Car Engines (Stock)

[TonyG]

Yesterday a friend and I were discussing car engines which come standard with cars from a dealer. Not the engines you soup-up in your garage and never manage to finish or the ones you see blow out at a drag race on some back street.

Our discussion was...which engine(s) did we think have held up over time to be considered a great engine. The engine which needed little maintenance and just kept on going.

I felt the Rocket 350 engines used by GM in their Olds Cutlass models (and others) and also the GM L4 (six cyl) used in Chevys have been great.

The flip side of this is the engines that sucked. My vote goes to the engines used by Fuji Heavy Industries in the old Datsun 210 cars and the Rotary (Wankel) engines in the Mazdas.

 

[Nogard]

GM 327

 

[TonyG]

Is this an engine you liked or didn't like?

 

[Comshaw]

The GM Chev 350 is one of the best engines ever produced. It is easy to maintain, lasts for a couple of hundred thousand miles and has plenty of power.
The Ford 390 was also one of the good ones. It served for years as Ford's light truck engine, and like the 350 would last several hundred thousand miles if taken care of.

On the Crysler side, the 318 is still in production after 30 odd years. Again an engine designed so well, it can't be killed. A friend ran one in his demo car a few years ago. During a race he seized it up from lack of cooling, he had a hole in the radiator and lost all the water. He let it cool off, dumped in some water and fired it up. It clattered, clanked and protested, but he drove it to a win in the main event that night. He also raced it for the rest of the season before he pulled it, another 5 races.

The worst engine ever?
The silicone impregnated, aluminum cylinder 6 banger made for the Chevy Vega. The damn thing was lucky to make 20,000 miles before it would puke.
Comshaw

 

[Nogard]

Gm 350 bored out version of 327. when they bored it reduced water jacket thickness which causes the 350 to be prone to overheating. Still good engine but doesn't match 327. gave up to much metal for the additional 23 cubic inches

[Edited by Nogard on 02-21-2001 at 04:53 PM]

 

[Nogard]

Gm 350 bored out version of 327. when they bored it reduced water jacket thickness which causes the 350 to be prone to overheating. Still good engine but doesn't match 327. gave up to much metat for the additional 23 cubic inches

 

[TonyG]

I had that 350 (as mentioned) and never had overheating problems. Mine was in a 72 Cutlass.

 

[Max]

I had a 57 Chevy with a 283--no problems-

A 63 Chevy with a 327--great engine-

A 67 Camaro SS with a 350, 300 horse, the greatest maybe-

I was a collector of old muscle cars, but sold them recently--

 

[Cheyenne]

The hemi engine from the late 60's/early 70's?

 

[Race Bannon]

chevy 327 worst?

Okay, a couple of quick points a 350 is NOT a bored out 327. That would only yeild you at best an additional 5 cubic inches. a 350 is a stroked (different crankshaft for the non-gearheads) 327 which would be the 283 of old. 350's have been is real heavy duty performance service since 1965. Hell, it remained mosty unchanged until 1993 with the lt1! except for minor gasket changes the blocks are all the same casting, and nearly all parts interchangeable. If the 350 actually had overheating problems I can't see it staying as the mainstay of GM's cars for 28 years.

The worst motor: I assume we're leaving off import cars. (they're rarely around long enough to see how they hold up.) Before I hear any crap about that, when was the last time you saw a '64 honda/toyota anything? how about a mustang? but I would lean toward the Pontiac 3012 turbo in the 80 T/A (great for boat anchors) or the 1.4 4cyl in the Fiero (nothing like a few engine fires to ruin a motor's rep!)

A close second for motors that last would have to be Chryslers 318. a dog in most cars because of too small carbs, but it's hard to dismiss a motor thats been around since the late 60's.

 

[TonyG]

Originally posted by Race Bannon
...The worst motor:... but I would lean toward the Pontiac 3012 turbo in the 80 T/A (great for boat anchors)

ROFLMAO.

 

[Guest]

I believe you are right Race Bannon

 

[Mr_Neb]

WhooHooo! A thread that I REALLY like!!!

I would agree that the GM350 is a great performer, even better than the 327. I think the 327 has much more historic value because of what it did for the reintroduction of the Corvette.

Even the 2-bolt main is not a problem for "normal" driving but if you ever intend to stomp on it a bit, espectially if you have added a decent intake, a 4-barrel and other goodies, then you really need to be based on the 4-bolt. (Just like I have in my '69 Chevelle!!!)

The Ford 289 was a great power plant. I think it is better than the 302 that replaced it.

I have to agree that the worst motor was that tin can disposable deal they unloaded into the Vega in the '70s.

For the best performance motor? How about the LS6 Chevy 496?

WhoooHooooo!!!!

 

[Silverlily]

The hemi engine from the late 60's/early 70's?

Fantastic motor, designed to take on the Corvette 427 (which it did nicely), it was known as the elephant motor because of the way it looked. Problem is, they stopped making it almost 30 years ago, due somewhat to the insurance companies' tendencies to tack on exorbitant premiums.

If you did have one today, you'd have a heck of a time running it. Pump gas won't do the trick, you'd need roughly 115 octane or more in a leaded gas.