Practical engine run-in advice for tradies in utes

Do you really need to run in your shiny new ute before towing a trailer daily for work? Here’s what to do…

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If you’re in the market for a new ute in 2020, here’s my Ultimate Ute Market Buyer’s Guide to point you in the right direction >>

If I were a tradie, A) my life would not have been a total waste, and B) I might also be concerned about this:

I’m looking at updating my current Ranger shortly to either a BT-50 or another Ranger with the 3.2 powertrain and cannot get a definitive answer on whether I can, can’t or shouldn’t tow with a new vehicle till its first service.

Reason I ask is, I need to tow a tradesman trailer daily for work and no way around it. 

GCM (sic) currently stands at approximately 3000kg which allows for tools etc. Other option is I buy an ex demo with less than 5000 km but more than 2000 km? Keep up the good work..!

Regards, Tony Baric

Okay, so a Ranger XLT 4X4 (for example) is about 2200 kilos empty, so it seems to me the total payload here (of cargo in the ute plus trailer out the back) is actually pretty light. If the gross vehicle mass (what Tony means is GVM) on the road is 3000 kilos, then we’re really only talking about 800 kilos for the trailer plus cargo in the ute.

The GCM limit on a Ranger is 6000 kilos, so operationally, Tony here is well under that. Very conservative ute loading in this case.

I’d suggest it’s a good idea to run a car in progressively over the first 500-1000 kays. Vary the speeds and the loads, and don’t be too gentle, especially in the second half. Don’t thrash it, but don’t be too soft either. We’re shooting for Goldilocks here.

If you’re making noise, do it properly. Image: Pro Tool Reviews

So, pick up your shiny new ute on a Friday, spend the next three days clocking up the kays unencumbered by the trailer. Try to get between 500 and 1000 kays on the clock, and then on Monday, hook up the mighty tradie trailer and continue your fine concerto in power tool flat. 

Get that drop saw up and running at 7am in some properly posh neighbourhood. Then, once you’re certain you’ve awoken all the local ladies who lunch, and shift workers, mission accomplished, kick back break for coffee.

Look, on demonstrators: It’s usually a false economy. They’re generally not cheap enough. And in any case, how would you ever know how they were run in? Were they run in? Were they crashed while being thrashed in lieu of being run in? 

At the moment, with the zombie apocalypse amplifying the underlying, prevailing commercial pressure dealers are under, you’ll get a cracking deal on a brand-spanker with none of these concerns. That’s what I’d do - and I’d say BT-50 is better value than Ranger, every time, but it’s also kinda like marrying the ugly sister.

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