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Best Engine
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ka



Joined: 03 Dec 2007
Posts: 600
Location: Orkney.

PostPosted: Fri Jul 31, 2015 7:19 am    Post subject: Best Engine Reply with quote

"My first company car was a 1100cc ford escort estate so under powered you had to thrash the thing to death to get any sort of performance from it, consequently you only got about 25mpg.

Not everyone will agree, but I think the 1600 cross flow is the best engine for the Escort."

I have read this line in another thread, and rather than dilute that one, I have started this.
The question is,
"Best Engine"?

and I also agree, the 1100cc Kent engine was grossly underpowered, the 1300cc better, but for me the best Ford of the bunch in the period was the 1600 engine. Full crossflow, plenty of tuning capability, but a distributor in a tricky spot.
Best engine of the period, and I exclude all the short run, expensive exotica, in my view was the Vauxhall 1300 OHC engine. The MkIV Astra would rev until it ran out of road, watching the speedo hit the MPH symbol at the bottom of the dial was gripping.
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KA

Better three than four.
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Dipster



Joined: 06 Jan 2015
Posts: 408
Location: UK, France and Portugal - unless I am travelling....

PostPosted: Fri Jul 31, 2015 8:46 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

This question has to be refined. Best engine for what? Fuel economy? Pulling trailers? Wheelies? Best sound!?
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JP



Joined: 03 Jul 2015
Posts: 30
Location: Norfolk UK

PostPosted: Fri Jul 31, 2015 9:57 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

What about the best engine overall.

For me the BMC A Series........

Simple, compact, used in so many cars, can be tuned to produce real power and even when badly worn and rattling they just keep on truckin'
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peter scott



Joined: 18 Dec 2007
Posts: 7113
Location: Edinburgh

PostPosted: Fri Jul 31, 2015 11:41 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

JP wrote:
BMC A Series........they just keep on truckin'


Very true! Nasty rough little things.

Peter Twisted Evil
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Rick
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Joined: 27 Apr 2005
Posts: 22429
Location: UK

PostPosted: Fri Jul 31, 2015 12:10 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

How about Jag's XK? not perfect, but most importantly it makes a fine noise, and survived in production for decades.

RJ
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Dipster



Joined: 06 Jan 2015
Posts: 408
Location: UK, France and Portugal - unless I am travelling....

PostPosted: Fri Jul 31, 2015 1:52 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

If it is just what grabs you as a fine engine I nominate a truck engine, the Rootes TS3. Wonderfully odd, powerful for its size, made a fabulous noise and was loved by users.

It was killed off prematurely by Chrysler when they took Rootes over. I would love to own one, but they are now pretty rare and are much sought after, notably in Australia where many served well.

I cannot think of a mass production car engine that I similarly admire.
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Keith D



Joined: 16 Oct 2008
Posts: 1127
Location: Upper Swan, Western Australia

PostPosted: Fri Jul 31, 2015 2:33 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

For me the best engines would have to be either the Chrysler Slant Six or the Holden Red Motor. Both engines were products of the middle of the last century and were OHV as opposed to OHC. They were capable of colossal mileages and were very smooth running and largely trouble-free. Being in-line sixes they had in-built power overlap of course.

I've had a number of Mopar and GMH cars powered by these engines, and I wish they were still made!

Keith
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ukdave2002



Joined: 23 Nov 2007
Posts: 4100
Location: South Cheshire

PostPosted: Fri Jul 31, 2015 4:45 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

If we are going to be honest about the best engine in terms of reliability, performance , economy etc it's going to be something produced in the last 5 years......Not much from the last century would come close

Noise and charm would be different Smile

Dave
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goneps



Joined: 18 Jun 2013
Posts: 601
Location: Auckland, New Zealand

PostPosted: Sat Aug 01, 2015 12:09 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

ukdave2002 wrote:
If we are going to be honest about the best engine in terms of reliability, performance , economy etc it's going to be something produced in the last 5 years......Not much from the last century would come close

I beg to differ there, Dave. The 3-litre Nissan straight six as fitted to RB30/31 Skylines (and some Holdens in this part of the world) takes a lot of beating. Smooth, quiet, economical, negligible oil consumption after 350,000km.—a brilliant motor.

Richard
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ka



Joined: 03 Dec 2007
Posts: 600
Location: Orkney.

PostPosted: Sat Aug 01, 2015 7:03 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I think everyone has to admit the giant leap forward in diesel engine design, particularly common rail injection over the past 20odd years, and now it looks as though petrol is catching up with the A4 size Ford engine.
I was thinking along the lines of the mass produced engines of the 50,s 60's and particularly the 70's , before engine mapping and computer designed jobbies became the norm. The Six cylinder engine in the GT6 was smooth, but I also enjoyed the sound of the BEEMA straight six, particularly the smaller 2L version, the turbine smoothness made the comparable Ford Pinto sound like a nail, (this from a Mk1 Mexico/MkII RS 2000 previous owner).But there were other rarer combinations, the Stag V8, and Fords own V6 baby engines (the 2.3L) available as bigger versions that dragged Granada's all over the world.
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KA

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alanb



Joined: 10 Sep 2012
Posts: 516
Location: Berkshire.

PostPosted: Sat Aug 01, 2015 10:18 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

May not be the best engine but the sound of this straight six is fantastic
spa on board footage in austin healey 3000
www.youtube.com/watch?v=UD7TjvMkHK0
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Ashley



Joined: 02 Jan 2008
Posts: 1426
Location: Near Stroud, Glos

PostPosted: Sat Aug 01, 2015 10:57 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

alanb wrote:
May not be the best engine but the sound of this straight six is fantastic
spa on board footage in austin healey 3000
www.youtube.com/watch?v=UD7TjvMkHK0


Having just rebuilt a standard Healey engine I'd say they were extremely heavy, but robust and potentially very durable. Friends who maintained them when they were new tell me they were all but indestructible.

Morris designed the C Series bMC engine and it's much quieter and smoother than the A or B Series and extremely rugged.
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Dobbin



Joined: 15 May 2013
Posts: 67
Location: Central Scotland

PostPosted: Sat Aug 01, 2015 4:09 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

One that runs, doesn't smoke and returns a reasonable MPG overall?
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ka



Joined: 03 Dec 2007
Posts: 600
Location: Orkney.

PostPosted: Sun Aug 02, 2015 6:50 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Dobbin, do you have a spare?
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KA

Better three than four.
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emmerson



Joined: 30 Sep 2008
Posts: 1268
Location: South East Wales

PostPosted: Sun Aug 02, 2015 4:07 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

OK, I admit to being biased, but I'd have to nominate the Buick/Rover V8. I know it's reliability became questionable as it got bigger, but in its original 3.5 litre form it was pretty much unburstable.
Economy? Well my first RR used to do around 16mpg. That was economical compared to my present 4.2, which can just about manage 13!
But the sound made up for all its other problems!
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