Running in the TMax - 48mph

[Animal]

Scary stuff, especially on the short section of A1 I do regularly.
Now I know what the 50-boys feel like

[Funkycowie]

There are two schools of thought on running in, one being follow the slowly increase and fluctuate speed method or the ride it like you stole it method. I don't think any one buys a scooter or bike and keeps it long enough to find out if either matter.

EDIT: Ignore what I said, Data is far knowledgable than I.

[Data]

Hello Animal, yes 48mph can be a bit boring, but remember to vary the load & engine speed to actually make the engine do some work. Avoid fixed throttle cruising for more than half a minute or so to begin with.

I've tech'ed on most bikes & many scooters but not done much on any of the T-max bikes. If it has nikasil coated cylinder bores (I don't know if it has) I'd recommend avoiding any attempt at a fast run in. The coating is only 80-180pu in thickness & you could end up severely damaging the coating. This damage can show up very early on in the bikes life too so sticking to the "by the book" method for road use is a good idea. I have had bikes in the workshop with damaged pistons & cylinders after an owner has tried the motoman method of running in. The nikasil was completely gone from one area in the cylinder causing severe damage that wasn't covered under warranty. Owner wasn't happy as you can imagine but it was clear he had abused the bike, which later he admitted. The big issue here is folks often misinterpret how to carryout motoman. You also need to know that your motor is suitable for that type of run in method. It takes skill & knowledge to do it correctly. Even then it can shorten the life of the motor.

Anyway, enjoy your bike & post often with your exploits!

[MrGrumpy]

48mph??? Early Tmaxs had nonsense advice about not exceeding 4000rpm which would have given it a max speed of around 20, but the manual of my 2017 mk6 says 'avoid prolonged operation above 5100 rpm' for the first 600 miles which gives about 70. I mostly stuck to around 5100rpm, though sometimes exceeded it (its not hard!). With a CVT you really have to use around 5000 revs most of the time or you aren't going to get anywhere. I think the key is not to thrash it, though I guess having a CVT makes serious abuse quite hard - eg you can't slog it at too low revs in a high gear.

[Animal]

The 2022 says 4200 revs for 600 miles then 5000 revs for the next 400 miles.
…but it also says avoid regular use above, rather than don’t rev above.

Still, it’ll be done in 2/3 weeks, so no biggie.

[MrGrumpy]

How odd - that's a clear change then. I wonder why. But keeping revs to 4200 makes no sense on a scoot with a CVT like the Tmax - its designed to function at around 5000 rpm - very little happens below that. Old ones used to say 4000rpm, but that seems to be to be a hangover from manual bikes, where 4000 might make sense.

Many years ago I had a mk2 Tmax, and that said keep to 4000 rpm, but the route from the dealer back home was via a busy dual carriageway, so 4000rpm was not an option, so I kept to 5500 instead, and it was fine. So don't worry about it too much, just be careful with it. And frankly, riding at 48mph on a major dual carriageway is IMHO downright dangerous - and your safety is rather more important than Yamaha's dubious running in instructions!

[roadster]

Too true that CVT makes it hard to bed the engine in in an ideal way. With a normal gearbox you can respond to extra load by drop a gear and choosing a rev limit and throttle opening that's appropriate but with a twist-and-go you just have to settle for slowing down. Its only at top speed that the engine rpm extends beyond the limit set by the variator and some owners of the bigger models probably never go there. I think its one of the reasons why some Piaggios got a bit of a reputation for high oil consumption and blow-by, there was just no way of running them in by progressively increasing the rpm in short bursts.

[Data]

Too true that CVT makes it hard to bed the engine in in an ideal way. With a normal gearbox you can respond to extra load by drop a gear and choosing a rev limit and throttle opening that's appropriate but with a twist-and-go you just have to settle for slowing down. Its only at top speed that the engine rpm extends beyond the limit set by the variator and some owners of the bigger models probably never go there. I think its one of the reasons why some Piaggios got a bit of a reputation for high oil consumption and blow-by, there was just no way of running them in by progressively increasing the rpm in short bursts.

Occasionally someone will say CVT makes it harder to "run-in" an engine compared to a manual transmission. However, this is simply not the case. In fact CVT makes it easier. During my days as an engine design & development engineer we proved CVT made not a jot of difference to the running in process. The cvt engine is always in the right gear and always at the right revs for the speed you are doing & load you are tasking the motor with. Therefore this is ideal for a new virgin motor. In addition CVT doesn't shock your motor with sudden engine rev variations & vibrations like a manual transmission is capable of.

It's important to understand what the running in process is to see why CVT is so good. Most of you know why a motor needs running in so I won't go there. However, the running in process is not so much about revs; it's about load on the motor & with CVT, speed (speed = revs). On a manual bike lots of gear changing is required to avoid overstressing the engine. Don't let the revs go too high or too low. On a manual bike speed doesn't necessarily equal higher revs & higher revs doesn't necessarily equal speed. With a CVT it takes care of all that. You just have to concentrate on correct use of the throttle, ie: medium power for the first few hundred miles but gradually increasing power & speed as the miles go on. Note I said 'speed'! Not revs. With CVT all that is required is adherence to throttle settings & speed. The revs sort themselves out as you load the motor more & more. The final act of any running in process is to use full power for a short but sustained period, this doesn't have to be full revs but get them near to full power revs or maximum speed if you can. This means get the speed up as much as you legally can. Take a passenger if you can. It's good for the motor.

The problems with (the very good) Piaggio motors (the Master 460 engine range, the later ones are even better) wasn't due to any running in issues. It was several diverse issues (now fixed to my knowledge) related to fuelling when cold, oil supply issues on some & piston & ring fits & limits on others. At least that is what I observed in our workshop. I'd also point out that many of the master engines in the UK didn't have the same issues as the ones in the States where rather uninformed individuals ran their master engines on diesel engine oil & car oil. This is very often given as advice on certain American sites.This can cause glazing of the cylinder bores even at low miles due to inadequate lubrication & thus high oil consumption. Eventually this caused some piston breakages. Folks in the States don't seem to realise there is a difference between bike oil, car oil & diesel engine oil. Yeah, I know. It's a long one. I'm bored, & now you will be too!

[horobags]

not at all Data, very interesting.

[Tartan Cobbler]

And don't forget the running in is not just for the engines benefit, the transmission needs some mechanical sympathy too