I figured I'd throw this in here first, since the FI folks are the most likely to sleeve their engines.

Given the scarcity and cost of used blocks, I am wondering if a sleeved block is a potential alternative. I understand the longevity may not be as good as an OEM unit but if a sleeved block can last at least a certain number of miles then maybe there is an alternative for us instead of just looking for used blocks.

Conventional wisdom around the boards is that the F20/F22 does not take well to sleeves and fail after so many miles due to the high thermal cycling that the F20/F22 goes through and the differing materials of sleeve and block. Going through old posts, it seems like sleeved engines can last a number of thousand miles. The question is how many?

A simple cost analysis can help us determine how many miles the engine should last. For the sake of argument let us we assume that a used OEM block will go 100,000 miles before needing to be refurbished. In today's market, a used engine will start around $4,000. So that is about 25 miles per $ or a 25:1 mile to $ ratio. Say we spend $1500 to have a block sleeved and re-built up with OEM spec components. We should then expect the engine to last 37,500 miles (1500*25 = 35,000).

The question I have then is are there any sleeved engines out there approaching these miles? If you have a sleeved engine, how many miles do you have on it? Wet or dry sleeve? Brand? Coatings or anything extra?

 

I sleeved my motor in 2005, but have probably only done 5-15k miles since then.

 

Thanks! Do you recall the brand and type (i.e. dry vs wet)?

 

This question comes at a good time as I'm about to sleeve my OEM block with Darton MID Sleeves. Looking forward to more answers.

 

I had Golden Eagle HD sleeves, Pauter rods, and Arias pistons.

Tim