Longevity of ITR pistons under boost

[Batoutahell]

I jrsc'd my ITR about 3 years ago and have never experienced a mechanical problem due to the boost. I current run about 6-7 psi, and I run the car hard at 3-4 hpde's per year.

I am in the process of rebuilding my motor (engine seized b/c of oil starvation - long story) and need to decide whether to go back to regular (need to be .25 over) ITR pistons or if I NEED to go with forged pistons to be reliable. It seems to me the regular ITR pistons have served me well, but others swear that the ringlands are too weak for my boost levels and sustained high-rpm driving on the track.

Everything else being equal, I'd rather use oem internals instead of buying aftermarket parts. However, I don't want to use oem internal parts at the expense of reliability. Does anyone have an opinion whether I've been "lucky" for the past 3 years with my ITR pistons, or whether ITR pistons are sufficiently reliable at 6-7 psi?

[Tad3d]

well if you're rebuilding the motor anyways,
the only reason for going oem would be to save money,
they are not better in any other way,
no easier to install(ok well might be alittle depeneding on wut u get..), not a better fit..

so if you can afford forged pistons do it.

however at those boost levels(which are not high by the way) a good tune would be far more valuable than forged internals.

<font color="#a62a2a" size="1">[ March 25, 2005 04:47 PM: Message edited by: Tad3d ]</font>

[Batoutahell]

Ok, I'll explain my preference for oem parts. I expect my ITR to become a race car (road racing) in the near future, in a class that requires stock internals. For this reason, and others, I do not want to use aftermarket pistons/rods/etc. in my rebuild unless they're really needed for reliability.

It's been a while since I've frequented this forum, but I'm an old-timer. I understand the value of proper tuning, and I currently use hondata to tune my R. Let's assume I'll have the car tuned properly whatever pistons I go with.

My question is, are (.20 over) ITR pistons are up to the task of 6-8psi of boost, running hard at hpde's, or are they prone to fail over time? People telling me that ITR ringlands cannot withstand even modest boost has me a little concerned. Thanks

[DC2NR]

forged pistons and stronger h beam rods wouldnt hurt the car, esp if ur going to do aggressive road racing where the rpms are kept high. i plan to rebuild my bottom end with forged internals, and upgrade my valve train so i can run a 8,500rpm redline without worries. i wanna get into road racing myself.

[Tad3d]

well if your class requires stock internals,
then that makes your decision real easy then doesn't it ! [img]wink.gif[/img]

But yeah, I couldnt say for sure personally,
never heard that ITR pistons were any better/worse than other similar honda pistons.

[JRCivic]

Keep the car in the class you desire... and go for THREE more years.

eheheheheh

[Batoutahell]

Running class-legal oem pistons wouldn't be so bad, provided I come to the determination that oem pistons are reliable at 6-7psi of boost and running 30 minute, high-rpm hpde sessions. My factory ITR pistons seemed to hold up just fine, but some people seem to be telling me that it was just dumb luck they lasted so well.

[Tad3d]

dude, 6-7 psi is nothing

if you were asking about running like 10+
then, sure maybe it would need some debate and thought.

but 6-7psi if properly tuned will be fine.