Originally Posted By: Trav
Titanium is rare of in stock off the lot engines (not including exotics and some high performance stuff), the aftermarket offers a wide range of internal components made from titanium.
Since its a new 2017 model, we don't know what Toyota is using. They keep some things a proprietary secret for a while, though word gets out eventually.
Originally Posted By: Trav
Teflon and more recently polymers are the most common coating found in today's engines, it can be found on piston skirts and main/rod bearings.
I see engine makers using "break-in" coatings inside engines, especially on the piston skirts, which allows them to score higher on EPA CAFE FTP tests. Mild cheating. Open secret there. Engine friction rises as the frangible coatings wear off in a few thousand miles!
Originally Posted By: Trav
Silicon is another thing Blackstone often gets carried away with, they fail take into account some of the engines uses silicon infused unlined aluminum bores, the silicon particles are .00002˝ to .00004˝ above the aluminum itself, this is what the rings "ride" on. Some of these particles get worn slightly and can show up in a UOA especially when the engine is new, yet they always seem to claim its dirt from a iffy air filter or silicone sealer.
"Alusil" unlined cylinder bores aren't used on BMWs anymore since they went all-turbos, now they line or coat all cyl bores with iron. I'm not sure who uses unlined cylinders these days, kind of rare???
Trav, your Mahle link should be a thread of its own. Cool start-stop stuff in there.