5K RPM with 300 miles

What kind of damage could happen to the engine if it were subjected to 5000 RPM with less than 300 miles on it? Our automatic transmission malfunctioned causing the car to basically go into neutral while traveling at 65 mph. The RPM flared into the red zone on the gauge. The dealership says they will replace the transmission, but what about the engine? Couldn't serious damage have been done, that won't necessarily show up until some later time?

I guess it depends. I would drive the car after it has been repaired and monitor oil consumption, mileage, etc. If problems do show up you should have the recourse of an additional warranty claim.

I think you will be OK. If you you were traveling at 65 mph already then the engine was probably reasonably warm and the oil was certainly flowing where it needed to be.

I would not lose sleep over it, really

....and hey, here is your chance to replace that slushbox with a nice 5-speed tranny!

Just kidding!

Your fine.

The ancestors of this engine routinely saw engine speeds in excess of 5000K- their red line was about 5300 rpm or so. VW engines are tough and generally overbuilt. I definitely wouldn't worry about it!

I hit 5300 by accident the other day on a downshift (doh!) and the car still runs mint. That was 2 wks ago I would not suggest seeing how high the needle will go

-coop

I wouldn't be concerned normally. My concern stemmed from the fact the engine only has 300 miles on it. The manual says not to go over 3/4 of max RPM for the first 600 miles and I went past max RPM. I think I'm going to write a letter to VWoA describing the situation. That way if it does cause a problem down the road, I'll have a record of reporting it to them.

No big deal. There is no reason why this engine couldn't rev to 7000 rpms, just like the gassers, except that diesel fuel doeesn't expand that quickly when it burns. 5000 is nothing.

-mickey

Mickey, doesn't the TDI have heavier moving parts? If this is the case, wouldn't high revs tear it apart?

Fincoop the engine parts are limited by rpm because of piston speed rather than weight (I suppose you could say weight but inertia would be a better term)

I would not have the slighest worries about the engine going to redline. The engine could run there all day long and not jurt a thing. The reason they want you to stay out fo the 3/4+ rpm zone is to allow the cylinder cross hatching to wear in. The only way your going to compromise the final finish is if you run around ALL the time at redline for hours on end. Keep in mind that this engine has an ECU controlled redline and this will prevent you from ever exceeding any rpm limits (unless you jam it into 2nd going down a hill at 90mph:eek

FYI don't use the cruise control and in town stop and go driving is the best way to break in the new engine.

DB