OT: Talking Cars (Thursday!?)
I was doing some reading last night about the '89 full size Dodge and its Cummins 12v 5.9.
Apparently the thing was nearly indestructible. Timing *gear*; mechanical fuel injection, and 400lbs/ft of torque.
In my life I've had a 4.0 liter engine that was at 205K when I sold it, and a 318 that I put on 250K miles on it when the body rusted out. I've heard of other famous engines:
The Slant Six 211.
The 2JZ
The Ford 300 inline 6.
Most cars today are pretty durable (My Five Hundred has 190K on it). But there are some legends out there. In JFW's MGoWorld I'd be driving around with 318's, 12v diesels, 4 liters, and 2JZ's. All with sticks.
What best engines have you ever had? What other legendary mills have I not included?
February 28th, 2019 at 11:42 AM ^
Pretty sure the Yamaha 3.0L V6 in my 89 SHO would've run forever.
February 28th, 2019 at 1:20 PM ^
Those cars were awesome
February 28th, 2019 at 4:32 PM ^
And they detuned that motor! Originally made 300hp... detuned to 220. Too bad. But hey, for a kid in 1996 to have 220hp in those days.. that was a lot!
Beautiful cars. And a stick... I still love them.
February 28th, 2019 at 11:44 AM ^
last summer i replaced my 2003 Infiniti G35 after 290,000 miles on original engine and transmission. the inifinit 3.5 liter v6 was the best v6 on the planet for a long time. had to let it go when the cost to repair the original transmission was over 3 times the value of the car. that car was indestructible until the very end when everything started to go at once. squeezed every penny of value out of that car and it drove like a dream. loved the sport suspension and handling.
February 28th, 2019 at 6:09 PM ^
Dollar for dollar and part for part, Infiniti makes the best car.
The Q70 with the 5.6 V-8 is my lottery ticket car.
February 28th, 2019 at 11:45 AM ^
1994 Toyota Camry American Edition. It was my Mom's originally and she put about 160K miles on it while driving for work. She got a new job and they provided her a company car, so I got out of my '89 Chevy Beretta and inherited the Camry.
I drove it to 340K miles before I got rid of it. Never had a single transmission or engine issue. Drove it to Florida from Indiana at least 10 times. Drove it all over the Midwest, never an issue.
I got rid of it more because of cosmetic issues. Having it on a college campus meant it inherited some dings, dents, broken side mirrors, and scratches from assholes who couldn't drive. Repairs weren't worth the cost anymore.
Also, just for fun I got the thing up to the 140 MPH max on the speedometer. Safety first kids!
February 28th, 2019 at 12:43 PM ^
Similar story for me but you win on miles and on the speedometer.
Mine was a hand-me-down '86 Camry that started shaking uncomfortably over 120 MPH on the "teenager needs to see how fast the car goes" run.
I hit 325K on it before I donated it. I figured they would just sell some parts but fairly certain I spotted it on the road in like 2010 when I was back in my hometown for Thanksgiving.
February 28th, 2019 at 12:56 PM ^
I still see some of the early 90s models driving around Indy. I think those mid-80s thru mid-90s Toyota engines were built to run for over 500K miles.
February 28th, 2019 at 1:26 PM ^
I think of that Camry era as the time between Toyota figuring out how to make a car last forever and figuring out that forever cars aren't the best business plan.
February 28th, 2019 at 1:46 PM ^
Logged in just to upvote the 89 Baretta. That was first car and you'r probably the only other peraon I've ever seen admit to owning one.
February 28th, 2019 at 11:46 AM ^
My 2001 Camry had a little 1.something liter 4-banger that sipped at a ~30mph rate forever. Had ~270K on it, and was still going strong despite not having had a workable catalytic converter for ~100K of those miles. The only thing that stopped that car was my lack of timely maintenance on the transmission - a filter screen popped a hole and sediment ground down the whole thing. But the engine was still running like gold!
Am I doing this right?
February 28th, 2019 at 11:49 AM ^
Me, as a car-less city dweller
February 28th, 2019 at 11:58 AM ^
The Sprint 200 inline 6 in my 1966 Mustang had 200,000 miles on it when I sold it. That engine ran great, however the body rusted out rather quickly. Could see the road through the holes in the floorboards.
February 28th, 2019 at 12:01 PM ^
GM small block and LS engines.
February 28th, 2019 at 12:10 PM ^
i have a 5.9 cummins 24V in our old dodge farm truck. 215K miles. it is unstoppable.
7.3 liter powerstroke - i had one for 18 years, 235K miles. sold b/c of body rust but the engine was a champ. 500 ftlbs of torque which was unheard of in 2000.
6.7 powerstroke - present daily driver. tremendous engine, quiet, decent mileage (18-20 mpg usually) stupid fast/torque for a truck that weighs 8K lbs.
6.6 duramax - new to us, about a month, mgowife's daily driver. so far, so good, much like the powerstroke. we'll see how it holds up.
1.8 VW tdi. - have our second right now. runs great, quiet, 45-50 mpg. what's not to like?
February 28th, 2019 at 12:54 PM ^
the 6.7L powerstroke is a beast.
Personally, 5.0L V8 is the best I've owned. Although I was also happy with the 2.0L ecoboost on the Ford Fusions. It was silent, good on gas and had some torque to it.
Now I just can't get away from trucks.
February 28th, 2019 at 1:37 PM ^
had an '88 5.0. nice engine. 225 hp, i think the torque about the same.
as to trucks, NK = preacher; XM = choir, but that's no surprise with the farm and all.
February 28th, 2019 at 3:23 PM ^
I have the Fusion 1.6L ecoboost and love it. The car can rocket when I want it too.
February 28th, 2019 at 1:23 PM ^
Do you have something against gasoline? I kid, I kid. I have a ton of respect for the Powerstroke series. If I could afford one as a second vehicle I'd snatch it up.
February 28th, 2019 at 1:34 PM ^
i built a bio-diesel reactor in the barn so fuel is really, really cheap. runs the tractor, too. i don't use it during the winter though since bio diesel doesn't do well in the winter cold. this a.m. the ambient temp was 12 below. bio diesel looks more like crisco at that temp.
do have a gas engine van. 5.4 L triton V8. ~ 110K trouble free miles so far. not fancy, not fast, but very dependable.
February 28th, 2019 at 2:45 PM ^
so you can flip between bio-diesel and normal diesel? no special equipment needed to run on bio-diesel?
February 28th, 2019 at 4:28 PM ^
In the summer you can run almost 100% bio-diesel .... winter it gets too cold and bio-diesel will gel up so you need to do 1/2 bio and 1/2 regular diesel. Uncle has a shack where he makes bio-diesel out of used cooking oil from the local diners
February 28th, 2019 at 11:51 PM ^
generally, yes. bio has much better lubricity which makes for better mileage. however, there it is not as stable as petro-diesel and can't stand the signif cold and also has trouble with some of the newer diesel engines because of the intense pressure and temperature they use to achieve the combined goals of power/mileage/emissions. older diesel engines in particular will run very well with 100% bio.
So the 5.9 will do better?
What do you use as your base? I drove behind a Mercedes once that smelled like McDonalds.
5.9 will do better. base = used cooking oil. filter and put into reclaimed water heater and get it up to about 140 degrees, add 15% of volume of the oil as a catalyst in the form of lye and methanol. let the pump run and circulate it for a day. wait the for the precipitate to sink to the bottom. drain that. 'clean' the remaining fuel by sprinkling with water, letting it take the impurities with it to the bottom of the tank. drain that off. you will then have the most beautiful amber fuel, and yes, it does smell like a bit like a restaurant if you trail behind me and i'm running with it.
February 28th, 2019 at 2:57 PM ^
Haha, it's almost like we could be neighbors. I built a reactor in my garage and used BD to heat my workshop and mixed with heating oil before we switched over to Nat Gas.
February 28th, 2019 at 2:57 PM ^
Mobile Double
February 28th, 2019 at 4:25 PM ^
There’s a reason Cummins engines are in everything from pickups to dump trucks. They are powerful and last forever. The 5.9L straight 6 diesel is a helluva engine. Can haul an RV and then with a few mods, be able to race a mustang or corvette .... and win
February 28th, 2019 at 12:14 PM ^
My '98 Z-71 has 225K on the 5.7L Vortec and shows no signs of slowing down. I plan to take it on trips to Kansas and Wyoming this year (from Ohio). Super easy vehicle to work on and parts are cheap. The trick is dealing with the inevitable rust. Changing cab corners and rockers is one thing but when the box starts to rust it's decision time...
February 28th, 2019 at 12:26 PM ^
I have an LML. Had an N54. Both tuned. Different beasts, love them both.
February 28th, 2019 at 6:20 PM ^
Kind of like your whiskey post the other day, can you translate that for dimwit s like me?
February 28th, 2019 at 7:46 PM ^
'15 Duramax engine in my sierra is the lml. The N54 is the turbocharged 6 cylinder in my old manual BMW. Had to get rid of it since I kept getting stopped by the police and accused of stealing it.
February 28th, 2019 at 9:43 PM ^
Emphasis on dimwit
no doubt, 1606. probably should've put it in bold type face, too.
I again applaud you not using swear words, hoping that things are taking a turn for the better for you.
xm
February 28th, 2019 at 12:33 PM ^
The 3.6 V-6 I've had in various GM cars in the past was a good engine. Good power, ok MPG, smooth. The transmissions in those cars (at least mine) failed long before the engine.
February 28th, 2019 at 1:22 PM ^
Think they made those engines at Buick city in Flint if it's the same one used in the LeSabre etc ... they really had that thing dialed in for sure
February 28th, 2019 at 2:28 PM ^
A friend of mine back in the day had a super charged 3.6 in a '97 Bonneville which was a larger car but that thing could move pretty good.
February 28th, 2019 at 3:42 PM ^
I owned a Bonneville for a while...great car
February 28th, 2019 at 12:38 PM ^
Oldsmobile Rocket 350!
February 28th, 2019 at 5:24 PM ^
Oh, yeah!!
An Olds Rocket 350 powered the first car I drove, a hand-me-down Olds Vista Cruiser Wagon from my dad when he got a new car back in the early 70s.
That was my party wagon, took it camping and two-tracking and everything else when I was finishing my senior year of high school and first year in college.
Great engine, that Rocket 350!
February 28th, 2019 at 12:48 PM ^
This has nothing to do with the OP, but I want a Mini John Cooper Works something fierce.
February 28th, 2019 at 12:52 PM ^
I had the 4.0L straight 6, which was absolutely bullet proof.
I currently have an EA888, which is pretty great. 2.0L, turbo, 210HP, 256ft-lbs, and I'll get 37 MPG highway.
I'd say we need to pour a quart out for the creative engines we don't get anymore. Mazda keeps floating the idea of a Wankel out there, and Audi does still make an inline-5... but just about everyone else is boring.
February 28th, 2019 at 1:29 PM ^
My father used to drive a RX-7 in the 70s and 80s with that rotary engine. I haven't followed it enough to know whether Mazda's done anything with it since the R-8.
I want to love the Wankel, I do. But everyone I've known who have had one buy oil like I used to by formula for my kids.
February 28th, 2019 at 12:58 PM ^
The 350 in my 1972 Olds Delta 88 was excellent. I purchased it in 1982 $1200 bucks. I drove her for 70k miles and she purred the whole time. I got rear ended and had to let her go.
I compared her to my first Wife. She was cheaper, better looking, never talked back and didn't take half my stuff. I wish I had her back(The car).
February 28th, 2019 at 1:03 PM ^
The BMC A-Series engine first went into production in 1951. The last one in the evolving series was built in 2000. Over those 49 years it ranged from 28 to 94 horsepower, 802 to 1275cc, and was used in at least 89 car models. I'm not aware of another automobile engine with a lifespan or heritage anything like that.
Also, the LT5 in the 1990-95 Corvette ZR-1, which still holds endurance records. It is an unheralded pinnacle of engineering excellence (designed by Lotus, built by Mercury Marine).
February 28th, 2019 at 1:21 PM ^
The Chevy small block V8 might give it run for it's money. Over 100 million made, and you can still order brand new ones to this day.
Also, the Buick small block V8 215 I mentioned below was used in a ton of vehicles as well as the modified Rover V8 being used across a good portion of British Leyland models.
February 28th, 2019 at 1:04 PM ^
Not sure about reliability overall, but some other legendary engines:
Buick V8 (Which I believe became the Rover V8)
Volkswagen flat 4
Jaguar Straight 6
Honda B-Series
Also a side note: certainly not a legendary car or engine, but my mother had a 1990 Mazda 323 hatchback that she sold in 2003 with well over 200,000 Km on it, that included about 150,000 put on in like 3 years by yours truly. She literally never had to take it in for repairs. Those late 80's/early 90's Japanese models just ran forever. If I could find a early/mid 90's Toyota Hilux I'd probably snap it up in heartbeat.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, I had a 1983 Mustang 2.3L that was an absolute dog. Starter had a flat spot so you would have to randomly push start it, thing idled at like 2500 RPM's and nothing you did would lower it. Getting it up to 80 KPH made the thing howl and shake like it was going to explode.
When I was a kid my Mom had a 2.3 liter Mustang. '79.
We also had an '84 Minivan (2.2 liters and 89 HP of carbuereted fury).
The 2.2 was decent, if doggy.
The 2.3 was laughable. You couldn't idle in the summer at a stop light and run the AC. It would stall.