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Here's my list of the greatest engines ever. Let me first say how I picked the engines. Let's say you have a vehicle... any passenger vehicle. You want the best engine possible for that vehicle, any one of these 7 engines, however modified or stock, will be a better engine for that vehicle than what is in there now. This includes the entire spectrum of passenger cars whether you have a Prius or a Gallardo.
Mercedes Benz I5 3.0L OM617 - want to drive around the earth 100, maybe 200 times? I bet you believe I'm joking
Chevy 400 small block, two bolt main, high nickel content. The greatest true sbc made, they are quickly becoming an endangered species.
Toyota 2JZ-GTE - an amazingly designed engine for boost. Yes you will loose
Mazda 13B-REW - 215 hp per liter. Rotary engines aren't so dumb now.
Honda D15 - No oil in the pan? You only have a few weeks before the engine burns up.
Dodge Cummins 5.9L engine, I believe there's a dead horse on this thread.
LS7 - if you feel the need to force 1000 hp on a completely stock engine.
Some very honorable mentions It was so close with all of these, but the ones above fit my greatest of all time.
Subaru EJ22T, Porsche boxer 3.6 (or turbo 3.8), Mitsubishi 6A13 TT, Buick 3.8T, Chevy 4.3T, Ford 428 CJ, Honda B16, Chrysler 440 wedge, Cadillac 472, new chevy 3.6L, Volkswagen flat 4 (air cooled), Honda EV CDCC, BMW M50, BMW S65, Oldsmobile QUAD 4 H.O., Nissan VQ, Lamborghini (/Audi AG) 6.5 V12, Ferrari 3.0L V12 (250 GTO), Jaguar XKI6... I cant think anymore, there's at least 50 other great engines...
for small block V-8's it would be a tie with the
chevy 350 with 4-bolt main's
ford 302 EFI 5.0 HO
both cheap and easy to find both cheap and easy to modify part are everywhere and they get some amazing power and still get some decent MPG's if drven with a light foot plus there were in everything for full size passenger cars , pony cars, and light duty trucks and mid and full size SUV's
best diesel motor is Cummins 12V 5.9L turbo diesel engine they can make tons of power get great fuel milage and last forever if you take care of them.
for small block V-8's it would be a tie with the
chevy 350 with 4-bolt main's
I see a lot of folks get off on 2-bolt vs 4-bolt 350's. Truth is the breaking strength of the mains on stock blocks is within about 50-75hp. Clearances and rotating assembly/bearing quality means more than 2 vs. 4 bolts on the mains. Most stock internals on 2 bolt 350s are weaker, which is simply happenstance not that the block is much weaker. A set of 50$ ARP main studs will make the 2-bolt stronger than a stock 4-bolt 350. On some larger engines 2 bolts have more main webbing for a stronger hold to the block (such as the 400). 2-bolt 350s can be made much stronger than any 4-bolt 350, modified or not, because of the ability to machine for splayed caps.
Chevy 400 small block, two bolt main, high nickel content. The greatest true sbc made, they are quickly becoming an endangered species.
I agree on the "greatest sbc ever made", but as far as endangered species....I believe now you can buy a new 400 sbc block made by Dart for around $1500...yeah I know it's a little expensive, but then again you know as well as i know when you buy a used "unknown history" 400 sbc, you're taking a gamble because those engines liked to crack....and if they aren't cracked, there's the stories floating around of machine shops that would tell you they were cracked so they could keep it for themselves.
The Ford 300. Another inline 6 that just keeps going, and going. Out of production now for quite a while, those that still own vehicles with them will be sorely disappointed when the time comes to retire the bodies of the vehicles they reside in. This is another motor that will just keep going as long as you treat it the way it was designed to be treated and not expect/demand the performance of a V-8 just because it has the torque of a small V-8.
The recent incarnation of the N47D20 from BMW. 163hp and 265 lb ft of Torque, with better mpg and emission numbers than a Prius.
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