How long do forged pistons last?

[mandrigues]

Alright I have looked on google, and I have typed it in the search bar and I get some info from the search bar on this website. And I might even already know my question.


How long do forged pistons last? I have weisco pistons 8:1 with Eagle rods and ACL bearings. How long can I drive it as a DD and still rip on it every once in a while. Yes I change spark plugs and oil and filters every 3,000 miles K&N filter and Brad Pin OIL with NGK spark plug #7. Now online even in google it says they last to about 60k or less I was just wanting some knowledge from those who have actually drove there car that long on forged pistons and if it is true or not.

Thank you!

 

[400hp93talon]

Well considering the bottom end gets put together right.....It would be basically indestructable running stock boost/hp and should last a very very long time as long as you replace bearings and rings when they need to be changed!!

 

[gst96spyderman]

I have the same setup. I'm willing to bet they last longer than your timing belt.

 

[BigBeans]

The answer to this depends on a number of factors, with piston to cylinder clearance being one of the more important ones.

The more clearance, the more area for heat expansion at high boost levels, but wear is accelerated.

Never let the car see boost until it is up to temp. This goes a long way in keeping wear down, as the pistons need to expand before they should see high pressures and revs.

No one can put a number on the longevity for you, but the life is less than a cast piston, which is why most companies will use forged rods and cast pistons in turbo cars.

 

[95talongirl]

As stated above, the longevity of a setup depends greatly on how it was assembled, how well you take care of the car; both in maintaince and "abuse." Forged pistons are designed to handle more heat since the forging process is different from casting. When wrought iron (or other material) is forged, the shape creates a uniform grain throughout the shape. Cast is poured in a mold, so you get mixed grains; thus it is a bit weaker; I.E brittle.

Now of course, there's a multitude of alloys and heat treatment options out there that can add to the overall strength, heat tolerance and the like. Heat treatment starts to get into the specifics of changing the molecular structure of the material.. another subject in its own.

Most of the forged pistons I've seen for DSMs are made from higher tensile strength 2618 or 4032 low expansion aluminum alloy. The 2618 you'll find in the more expensive JE's and Weisco's. Both are designed to handle quite a bit of abuse.

So just take care of the car, don't run it stupid lean, keep oil in it, and you should be alright.

Just for S and G's here's some info comparing the above alloys:
http://www.mustangandfords.com/shop4parts/mdmp_081008_mahle_piston_alloy_comparison/index.html

 

[mandrigues]

Great feed back thank you! I ALWAYS let it warm up for 5-6 mins every morning, and always let it cool down for two minutes or less depends on how much boosting I did, and always use 91 octane. its sitting at 15psi and venting to atmosphere with the External Greddy BOV&External 38 mm Tial.


These engines get a bad rep from time to time, but I belive its beacuse most people dont look under the hood once or twice a week. But this is a subject for another thread.


Anyways, I was just kinda worried about how long they last, since the economy is bad. And Im in the service I dont know how my pay is going to work out so with your guys feed back I wont be worried about DDing it.


Thanks!!!!

 

[HooKnBooK]

It depends on a lot of things. How hard they are ran, how well they are maintained, the mods, tune.

 

[sypherzero]

Well considering the bottom end gets put together right.....It would be basically indestructable running stock boost/hp and should last a very very long time as long as you replace bearings and rings when they need to be changed!!

I may be reading this wrong, or just not understanding it, but do bearings and rings need to be changed at some sort of interval? Or should they be changed if there is some kind of malfunction?

 

[BigBeans]

I may be reading this wrong, or just not understanding it, but do bearings and rings need to be changed at some sort of interval? Or should they be changed if there is some kind of malfunction?

They can be changed as preventative maintenance in high boost applications, but that's not something to worry about until you're making 500+whp for many miles/multiple race seasons.

Generally speaking, those items only need attention if there is a problem.

 

[hoby0316]

If the engine is assembled right and regularly maintained it should last longer than factory.

 

[MichaelSuch]

Should last longer than cast pistons as long as everything went together right. I put 50k (I drive about 80 miles a day) on my Wiseco 8:3.1 6-bolt pistons when I tore the engine down to stroke it. The pistons were still in great condition, I'll probably use them in another build. I wouldn't worry about the longevity of the pistons though.

 

[mandrigues]

When I first got my car, it had 40,000 miles on it. It was running 20psi the whole time he owned it, I just bought the car after test driveing it, and it worked amazing. Then owned it for 5 hours and went down a road that was miles and miles long with no one on it. In the middle of kansas. I got up to 120mph then let off the gas, went to 100mph and then slowly started to put the pedal back to the floor. Then click click under my car and flames out the screen off my hood, I was mad I threw the rod out the oil pan. The engine wasnt forged didnt know to much about the car until I was rebuilding it , I made sure I used foged internals and did everything that the haynes manual said.


It runs Perfect now, and no complants with the Eagle/Weisco setup. Its just some Google sites/ people state that it only last 60,000 miles wich did not sound right. I could understand if you only raced but not as a DD just some bad info. But good old Dsmtunner forum knowledge. clears up all that junk!

 

[andrewschel]

you get what you pay for. forged=better than stock under ideal circumstances but like everything it has a breaking point. take care of your car and you will be fine.