A few things here bro. First I will agree with everyone in that you should get the TZ by OS. If properly maintained and more importantly ran in properly without EVER running extra lean, you should be able to get 5-6 gallons out of the piston and sleeve...Maybe even more. I would replace the con rod every 1-1.5 gallons. The important thing here is to run in your engine properly (break in). Do the "heat cycling" method. It takes longer to break in the engine, but will last much longer and also be much faster and more reliable. Also do frequent inspection and cleaning of your engine. Check the rod for excessive clearence on the crank and piston end. If it has ANY slop, that is excessive!! Should be replaced before it gets to this point. Use a caliper to measure the clearence.

Next, would be the cost difference between the Nova 12plus3 CT and OS TZ 3 port. A good price for the TZ is about $200 and the Nova is about $300. Just wanted to clear this up as the Nova is not TWICE as much. If you can run the 5 port TZ, I just saw it on sale at Towerhobbies for about $160!!! Just a heads up. Good luck. It is also recommended to use after run oil in your engines after each day of racing. I personally don't, but I think depending on your climate it would be a good idea. Dude, good luck and Keep off the boards. It's different driving on a track.