From the factory, the 3800's top piston ring gap is too tight to be safe for hard driving. Sure it works and lots of people run it stock gap. but it is dangerous for serious boosted conditions. If the top gap had another .015-.025 in it there would be no worries what so ever of breaking the top ring land off, but somthing else would go wrong that needs attention. From the factory, the engines are design to last 100's miles, and to meet emmision regulations, and be quite.
Bluprinting is needed to make them live under steady WOT, but that will reduce the longevity somewhat. A properly blueprinted engine can handle lots of power, all day long, so long the A/F mixture and timing are correct. Sometimes that is not the case, and to an engine that is built to very tight tolerences, things go wrong fast, there is no safty margin for the engine. Extra power make heat, and lots of it, if it can not be dissipated, the parts expand over the design limit and bind, that is how bearings spin in thier bore, head gaskets blow, and pistons rings expand to the point the end gaps touch each other and lock the piston in place at TDC. And in the 3800 the ones that see the most heat are 1,3,and 5 because the stock exhaust manifold is very restrictive and the exhaust just cannot get out fast enough limiting the fresh cooler intake charge to enter the combustion chamber. Detonation, or pre-ignition starts to happen and create alot more heat, very fast, and the ring expands to the point is traps the piston at TDC on the way down and the top part of the piston breaks off.
