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In an effort to fit the ring package into an ever-decreasing available piston area, oil rings are getting thinner, to the tune of 2mm or so.
Top rings in Cup applications are being used in the 0.8mm-thickness range.
Moly-faced top rings continue to be popular due to increased ring lubricity and heat reduction. Nitrided rings also offer increased thermal protection for nitrous applications.
Piston ring types.
(photos and art courtesy Mahle-Clevite)
Speed Pro’s Pro Series rings, featuring a 0.043/0.043/3mm ring setup, is a good choice for those teams who don’t operate on limitless corporate budgets.
(photo courtesy Sealed Power/Speed Pro)
Perfect Circle’s new U-Flex oil ring is currently dedicated to Nextel Cup applications, primarily due to the high cost. Instead of a traditional 3-piece oil ring package, this ring is a one-piece design.
The thin U-Flex design helps to accommodate the compact ring arrangement on Cup style pistons. Shown here is a 2mm width, but these rings are also available in 1.5mm width. Each ring is also hand inspected and hand packaged, with the ring load rating on the package (usually in the 9.6 to 10.3 N-m range).
The U-Flex oil ring features a segmented design, producing an extremely low tension ring that is very flexible.
Tags: MAHLE CLEVITE, PERFECT CIRCLE, PISTON RINGS, RING TECHNOLOGY, SPEED PRO, U-FLEX RINGS
