The 2ZZ-GE Engine from Toyota - Yamaha with the MMC Cylinder Coating

Here, I gathered all information I have found about the famous 2ZZ-GE Engine from Toyota - Yamaha:

The 2ZZ-GE engine, a 1.8 Liter in-line 4 cylinder, was developed and introduced to the market for the 2000 model year Celica sports car. The engine was based on the 1.8 Liter 1ZZ-FE (1) which has a longer piston stroke and cast iron cylinder liners. The specifications of the 1ZZ-FE and 2ZZ-GE engines are shown in Table 1.

The RPM cuttoff is at 8200 to 8500 RPM depending on the model.

This engine is unique because of its MMC Cylinder Coating. It is an all aluminum cylinder block with a Metal Matrix Composite (MMC) cylinder bore that is composed of:

A casting technology to produce an almost defect free MMC block was established by adopting a laminar-flow die-cast filing and by developing control techniques for mold temperature, squeeze pin and gas discharge.

Cylinder Head

Along with the adoption of the VVTL-i (Variable Valve Timing and Lift-intelligent) system, the cylinder head supports the installation of the rocker arm, rocker shaft, and oil control valve housing.

Upright intake ports are used to increase intake efficiency.

The injectors have been installed in the cylinder head to prevent the fuel from adhering onto the intake port walls, thus reducing exhaust emissions.

A water bypass passage has been provided below the intake ports to reduce the number of parts and to reduce weight.

The 2ZZ-GE is a high speed motor (8200-8500 rpm) with Flat Tappets (the red ones in the drawing) for the high speed LIFT mechanism. Up to about 6200 rpm the low-mid cams are used which touch on needle roller bearings, but then the Flat Rocker Arm Pad locks and the high-speed cams are used which are pressing on flat tappets to push the valves down. 

[My suggestion from what I have read:] Therefore, an oil with higher viscosity (HTHS) and higher ZDDP content is required for engine longevity. [See here]

Cylinder Block

The crankshaft bearing caps with ladder-frame construction have been adopted to increase the rigidity, to reduce noise, and to increase the coupling rigidity with the transaxle.

Cast-iron is adopted as a material for part of the bearing journal of crankshaft bearing cap and thus help prevent heat deformation. In addition, the oil filter bracket, the air conditioner compressor bracket, the water pump swirl chamber, the thermostat housing and the rear oil seal retainer have been integrated to reduce the number of parts.

Oil jets are provided to ensure reliable cooling and lubrication of the pistons.

Piston

The piston is made of aluminum alloy to be compact and lightweight.

The piston surface is coated with iron and tin to reduce the sliding resistance friction between the piston and the cylinder wall.

Full floating type piston pins are used.

By increasing the machining precision of the cylinder bore diameter, only one size of piston is available.

Connecting Rod

The connecting rods are made of high-strength vanadium steel for weight reduction.

The connecting rod bearings have been reduced in width to reduce friction.

Nutless-type plastic region tightening bolts are adopted for a lighter design.

Crankshaft

The forged crankshaft has 5 journals and 8 balance weights.

The crankshaft bearings have been reduced in width to reduce friction.

The pins and journals have been machined with increased precision and the surface roughness minimized to reduce friction.

All info was taken from the following papers:

Development of Metal Matrix Composite for Cylinder Block

2ZZ-GE Engine

2ZZ-GE MMC All Aluminum Cylinder Block

Προτεινόμενο Λάδι για τον 2ZZ-GE Κινητήρα - Για την Ελληνική Αγορά

Προσοχή!. Η επιλογή και το ρίσκο είναι δικά σας, όπως για κάθε λάδι που επιλέγετε. Εγώ απλώς μεταφέρω ένα ψήγμα γνώσης για όσους θέλουν να μπουν λίγο περισσότερο στη θεωρία των λιπαντικών και των κριτηρίων επιλογής τους για κάθε περίπτωση.

Αρχικά, να πω ότι τα επόμενα, είναι αποτέλεσμα έρευνας πολλών μηνών πάνω στη θεωρία των λιπαντικών, της τριβολογίας και στις εξειδικευμένες ιστοσελίδες του αντικειμένου, οπότε μη μου αρχίσετε τα γνωστά ελληνικά: «εγώ χρησιμοποιώ αυτό το λάδι χρόνια και δεν έχω πρόβλημα…». Εδώ, προσπαθώ να μεταφέρω το «ζουμί» όλης αυτής της έρευνας, όσο πιο απλά γίνεται, για να καταλάβετε τι πρέπει να ψάχνετε. Αν δεν σας αρέσουν τα συμπεράσματά μου είστε ελεύθεροι να βάζετε ότι θέλετε (άλλωστε εσείς πληρώνετε), όπως είστε ελεύθεροι να φτιάξετε και να δημοσιεύσετε τον δικό σας οδηγό λιπαντικών. Ευχαριστώ και πάμε στο θέμα:

Best Oil for 2ZZ-GE Engine - For the Greek Market

Caution!. The choice and risk are yours, as with any oil you choose. I'm just passing on a nugget of knowledge for those who want to delve a little more into the theory of lubrication and the selection criteria for each situation.

First of all, let me say that the following is the result of many months of research on the theory of lubricants, tribology and on the specialized websites for the subject, so don't start me with the familiar moto: "I've been using this oil for years and I have no problem...". Here, I try to convey the "juice" of all this research, as simply as possible, so that you understand what you should be looking for. If you don't like my conclusions, you are free to choose whatever oil you want (after all you are the one who is paying for it), just as you are free to create and publish your own oil guide. Thanks, and let's get to the point: