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Yeah I had a Subaru that required 3,750 mile changes(via a service bulletin not the manual). That was their official solution anyway. Many owners just pulled these banjo bolts and removed the screens that could get clogged and starve the turbo of oil.
They even just come out and say all of their turbos should be considered severe service.
Quote:
Due to heat generated by the turbocharger and carbon deposits contained in exhaust gas, the
oil in a turbocharged engine will deteriorate faster than the oil in a naturally aspirated engine.
Therefore, all turbocharged vehicles are classified as “severe driving condition” vehicles and
special care should be taken to use proper grade. The recommended oil and oil filter change
interval for turbocharged vehicles is every 3,750 miles or four months, whichever comes first.
I would prefer a four cylinder in a compact car but for a mid-size vehicle or larger, I would like to have a V6 in it. V6's are becoming rarer these days. I have a 2004 Pontiac Grand AM GT which has a V6 in it and it's considered a compact car. I don't think GM will ever put a six cylinder motor in a car that size today. The current Malibu is not available with a V6, though it does have a turbo I4 option, and it's bigger than a Grand AM.
Yeah I had a Subaru that required 3,750 mile changes(via a service bulletin not the manual). That was their official solution anyway. Many owners just pulled these banjo bolts and removed the screens that could get clogged and starve the turbo of oil.
They even just come out and say all of their turbos should be considered severe service.
My current Kia specifies 5k/6months on the normal schedule 3k/3months for the severe schedule on the turbo.
The service manager at the Subaru dealership where I bought the car keeps insisting I need to follow the severe service oil change interval on my 6-cylinder Outback. 7 quart oil capacity. I run full synthetic. The car loafs along below 2,000 RPM most of the time in normal CVT max fuel economy mode. In the summer, the car is in coastal Southern New England where it rarely even sees 90F. In the winter, it's in Vermont at a ski resort so a "normal" winter with a few months of sub-zero cold starts is severe service but it's been the banana belt this year. I'm not towing. I don't city drive. I schedule the oil change at 5,000-something which is already overkill but 3,750 is totally nuts.
Here is what my 2007 Mazdaspeed 3 is making with upgraded turbo and basic bolt ons and tuned on an ethanol mix. 150k miles stock block and I usually WOT at least once a day. Maxed the stock turbo for 2 years then upgraded to this larger (and laggy) one last year. Good tunes can go a long way for longevity.
The service manager at the Subaru dealership where I bought the car keeps insisting I need to follow the severe service oil change interval on my 6-cylinder Outback.
Yeah, difference between the service rep saying that and the manufacturer though. If you didn't follow the 3,750 interval you put your warranty in jeopardy...and this was put in place after the fact via a service bulletin rather than what the manual says when you bought it. A lot of folks rightfully pissed at Subaru for that. But the turbo Subarus generally go to enthusiasts who are driving it hard enough to be considered severe schedule anyway.
Manual definitions put it such that the severe schedule is almost always called for. Some of them in mine:
Trips of less than 5 miles in normal temps or 10 miles in freezing temps. - Hope you grocery store, where you grab lunch, etc are more than 5 miles away.
Extensive idling or low speed driving for long distances. - Shut the car off and wait for rush hour traffic to go away.
Rough, sandy, dusty, muddy, unpaved, graveled, or salted roads. - Basically anywhere with construction or that uses salt in winter
Driving in heavy traffic when over 90 degrees
Driving uphill, downhill, or on mountain roads - Hope everything is perfectly level
Low end torque usually stinks on them. Car with no torque, but lots of high revving HP isn't that fun to drive.
That's actually backward, if I'm correctly reading what you're saying. Turbo engines are known for having high torque ratings at lower revs.
Quote:
Originally Posted by southernnaturelover
I know Hyundai has had a lot of problems with the waste gate actuator on their turbo fours. I'm not even sure what that is exactly since I've never owned a turbo, but it has brought their reliability ratings down.
The 2.4L four banger in my Sonata makes plenty enough power, but you still hear that buzzy sound in stop and go traffic (same for the 4cyl in the Camry). I'd rather have a V6 but I do think they are getting a bit large lately, most seem to be up to at least 3.5L now. I guess they figure a smaller 3.0L V6 wouldn't be any more efficient?
About a decade and a half ago you could find more large V6 engines than you can now. Especially from GM (3800-3900 in cars, up to 4300 in trucks), Ford (used a 4.0l V6 in the Mustang and Ranger forever), and Chrysler (also had a 4.0l V6).
Nowadays I think the largest V6 engine you can buy in a car (excluding trucks on purpose) is the V6 in the Hyundai Genesis. Most V6es are between 3.3 and 3.6 liters now, though companies are beginning to downsize and twin-turbo their engines (Ford's 2.7TT, Infiniti's new 3.0TT).
2013 and up Accord V6 coupe 6 speed is downright fast, 0 to 60 6.4 and 1/4 mile 13.9 at 101. Per a Motor Trend road test.
I just purchased a 2012 VW Passat 3.6L/6 cyl. with the same Motor Trend test data. I can get separation from people at about any speed. It's very quick. And after the main vehicle was a Dodge Ram HEMI for years, who cares about the gas mileage between the 4 and 6 cylinder?
I do have to use 93 gas - but coming off the truck, so what.
Question is pretty much meaningless with todays motors and turbos. You can have a motor under 2 liters with close to 300hp. I like smaller motors for weight and technology. Bigger isn't better in todays world.
Originally Posted by SoCalCpl2 View Post
I had 2 cars with 4 cyl engines that each had 318 HP... I would stack that up against ANY 6 cyl and many V8's....
Quote:
Originally Posted by thecoalman
But what kind of lifetime can you expect from a 318HP 4 cylinder especially if you are pushing it a lot?
I've had nothing but 6's except my first car. All mid sized sedans, frankly I couldn't see putting a 4 cylinder in one. Buick's with 3.8's, basic 90's Regal, Supercharged GS and my latest car a Lacrosse. I have my eye on a 2003 GSX with super low mileage in perfect condition. You have range of about 175HP too 285HP. All get about the same fuel mileage, 22 around town and 28/29 on the highway going 85MPH. It's really nice compromise between reliability, power and fuel mileage.
One of these cars went a hair over 100,000 miles before I got rid of it... and the other one went to just shy of 123,000 miles before I got rid of it..
And I got rid of each of them because i bought other cars and NOT because they were broken....
Depends on what you do with the vehicle and just how big the difference is relative to the vehicle.
Poster child would be something like the Toyota Highlander that has 180hp or 270hp depending on 4 or 6cyl.
If you just poke around town that's one thing but if you need power to accelerate like for all the uphill short interstate merges around here....you definitely want the extra power.
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