weird - the oil guage was pegged to max during the 20 minute beak-in.  we did cycle the engine a lot before it started up and the oil was 3/4 between "fill" and "full"

would the Melling high volume oil pump do that?

[cudaken]

  That is what a healthy 440 will do with tight bearings and the pump we both have. I had 65 PSI at idle warm. Did not help, but that was not my problem. Mine was over bulit and under brained by the shop.


                                            Ken