GT350R - Break In Advice + Clutch Spring Removal

[Darkane]

Only 100 miles? :eyebulge:

Dealer told my father to drive his C7 however he wanted, said there was no break in period haha I assumed Ford would be a little more cautious with an engine like this with forged internals and the like.

My car had 14km on it whe I picked it up. It was roughly 4km away from a good backroad highway I could properly break it in.

I went second gear:

4-6k rpm with full throttle/deceleration
3.5-6.5 same
3-7 same
2.5-7.5 same
2-8k same deceleration.

Did that twice. all WOT.

Then for another 20 or so kms I did random WOT pulls in random gears and let natural engine deceleration occur.

That was it. After that I watched my highway driving always varying rpm with fifth and sixth for another 800kms and I was done. But from the first day the vehicle saw 8k.

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[PJR202]

Good luck driving 1,200 miles in a 350R that also happens to be your first powerful sportscar and not flooring the crap out of it several times..LOL. My initial drive home was 100 miles and the only reason I didn't floor it in a lower gear is because I wasn't sure what it was capable of yet. Plus the clutch spring sucked and I didn't know how to rev match to smooth out the downshifts. The fastest I hit was 90mph downhill.

Congrats on the purchase!

 

[J_Maher_AMG]

My car had 14km on it whe I picked it up. It was roughly 4km away from a good backroad highway I could properly break it in.

I went second gear:

4-6k rpm with full throttle/deceleration
3.5-6.5 same
3-7 same
2.5-7.5 same
2-8k same deceleration.

Did that twice. all WOT.

Then for another 20 or so kms I did random WOT pulls in random gears and let natural engine deceleration occur.

That was it. After that I watched my highway driving always varying rpm with fifth and sixth for another 800kms and I was done. But from the first day the vehicle saw 8k.

Interesting approach, when you did your first oil change, assuming you did it yourself, how did the oil look in regards to shavings or contamination? What is your thoughts on the deceleration, most other cars I've had state not to allow engine braking, any reason you purposefully did it with yours!?

Good luck driving 1,200 miles in a 350R that also happens to be your first powerful sportscar and not flooring the crap out of it several times..LOL. My initial drive home was 100 miles and the only reason I didn't floor it in a lower gear is because I wasn't sure what it was capable of yet. Plus the clutch spring sucked and I didn't know how to rev match to smooth out the downshifts. The fastest I hit was 90mph downhill.

Congrats on the purchase!

Lmao yeah, it is probably going to happen, but with the fiancee with me, I'll be forced to behave somewhat.... fastest thing she's been in is my CLA45 with 355hp... and that makes her nervous sometimes :lol:

Thanks man! My previous "sporty" cars have all been 4cyl (CLA45, WRX), so this will be a huge step up for me. Luckily I have had some decent seat time in a C7, and I know fully well to limit myself and learn the capabilities and limits and nuances of the car before really exploring what it can do.

 

[Darkane]

Interesting approach, when you did your first oil change, assuming you did it yourself, how did the oil look in regards to shavings or contamination? What is your thoughts on the deceleration, most other cars I've had state not to allow engine braking, any reason you purposefully did it with yours!?

Basically to seat the rings. From the factory this car comes with the synthetic oil and its slippery, so I made extra effort to do my best to seat the rings.

I didn't do the oil chance myself, I inspected it afterward and torqued my filter for the correct specs.

I didn't ask about metal because there would have been for sure. Any new engine will have a little. They did the oil change for free as they reinstalled my splitter so I didn't say no. I just paid for supplies.

BTW,
Don't let the dealer charge you more than $9-9.50 per quart of oil. That's what I got mine at Candian pricing. Some dealers were charging $14-15.

 

[J_Maher_AMG]

Basically to seat the rings. From the factory this car comes with the synthetic oil and its slippery, so I made extra effort to do my best to seat the rings.

I didn't do the oil chance myself, I inspected it afterward and torqued my filter for the correct specs.

I didn't ask about metal because there would have been for sure. Any new engine will have a little. They did the oil change for free as they reinstalled my splitter so I didn't say no. I just paid for supplies.

BTW,
Don't let the dealer charge you more than $9-9.50 per quart of oil. That's what I got mine at Candian pricing. Some dealers were charging $14-15.

Ah, maybe I'll have to do a little "seating" myself after I put a couple kms on her

Yeah for sure, local dealer quoted me $10.77/quart so I doubt I can haggle them on that, especially since I am going out of province to buy my R :lol: not my fault they didn't have any more allocations

 

[PJR202]

I forgot..be SUPER careful removing that spring. It mounts in there funny and it's easy to break the plastic support. I bought the steeda spring and I knew to be careful. I used alligator vice grips and STILL managed to break it. If that clutch pedal comes up while the spring isn't completely seated it'll crush the plastic piece. In my case the vice grip slipped off and the spring opened up. I never tried it by hand so maybe that's just the best way to go. It's a night and day difference with the spring gone though.

 

[Mike02z]

I replaced the spring but it would not go in with the white cap on it. I don't recall this being a problem on my former 2016. Anyone else have the same problem? Mine went in without that white cap.

I have also read that you don't just want to remove the spring. The clutch may not disengage and can cause wear.

 

[J_Maher_AMG]

I forgot..be SUPER careful removing that spring. It mounts in there funny and it's easy to break the plastic support. I bought the steeda spring and I knew to be careful. I used alligator vice grips and STILL managed to break it. If that clutch pedal comes up while the spring isn't completely seated it'll crush the plastic piece. In my case the vice grip slipped off and the spring opened up. I never tried it by hand so maybe that's just the best way to go. It's a night and day difference with the spring gone though.

I replaced the spring but it would not go in with the white cap on it. I don't recall this being a problem on my former 2016. Anyone else have the same problem? Mine went in without that white cap.

I have also read that you don't just want to remove the spring. The clutch may not disengage and can cause wear.

Appreciate the heads up guys, going to wait until I get the car back home to replace the spring with the steeda unit I just ordered unless it is somehow delivered by thursday then I will take it with me and install it at the dealership

 

[Spacebird]

I replaced the spring but it would not go in with the white cap on it. I don't recall this being a problem on my former 2016. Anyone else have the same problem? Mine went in without that white cap.

I don't believe you're supposed to install the white part when using the Steeda spring. When done you should have the two factory springs and the white perch out of the car.

 

[Mike02z]

I don't believe you're supposed to install the white part when using the Steeda spring. When done you should have the two factory springs and the white perch out of the car.

Great! Thank you!

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