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Old 11-27-2010, 12:56 PM   #24 (permalink)
Boreas
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 99kleansi View Post
Anyone care to argue that an aluminum performance cylinder head is less efficient then an old iron head?
I'll try, It's my understanding that if you view an internal combustion engine in terms of thermal efficency that a cast iron head is better at keeping heat in the combustion chamber (like thermal coatings on pistions). Aluminum heads lose more heat and allow a higher compression ratio with the same octane fuel. Increasing compression increases combustion efficency and creating a greater expansion on the power stroke creating thermal efficency through more heat extraction on the power stroke. I think either can be an advantage depending how the engine is built.
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