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New to the forum...I already have learned alot. I did a search and found little on this topic so here goes. I have a new 08 Honda Civic EX AT, how long will the car's engine continue to "break in"? Right now I have about 2500 miles on it and still have the factory oil. I continue to see the MPG rise slightly at every tank. Last tank I utilized a few mild HM techniques and started airing up my tires in increments of 5psi per tank of fuel. My short term goal is 40MPG combined and hope to purchase a SG2 someday. Thanks in advance.

Welcome from another 8th gen Civic owner! There are many different sides to the break in of an engine. There are distances and there are how to drive during the break in period. I don't consider myself an expert, but I would say you have done the "initial" break in mileage. Meaning all your internals have sealed up and become properly seated. But I have read that break in can go to past 10,000 miles (not sure why though). Hopefulyl someone else can chime in with some more info for ya!

... Hopefulyl someone else can chime in with some more info for ya!

*ding* - Chiming in. While it's a good idea to observe any proper "break-in" routines recommended by the manufacturer, it's also true that today's engines, built to such tight tolerances, take anywhere from 5000-10000 miles to "loosen up" and start delivering the FE they are truly capable of. You are seeing this for yourself, with successive tanks returning better numbers. The gains will level off in the next few thousand miles.
Generally speaking, older pushrod engines take only a few thousand miles to hit their stride in fuel economy. Small engines with complex valvetrains have a lot of internal friction relative to their displacement and power output, so they take a while longer to wear in and the gains from this process are more noticeable. This initial wear is not an indicator of future engine wear, so don't be alarmed by the bad connotation of "engine wear". It's all part of the engine's life cycle, and driven by a hypermiler, it will surely last a very long time.
Remember to click on the Garage link on the left and add your car. Then start adding tanks. You will be able to track your FE improvements, and share your success with others here.

thanks for the info! My plans are to follow Honda's recomendations concerning my engine during the warranty period. During that time if anything goes wrong, it will be on Honda's dime. After that, I will likely go with a good synthetic oil changed at more frequent intervals for better performance. I love my car so far but now wish I had gotten a manual transmission. I still feel uncomfortable slipping an auto back into drive from neutral while I am learning P&G. This tank I am working on now has already shown me that increased tire pressure really works and helps with my Glide and Distance Drafting. If I can begin to average 40MPG combined tanks as I learn, I think a SG2 should get me easily to 45+. Thanks for the help, this site is awsome.

2sa, the shifting from D to N and back for P&G was nerve wracking for me too at first. I would glide by merely taking my foot off the accelerator. After reading more about it, I found a nice, quiet neighborhood street with no traffic to practice on and within a few days, felt more confident about shifting. Depending on the segment of road I'm on, I've gotten as high as 180MPG during P&G (no turning the engine off, since my car is flat towable only at low speeds for short distances). I'm also in that "breaking in" stage - my Accent just passed 2000 miles today, just a few days short of 3 months after I bought it.