Do I really need hardened valve seats?
Original engines in cars built before the early 1970s generally don’t have hardened exhaust seats that are resistant to unleaded gas. In other words, if you don’t do a lot of towing, don’t have really steep gears, and/or don’t frequently run your car at the track, you should be good to go.
When did cars get hardened valve seats?
This is why seats were hardened starting in 1972, not the use of unleaded fuel.
Do aluminum heads have hardened valve seats?
aluminum heads and factory iron early heads DO NOT have good seats in them, the Induction hardened seats are only hard for a few thousanths… any wear and you will be right through the hard part, you cant even regrind them without going through the hard layer.
What year did Chevy start using hardened valve seats?
1971
GM started doing an induction hardening process on their valve seats in 1971.
What year did Chevy go to hardened valve seats?
What is the best material for valve seats?
The most common materials used for making valve seats for bespoke race engines are copper alloys, as mentioned in an earlier RET monitor article about copper alloys. They have excellent thermal conductivity, good wear characteristics and reasonably high strength.
What are hardened valve seats made of?
Stellite
Valve seats are often formed by first press-fitting an approximately cylindrical piece of a hardened metal alloy, such as Stellite, into a cast depression in a cylinder head above each eventual valve stem position, and then machining a conical-section surface into the valve seat that will mate with a corresponding …
Are there hardened valve seats on a car?
I pulled down a lot of engines that didn’t have hardened seats. ,most had some degree of seat set back from being hammered away. Most were not totally shot but some were. Some had the seats hammered in more than a 1/8th inch and the valves tulliped or cupped out like a flower.
Is it bad to run unleaded gas without hardened valve seats?
Discussion in ‘ The Hokey Ass Message Board ‘ started by Rustytoolss, Aug 27, 2013 . Just how bad is it to run unleaded fuel in a car WITHOUT hardened valve seats ?
When did they start hardening the car seats?
They are not ‘inserted’ seats like you’d see in aluminum heads. The induction hardening process is only so deep, so if the head has had a few valve jobs… the seats might not be hardened any more. The automakers started doing this when unleaded gas became mandatory in 1975. There are no small chamber ‘unleaded’ factory heads.
Why do valves and seats wear faster in a car?
There are different factors involved. One is that metal loses strength as it gets hotter. At some point, a critical degree of heat is reached where valves and seats wear rapidly. The harder the engine is working, the hotter the combustion chamber is going to get.
I pulled down a lot of engines that didn’t have hardened seats. ,most had some degree of seat set back from being hammered away. Most were not totally shot but some were. Some had the seats hammered in more than a 1/8th inch and the valves tulliped or cupped out like a flower.
What kind of seat do you need for GM LS3 engine?
There is also increased risk of the valve burning. That’s why many suppliers of titanium valves recommend seat materials such as beryllium copper. Some of the more recognizable engines with head issues have been the GM LS3 engine as well as BMW and Mercedes and the Chrysler 3.7L, 4.7L, 5.7L and 6.1L engines.
They are not ‘inserted’ seats like you’d see in aluminum heads. The induction hardening process is only so deep, so if the head has had a few valve jobs… the seats might not be hardened any more. The automakers started doing this when unleaded gas became mandatory in 1975. There are no small chamber ‘unleaded’ factory heads.
Discussion in ‘ The Hokey Ass Message Board ‘ started by Rustytoolss, Aug 27, 2013 . Just how bad is it to run unleaded fuel in a car WITHOUT hardened valve seats ?