MAHLEs relationship with Porsche dates back to Porsches beginning. Together we have developed some of the best competition and sports car engines available throughout the last nine decades. MAHLE Motorsports North America has taken the extensive experience gained from its relationship with Porsche to develop a series of performance and racing piston and cylinder kits. These kits were designed for high performance applications and are modern adaptations of the original or aftermarket kits; therefore there may be visual differences that are intentional and beneficial to the performance, durability and longevity of the components.
With the value of classic vehicles rising, it is more important to ensure that your classic Porsche retains its value, that OE parts are used. Now there is the option to upgrade your engines performance without having a negative effect on the value. All cylinders are from MAHLE tooling and have the MAHLE markings externally – so they are visually identical to the original parts.
Nikasil Cylinders from the OE Supplier
No longer do you have to choose between the security of MAHLE and their legendary Nikasil plating process and aftermarket “big bore” cylinders. We can offer MAHLE cylinders in larger bore sizes, manufactured and Nikasil plated by MAHLE. As the OE supplier, you can be rest assured that piston to cylinder tolerances are tighter than other brands and in line with OE specifications – so you Porsche runs as smooth and quiet as the day it was made.
The Most Advanced Piston Engineering In The Industry
The pistons are machined from forgings with narrower and shorter skirts to reduce weight and friction. They are then dual coated, with Phosphate and MAHLEs proprietary Grafal skirt coating. The phosphate is a dry film lubricant designed to help protect the pin bores from galling and ring grooves from micro-welding. The Grafal anti-friction skirt coating is designed to reduce drag, wear and noise. The kits are supplied with modern ring sets made from stronger more durable materials that are dimensionally narrower and shorter to be more conformable providing more consistent contact with the cylinders resulting in increased sealing and oil control.
Porsche Air-Cooled Cylinders
The cylinders included in Motorsports air-cooled kits are produced and machined to original equipment tolerances, are Nikasil coated as per the original parts and designed to provide increased performance, durability and longevity. Some applications are available as either a slip-in or machine-in design. The slip-in cylinders are simply a larger internal bore replacement. The machine-in cylinders require the engine cases be machined to a larger bore diameter to accept their larger spigot diameter. The larger spigot diameter is preferable for extreme applications as with highly boosted turbo or competition use engines.