The laser-pulsed thermography technique was investigated to test its suitability as an inspection method for thermally-sprayed coatings in automobile engine block cylinders. Investigations were conducted on a steel-sprayed coating on an aluminum cylinder with intentionally produced adhesion flaws at the coating-substrate interface. It was shown that delaminations and disbonds were easy to detect. Furthermore, a typical optical design that allows the application of the technique on real engine blocks in a production site is also described.