What is the most reliable engine ever made?

philly guy wrote:

Those old GM 3.8L engines...
Talk about indestructible.

I had a 1997 Firebird with the 3800 Series 2 V6. It was running okay, but it sat up for two months. All the oil leaked out and it will not even start. It's a shame it only has 200 hp. I got it at 125,000 miles, put over 1,000 dollars into it, drove it for only 15,000 miles. I'm sure it would not be hard to fix, but I am contemplating just scrapping it on account of the 15 mpg average.

dodge 318 the most reliable v8 full stop

The 13b

http://www.allcarwiki.com/wiki/Mazda_Wankel_e...

GM 2.8 by far the most durable at blowing rods

The most reliable engines, in my opinion, are:
Mopar slant 6
Ford 300
Chevy iron duke 4 cylinder
Mopar 318v8
GM 3.8v6

The only ones i have ever driven are the 3.8, and the 318, which i still drive. My 318 has 249,787 miles on it, all original parts. It has been driven with no oil pressure on several occasions, had the temp gauge pegged for 20 mins straight, went above red-line a few times, among several other things. Still has as much power as when i got it 150,000 miles ago, runs smoothly, no problems with the engine at all. The suspension, on the other hand, is beyond worn.

Hard to answer that question.
In our engine rebuilding business we've experienced more than a few very reliable engines.
The most reliable engines have tended to be the Mercedes diesels, and often MB diesel cars have held the 24 hour endurance record for highest average speed maintained, which is a testament to their durability.

However, we can suggest a number of engines over the years that have stood the test of time. The Ford 289. The Chevy 327 and 350. The Toyota 1.6 (Corolla), the VW 1300, 1500, and 1600 air-cooled (Beetle), the Mercedes 2.2 and 2.3 liter gas engines and, yes, several Subaru engines as well. The 2.5 is pretty reliable, even the turbo version. I've also left off a good many, and there have been quite a few that have exhibited great longevity over the years. The old Chrysler slant six was certainly among them as well, as were its 318 and 340 V-8s.

Jeep 4.0L straight 6 hands down. Ive got a 2003 Wrangler Rubicon with 150k miles on it, and id imagine at least 10k of those miles were from being on trails and rock crawling. The motor has taken a beating all its life and all Ive ever had to do is change the oil. I even sucked water into it while trying to cross a stream and caused it to hydrolock. I let it dry out for an hour, took out the air filter and it started up like nothing ever happened and has had no issues since.
PS-whoever said Ford motors are the best is a crazy person, i owned a 5.4L ford motor and it didnt even make it to 80k miles before it crapped out

We had a vauxhall cavalier with the 1.7ltr isuzu diesel engine traded in a few months back. It was 1992 with 384 thousand miles on the clock no marked bolts. None of the euro gm engines would have done that. Mabye the C20NE or the 24 but i wouldnt have held my breath. Obviously the cavalier was soon scrapped:)

One time the radiator hose popped off my Dodge Lancer. Me & my buddies pulled over to a barn ditch cuz it had been raining raining scooped up some murky kinda muddy water with a little grass debris & threw it in after I adjusted the hose. I didn't change it for 6 months. Lol after 5 years of high reving I bent the cam so there was a serious knock & had 2 dead pistons so I ran off 4. Only reason I fixed it was cuz I got bored. The thing never let me down... Mopar 170 /6 ftw

I have an 86 Ford Bronco with the 300 six. 200,000 miles later it still runs perfect and it's got a lot more miles ahead of it. Plus it propels that brick on the highway at 80mph.

The Ford 300 (6) 375000 miles

Hank wrote:

Yep..
The GM 3.8liter is probably the most problem free and best V-6 ever made to this day.

I agree with it being indestructible and pretty much maintenance free and a solid, excellent motor, but IDK about it being the best V6 ever. I am a huge fan of the 3800 don't get me wrong, but it wasn't particularly smooth in the upper reaches. The redline was low. The low end torque from it was unbeatable, however. I'd say the best V6 ever was the VQ30DE in the 95-99 Nissan Maxima. Smooth as silk, revved like crazy, and virtually indestructible as well.

[QUOTE who="Hank"]
No Jap crap can even hold a candle to any of these engines though. It is an apples to lemons comparison skipping right over oranges.

Are you kidding? How about a 4.0/4.3L Lexus V8? Those ROUTINELY last well beyond 300k with NOTHING but regular maintenance. You can't break a Toyota V8. Definitely one of the most reliable motors ever made.

Someone wrote GM's 3.8 V6?....LOL

There's lots of domestic brand motors that are very reliable and rock solid, the 3.8 was not one of them. Gm's 3.1 V6 was better than the 3.8.

Lastly, the nonsense that goes on this forum about Jap vs American is juvenile and silly. There are both American and Japanese brands excellent and some not....it can go both ways.

I have seen Honda Civic motors well past 600,000 kms. I have seen some V6 and V8 domestic brands the same.

No American engine should be even considered for this title... The tolerances of machining parts are just too high and the abundance of poor materials just make it out of the question. The most reliable engine is the om617 from Mercedes Benz. The naturally aspirated model wasn't as efficient as the turbo charged model but took the cake for the most reliable engine ever. The highest recorded mileage with a car that has an om617 has over 2.6 million miles without an engine over haul. Regular maintance is key with any engine but the robustness of the 617 can not be beat.

The Fiat "Fire" engine:)

Detroit diesel 60 series
and any other engine maker for over the road heavy trucks.
Try making your honda last over 1,000,000 miles by just changing oil and filters.

The Jeep 4.0L inline 6. They're as close to bulletproof as you can get, good for on average 250,000 to 300,000 miles, that's why there's so many old Cherokees on the road today. The Ford 4.6 triton also gets up there. My dad's 1997 F150 has 265,000 HARD miles on it. We've abused that truck honestly, and it still runs like a top.

Small block chevy is the most reliable. I have a 96 GMC with 400,000+ kms, 240,000 miles and runs great burns no oil and no noises. I was in a taxi cab in Montreal, it was a chevy caprice with 1.5 million ( yes million!) kilometers on it. It ran so quiet I could not hear the engine.

without a doubt..the hudson twin h-power
The ruggedness of the Hudson engine is an important factor in the development of Twin H-Power. The oversize bearings, the extreme rigidity and hardness of the block, the weight and stiffness of the crankshaft--in fact the extra sturdiness built into all parts--make it possible to utilize the extra power," he concluded. "Unquestionably, the Fabulous Hudson Hornet was the most hairy-chested, impressively performing six the American industry has ever created.