I believe BMW also uses Nikasil in some of its automotive engines.

While it is true that nickel plating is not as hard as chrome, if the process is done right and the engine designed well, they should both perform just fine. However, for me personally, if all else are equal (which of course they never are) I would still prefer true chrome plating to others.

Everybody is familiar with chrome plating for cosmetic purposes on cars and motorcycles. However, chrome plating is widely used in industrial applications where wear and errosion resistance is essential, among other reasons. It is not going to be legislated out of existence by the Green Nazis any time soon.

As much as I hate to think about it, I do also suspect that the production cost differential between ABN and ABC does figure into an RC engine manufacturer's decision to go with one or the other.