Forged Internals in the Cold?

[AbsoluteSpeed]

Alberta temperatures can reach as low as -40*c and I have heard forged internals can be affected by the cold and even harm the motor if used before they reach operating temperatures!

This car is my daily driver year round and I was looking for good reliability but the ability to reach 500hp in years to come.

Should I use forged internals or am I just asking for trouble?
What can happen if I use them in the cold?

 

[adampecush]

the only issue might be related to expansion/contraction of the piston, but I doubt 40 degrees will make much of a difference. Give the car an extra minute to warm up and there is no issue. Other than that, forged pistons are generally more ductile than cast, which is a big plus. Go with the forged internals, nothing will happen in the cold aside from a little bit of piston slap. What was the logic behind forged pistons being unsuitable for low temperatures?

 

[AbsoluteSpeed]

I was told about the pistons slap, the fact that forged internals are more susceptible to a spun bearing and can scratch the cylinder walls when not at operating temp.
I dont want to drop the money in the motor and have to redo it!!

 

[gaboonviper85]

that could be an issue in any engine!!!

I'm Canadian and lived most of my life in Alberta (red deer,drayton valley)

Forged internals isn't going to change much to be considered an issue more so then cast internals....there are a few cars that came off the line with forged internals anyway so you'd be seeing bran new cars blowing motors....

But make sure to get block heaters and keep your car pluged in at night.....

Most Americans that see Canadian cars have no idea why there is a plugin sticking out of the grill LOL.

Infact I'd much rather have forged internals in the cold cause cold will make things brittle and forged is up to the task!

 

[AbsoluteSpeed]

Yea we had a very cold spell this winter -44ish. It froze and cracked my power steering hose!
I couldn't find the block heater and the supra started up every time even if it took a try or two. Turns out I have one it was just zip tied behind the block.

 

[gaboonviper85]

yeah in the cold damn near any vehicle is screwed....doesn't matter forged or not...just keep that oil warm so it can reach critical parts asap....what causes failure with cold is oil gets so damn thick that the pump can't move it fast enough to lube everything....

What you heard has some truth to it....but it doesn't matter if its forged...cold is cold and cold breaks things...heat melts things LOL

 

[AbsoluteSpeed]

Just dont want to cause extra damage!
(cause that means extra money :icon_bigg)

 

[gaboonviper85]

naa your fucked either way so no worries LOL!

But from what I understand 7m series motors are forged internals already....

 

[adampecush]

But from what I understand 7m series motors are forged internals already....

stock pistons are cast, not forged.

 

[AbsoluteSpeed]

I guess I had better finish tearing that motor apart and find out! :biglaugh:

 

[frontierguy25]

I have forged internals, the JE pistons. In the cold you will get a little slap, just make sure that you warm up your car for a little while when you first put them in. I don't drive until my temp gauge is atleast at the first marker, then driving it around will get it to normal. Forged pistons will expand and retract because of how they are made. You will be fine as long as you run a thinner oil and let your car warm up for at least 2minutes in the cold before you drive.

Many people have proven with 500rwhp and a good tune with the right fuel you can do it with a good stock bottom end.

 

[AbsoluteSpeed]

So a thinner oil just for winter?

I have to rebuild the motor anyway so I figured I would make it as strong as possible. Instead of hoping that it will withstand 500hp I know it should

 

[gaboonviper85]

use a 0-30 oil....people swear by royal purple synthetic....use it all year round

 

[jdub]

So a thinner oil just for winter?

I use Castrol European Formula (aka German Castrol) 0W-30 all year round in Arizona...it's already hit 39 deg C here. It's a Grp IV PAO oil (same as RP) and it's additive package is superior to Royal Purple IMO. You Canadian guys can get it at WalMart too

 

[ViR2]

There was one time when I wanted to start my supra in the cold (I needed to clean the garage, so i had to roll her out to the cold), and it was -26C, when I tried to start her I heard a terrible noise so instead of turning on the engine, I pushed her inside. I dont drive her when it's winter season or colder then 0C. The sound which the engine makes is hurting me too much

 

[Scot]

Not to hi-jack here, but on the same subject of forged pistons and slap, I just turned 2k miles on a rebuilt with JE forged. From the first start-up until now, there has been no audible piston slap. I did have the skirts PolyDyn coated and wondering if the coating could be the reason I'm not hearing anything on cold start up. Or is it just an extremely tight tolerance on the machine job?

Or maybe since I'm in Houston, it hasn't been cold enough yet....

 

[cartel1_950]

worst thing i found starting in the mid alberta winter cold is that the speedo cable would freeze and just stay at 0 and the noise was aweful. i always had her plugged in though and let her warm up until the first tick on the heat gauge before driving.

 

[AbsoluteSpeed]

^^I plan to plug it in now that I know I have a block heater :biglaugh:

use a 0-30 oil....people swear by royal purple synthetic....use it all year round

I thought synthetic was bad for new engines?? Doesn't allow it to break in properly or something like that. (Sounds weird but I know I have heard it before)

Or maybe since I'm in Houston, it hasn't been cold enough yet....

Exactly. I don’t know that Houston will ever get cold enough to worried about this.

 

[jdub]

^^^ Needs to spend some time browsing the Lube section

Gaboon did not say a "new" motor...you do want to break-in using a straight 30W. Switch to syn oil around the 1500 mile point.

 

[AbsoluteSpeed]

Sorry I was referring to the motor I am getting rebuilt