pcakes55 Posted February 25, 2010 Share Posted February 25, 2010 Alright guys, I'm on a tight deadline and need to make a decision by this weekend. I'm boring my f54 block 1mm over (.040), and need to decide between forged or cast pistons. I'm shooting for 300-400 WHP on 15+ psi (based around builds I've seen on here), I know cast pistons have held up to that, but has anyone gone the cheap route for cast and now regrets it? I'm spending a lot on the motor anyways, I don't want to cheap out and regret it later unless forged is overkill for my power goals. I just want some personal input if anything- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jc052685 Posted February 25, 2010 Share Posted February 25, 2010 I would not say that forged is overkill BUT cast can be used well over 400whp when the tune is SPOT ON! Now your mileage may vary depending of the quality of the cast pistons. I doubt many are made to the quality of the original Nissan units. I have done 330+whp and 380+wtq on cast pistons. They did melt down durring the tuning on the dyno though. I can not tell you if it was the pistons fault or the injectors because the 440cc injectors went lean at peak tq. It was just too much for those injectors. Also the pistons were not original. I dont know what they were but they were an over bore. In short. If you spend the money saved on someone with experiance tuning these cars then you should be foine with a cast piston to 400whp. I will tell you what sucks though. Spending $1,000 on forged pistons and blowing up the motor anyway because the tune is crap. Bottom line a crap tune with kill the motor either way you go. Hope that helps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mayolives Posted February 25, 2010 Share Posted February 25, 2010 QUOTE: "I'm spending a lot on the motor anyways, I don't want to cheap out and regret it later unless forged is overkill for my power goals". Based on my experience, you have answered your own question! When building a new engine, an engine component can never be too good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woldson Posted February 25, 2010 Share Posted February 25, 2010 Ceramic coat the cast pistons. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jc052685 Posted February 25, 2010 Share Posted February 25, 2010 Ceramic coat the cast pistons. I am pretty sure thats what I will be doing this time around! Keep the heat off the piston face and crown! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
z-ya Posted February 25, 2010 Share Posted February 25, 2010 For any rebuild for a turbo motor over 15psi I would just go with forged. At 15psi a stock long block will make between 300 and 320WHP. This is really the safe limit for cast pistons. Chances are, you are going to want more, so just go with forged and forget about it. jc052685 is right on the tune. The wrong tune with cast pistons at 15psi will either blow head gaskets (depending on what you use) or cast pistons. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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