Break-in Process:
The ride home. WOW! My F4i was a pretty hot bike, but this bike kills it in stock form. It just feels so much better and more like an extension of my body. Because I am breaking in the motor following the strict heat cycle and full load method, the ride home was far from comfortable. The whole way I was doing 25-65mph roll-on's to help the rings settle in. It was still fun.
Mile 29, 1/27/05: The first oil change. I drained the oil at mile 29 and this is what I saw. It is hard to see by these pictures, but the motor oil looked like metallic paint. So much aluminum was visibly mixed in, it looked so weird. Some trace metal is usually present at any oil change, but it should not be VISABLE! In the future, I will change all new vehicle oil in the first 5 miles. Waiting for 600 miles with this junk in your motor is just insane. I do not feel that this is a reflection of poor quality on Honda's part, just part of the break in. It is the suggested oil change interval that I question. I will run Castrol GTX 10W-40 and a stock filter until I feel that most of the break in is over, then switch to Mobil 1 5W-40 SUV/Truck or Red Line 10W-40.
Mile 302, 1/30/05: Second oil change. No Filter change. More aluminum and filth, but not as bad as the first change. I rode the bike very hard today and used all of the gears for quite a while. I got the bike up over 120 mph, so the bike got used across the entire spectrum. I hope that the next change is not as bad as these two.
Mile 487, 2/14/05: Third oil change. Second Filter change. More aluminum and filth, but not as bad as the first two changes. Things are getting better.
Mile 687, 2/19/05: Fourth oil change. No Filter change. 200 miles done at a trackday at Infineon Raceway. I figured that the bike was pushed pretty hard since I was bouncing off the rev limiter all day. When will aluminum stop coming out.
Mile 982, 3/5/05: Fifth oil change. Filter change. Another trackday at Infineon Raceway and a few street miles. Oil had a similar apearance to the last chage, Blackend oil and microscopic aluminum dust. I figure that the real break in wear has occured by now so I changed the oil and filter to the good stuff. Mobil 1 5W-40 Truck/SUV (Yellow Cap) and a Bosch 3323 (oversized) filter. The bike is so much happier with the new synthetic oil. With the mineral based 10W-40, the engine ran well, but lacked something in smoothness and feel. The synthetic oil changes all that. It would feel even better if I move up to a thicker oil, but for now, I want to feel as much of the power that the stock viscosities allow. The next oil change will be considered a flush, then we can see if the new oil, filter, and more break in time make a difference with the visable aluminum.
Mile 1730, 4/10/05: Sixth oil change. Changed to Mobil 1 EP 15W-50 and a new Bosch 3323 filter. The oil is looking fairly normal now and the bike is making very good power. I'm figuring that the break in is slowing down now. I may send the oil from the next change to the labs for analysis to see where everything is at.
This is a cut away of the Bosch 3323 oil filter. This is one of the best substitutes for stock Honda oil filters that I have looked at. The media is slightly denser than the stock filter, for better filtration, and the filter is longer, helping it flow better.
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