Does the new engine fail more quickly than the old one ?
No. The WENKO engine is indeed operated more frequently in the higher load range than conventional engines – this was, after all, the essential trick for reducing consumption. The fear that the engine could “blow up” early on is nevertheless unjustified: Because of the ingenious cooling system of the engine, higher thermal stresses – and thus material stresses – than in conventional engines of the same horsepower do not arise. The mean piston velocities are in the customary range, so that no increased stresses of piston and bearing surfaces can be expected. Due to the use of the latest technologies in materials and surface coatings, the stability of piston rings and cylinder bearing surfaces, for instance, is guaranteed despite higher operating pressures in the supercharged engine. As a rule, the limiting factor for the life span of an car is not the engine – most cars are scrapped before the “death due to old age” of the engine.
