Long Drive Immediately After Delivery?

[73vwbug]

I'll be picking up my R8 at the end of March, and in mid-April will be driving down from NYC to VA to see relatives. Question for you all: Good idea or bad idea to take the R8?

I'm not sure whether doing such a drive makes sense (would still be in the break in period so would have to keep the RPMs low and go easy on the right pedal) or whether it's an ideal way to get out of the break in period.

Also, in the event the car is a lemon, perhaps going for a longer drive isn't the best idea.

What do you think?

[Monkey boy UK]

Dont worry, just go for it, i never bother running cars in these days! but then i dont keep them that long, when i get my Spyder its off on the 3000 mile round trip through the Alps with some of the forum guys, yep, guess that will run it in!

[CPBRI]

Take the drive and enjoy it.

[KfabR8]

DRIVE IT!!!

Don't baby it as per the idiot break in period routine either. A run hard from the start engine will "break in" much better. There is no need for break in on modern vehicles.

I picked mine up in Houston with 168 miles on it and drove it back to Cincinnati - about 1300 miles. It saw everything from the first gear crawl in rush hour traffic to 120+ on that drive home. You won't hurt the car doing your stint from NY to VA one bit, but you'll enjoy the ride! (and it will give you a chance to get used to the attention that the car will bring to you. Keep your camera handy so you can snap pix of people taking your pic as you drive by them - it's fun to do...)

Don't be surprised if it wants a quart of oil added around 3-4K miles. They tend to use a quart for the first 15K or so at these intervals.

[hmp10]

I picked mine up in Burlington, Vermont and drove it straight to Chicago (in early January weather, to boot). Although I did take Route 20 instead of the interstate for the first 600 miles in order to drive over a more variable rev range, I found it a great way to get the car broken in quickly.

However, I understand your worry about having mechanical trouble. My suspension malfunction warning light came on less than two hours away from the dealer. I pulled over, called the Audi assistance line, and was told it was safe to continue driving the car. They said I had lost the damping adjustment, but no other functionality. Driving a new car cross-country flashing a warning light with almost no place to get it serviced along the way did take something out of the drive, I have to admit.

As soon as I got it to Chicago, it went straight in for service, where they found a faulty solenoid on the right front damper. The car had three more electronic sensor failures in the first five weeks of ownership. After that, though, it was relatively problem free (except for the fuel filler lid refusing to open on several occasions and until the steering rack started leaking and had to be replaced).

Oh, well . . . enjoy the drive.

[toecutter]

I picked up in Vegas and drove back to Idaho that day on I-15 straight through. Car has been perfect (except for issues caused by an AUDI engine update) for 22K miles. I just keep the revs moderate and didn't go over 85 MPH.

Check the engine oil level before the trip and throw in a quart of oil behind the seat.

[FiftyPence]

I would not be concerned about the reliability of the engine or any aspect of the vehicle itself unless you have good reason to but I would be very worried about stone chips and rocks (?) being thrown up and hitting the vehicle on the highways during such an extensive road trip.

Do you intend to have the vehicle wrapped in paint protection film prior to this journey?

You might also consider the effective but (some might say) ghetto method of wrapping painters tape all over the front bumper and fenders to protect the bodywork during highway and long-haul road trips.

I would hate to drive the car during an admittedly very exciting long-haul roadtrip at the expensive of coming home to find the front end peppered with stone chips which will require a respray.

[SteveR]

Putting a few hundred miles on the car right away sounds like a great way to get to know the car and start the break-in process. There have been very few significant mechanical issues reported here. It just isn't the finicky car many supercars seem to be.

As far as chips are concerned, the PPF topic has been brought up many times and I am still undecided. I spoke with a local installer last week and he didn't think chipping would be a major problem with the R8. The front of the car is plastic and has few flat surfaces facing the front so it should resist stones pretty well. I wanted to wrap the whole front of the car, but the installer also said it would require a multipiece wrap to cover such a broad hood. I don't really want any seams, so I doubt I will wrap mine when it comes. Many here swear by PPF products, but if you keep your distance from trucks you should be OK. I'd like to hear what the owners think (again).

[FiftyPence]

I can appreciate that the hood might need to be covered in a few pieces but here is a picture of one of the range of products offered by UK-based firm PaintShield.co.uk

The picture would suggest that the film available for the hood/bonnet is in one piece. You also have the front fenders there and the side mirrors.
There must be a US firm or two who offer this in one piece too.

[harrison]

I do get paranoid being behind all vehicles. Cars throw stones up as well. I sometimes wonder how much debri my R8 tosses. Wide sticky tires and all. I remember following R84ME at speeds on a dirty road. I emmediatly had to back off his tail before some serious damage occurred. As far as break-in... I would flip through the book, and combine YOUR break-in procedure, WITH, what the book recommends. TWO heads ARE better than one. You will enjoy a great driving experience. Truth in engineering. Keep the sticky side down and the shiney side up! Easy to do in an R 8 !!!! \"/