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06-10-2006, 12:18 AM

#81

Turtle

Join Date: May 2001

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Quote:

Originally Posted by Hypersonik,Jun 9 2006, 08:00 AM

I can understand the benefits of DLC on long term engines, and was aware of the carbon used in the liners of the F20C, but with a race car they get rebuilt every few thousand miles TOPS anyway. Unless the Mu, in combination with oil of course, is so small its negligible. *EDIT* Actually, I imagine the thermal co-efficient of expansion with DLC is quite low, giving a consistant tolerance at all temps. Just makes me curious, I wonder if they hone the cylinder bores differently (eg different angle) to account for high engine speeds?

The right coatings work very well for over 150k miles. While it's true you wouldn't use certain coatings on a road engine, most are fine. Indeed, Honda has been using some coatings for well over 15 years on their road engines. Cost and productionising issues still restrict the use of coatings in road engines. That'll change over time though - a small increase in efficiency isn't only about getting a little more power from the fuel to the wheels, it also means less fuel for the same output, and less emissions... which is what will drive such improvements into road cars.

As to oil selection, I'm not going to post my evidence - costly checking wear and having oil analysis done. Best way to start would be to follow the advice of someone who has done thousands of miles of testing. Like, say, Honda. After all they give out a nice chart giving the recommendation for the base viscosity wanted given the ambient temp. Of course, many people's first step is to ignore that all together - or miss-interpet it. If 5 normal owners posted up what oil they think the F20C needs in the UK based off reading the owner's manual, I doubt they'd all agree...

-Brian.