Italian tune-up

captdownshift wrote: di-engines need them due to carbon buildup

They'll still need to get their intake valves walnut-blasted...

Something like Toyota's D4S is the best setup both for longevity and performance.

I firmly believe in the italian tuneup. Take my Z to about 6 grand everytime I drive it (about twice a week) and I think that combined with track days has helped get the engine running awesome after buying it from its previous owner who babied it.

Nearly all my cars have gotten similar treatment. It's the suburban that had been overlooked until recently. It's got some miles on it (225,000) and with gas prices being what they have been until just a few weeks ago a full pull from 20-70 seemed like a $5 proposition.

I wonder if cheaper gas will lead to happier cars all around spewing less emissions since they are running better than when everyone is tiptoeing around trying to hypermile themselves into saving a few gallons?

Nick_Comstock wrote:

ultraclyde wrote: I've always regularly wrung out anything I drive. I have yet to have a major engine issue (knock on wood), even on some real high mileage beaters. I do think it keeps things in good order. I've always heard that if you buy a grandma car that has always been babied you should ease into the upper RPM ranges over time. The theory was that many miles of easy driving could wear a ridge into the cylinder walls at a certain point. When you suddenly go far above the previous RPM range the con rods may stretch enough to slam the rings into the wear ridge, causing ring failure and general Bad Things. I think this might have been possible in older engines where tolerances were looser and alloys were softer, but I'd be surprised if cylinder walls these days showed wear that was significant enough to worry. Any experiences say otherwise?

Gm 305's and 307's used to be bad for that. I've seen a couple broken piston rings with very large ridges on teardowns. I don't think it is an issues with anything modern but I've seen it on engines from the 60s & 70s.

Berkeley. I guess I'm damned if I do, damned if I don't. (305 chevrolet owner here)

In reply to G_Body_Man:

If the engine is worn enough to do any of that, it was due for rebuild anyways.

In reply to Kenny_McCormic:

Thank god. This spring, it will be time to unearth it from storage, and give it a little Italian tune-up. Maybe it had already experienced the italian tune-up, as the PO was an italian gentleman.

My Tundra loved WOT and high RPM