New engines failing, looks like engine break-in is still a thing

It's commonly believed that "new engines are already broken in".
If you wait to do your first oil change on a new engine till the manufacturer recommends. Say 7,500 to 10,000 miles that first oil change could be as dirty as running it for over 30,000 miles.

At Joe Gibbs racing their roller cams were lasting twice as long as everyone else's. They were break-in their roller cam engines the same as their flat tappet cam engines. So their roller engines had 3 oil changes on them before they ever saw the racetrack. Other guys were doing maybe 1 oil change.
I've been doing this on any new small engines I buy. I'll fill them to the full mark with used, cleanly captured motor oil from one of our daily drivers and run said engine for 1 to 3 minutes and dump that oil. I'll do it twice if I see a lot of factory glitter.
Should be doing that in larger engines so it would seem.
So if you get a new vehicle (may God have mercy on your soul) with about zero miles or km drive that clanker home and change that oil.
Some times old solution solve new problems. Well I guess it's not really a new problem, probably more hiberus than anything which is an even older problem.....

 

Totally agree! Also, I always wait to put the engine under load for a good minute or two, warm up the oil and get it flowing, even though I have many tell me, "That's no longer necessary with the new oils!" Baloney!

 

Good advice on the oil changes,,I just did an engine swap on a truck ,, used, low mileage motor,, got about 200 miles on it,, about to change the oil in it just to see what comes out of it .

 

Well, there are a huge bunch of reasons the new engines be failing recently.
In general, owners not changing their oil frequently enough will doom any ride to a short life.
But:
1. Machining errors (tolerance stackup) or internal design (oil return passages)
2. Machining debris (swarf, grit, chips) left in engine and axles.
3. variable valve timing .. think cam phasers, solenoids.
4. Displacement on demand, AFM or any of the other systems that deactivate cylinders.
5. internal components .. think roller rockers, roller lifters quality sucks sucks suck.
6. WTF do you want a turbo. You are on borrowed time after the powertrain warranty runs out.
7. Direct injection only. No port fuel injection. You add in EGR or CVS without a catchcan, 60k miles and you have a big problem in your intake system.

Did i mention shit-tastic parts. Unhardened rollers and cam lobes, high valve pressures ... you wind up flatspotting the hydraulic roller lifters. and Shazam, you have glitter all throughout your system.

But, mostly oil. the thin oil is "needed" for the variable valve timing solenoids speed to pressurize, "fuel economy" mandates.

Doesn't matter the manufacturer .. since the late 2000s everyone has gone to hell in their engine department. Toyota had been going well until they replaced their v8 with a turbo v6 in the past few years.

Toyota turbo v6 machining tolerances and debris
Ford v8 Cam phasers and oil return passages on 5.4l 3v. Also that flying spark plug thing.
Ford eco-boost anything. depending on the displacement you could have the shitty cam chain driven water pump, open deck cooling system leaks, blown head gaskets or even cracked blocks.
GM and Dodge AFM, DFM cylinder deactivation nightmares.
GM turbo4s blasting carbon and oil throughout the intake side of the system.
Dodge 3.6L oil coolers leaking unnoticed by owner until overheat.

Best engine bets (in my opinion)
Jeep 4.0L L6 cylinder
Dodge 318/360
Ford 300 L6 cylinder
Ford 5L v8
Ford 2.3L L4
GM 350/5.7L v8
GM LS v8 engine w/o DOD
GM 3800 v6
GM 2.5L iron duke
Toyota 4.7L and 5.7L v8
Toyota 4L v6
Toyota 3.5 v6 ... if it has the upgraded oil cooler lines.
Honda 3.5 v6

I don't know about diesels so I'll take a shot in the dark too.
Cummins 5.9 12 valve
Ford 7.3L maybe the newer 6.7?
GM 6.5L .. sure it's old and is weak compared to modern .. but less emissions and craziness.

 

Aftermarket camshaft companies like Comp Cams have been under fire because they cannot make cams and lifters properly. These parts fail during the break-in period of 20 minutes at 2,000 rpm.
A few years ago, the Corvette’s LT6 high performance engine had pistons that were manufactured without the oil drain holes drilled into the back wall of the oil ring groove causing catastrophic failure within a few miles of leaving the dealership. GM is having problems with it’s 6.2L LS motors from 2019-2024 that are under recall and can drive GM into bankruptcy. The parts responsible for the 6.2L engine fiasco are reportedly made in Mexico.
All areas of manufacturing from automotive to firearms have been in decline, the Covid era lockdowns hastily accelerated this manufacturing decline by hiring piss poor workers or off shoring manufacturing to developing nations for the cheaper labor cost.