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View Full Version : New engine-making tool should result in more fuel-efficient cars



Fivetide
10-10-2012, 06:45 PM
An article on a new tool I found here (http://www.gizmag.com/engine-cylinder-honing-tool/24472/)

7100

Jonathan
11-10-2012, 12:50 AM
My first thought after reading that article was why don't they just machine the bores with a standard boring tool with the block heated to operating temperature? It looks like they're discussing that in the comments section...
Either way it's a fairly impressive tool.

m_c
11-10-2012, 01:32 AM
My initial thought was why go to the bother of building up then stripping down to measure high/low spots before machining again.
However if you take a sample of blocks, build them up, run them, then strip down and measure, you'll find the common high/low points for a particular design. With that info, you can then machine the new blocks accordingly.

But, given the extra costs involved, for what basically amounts to something that will only affect the run-in period, and maybe give a marginal increase in component life, I doubt many main stream manufacturers will use it. It's probably of more interest to high performance or truck manufacturers, where everything is about incremental gains for power or fuel economy.