Author Topic: Name the best and worst truck engines (Read 12321 times)

R.W.Dale · « **on:** August 08, 2007, 05:25:27 PM »

How bout a fun topic that should get some lively debate going.

In your opinion what is the absolute best light duty truck engine and the worst, Please give reasons why.

BEST; A tie between the Ford 300 Six and the venerable 350 Chevrolet. Both are very good at what they do and will run FOREVER with just a modicum of maintenance.

WORST; The worthless 318 dodge easily the most gutless fuel hungry unreliable v8 engine EVER. The fuel economy of a big block with the power of a small 6 cyl. I've never driven a carbed or fuel injected 318 that would even try to get out of it's own way.

With an honorable mention going the Jeep 4.0

~Ace~ · « **Reply #1 on:** August 08, 2007, 05:32:14 PM »

Small block chevy is the Obvious Best

Anything made by F*(&D is the Worst

30-30man · « **Reply #2 on:** August 09, 2007, 06:49:55 AM »

I'd beg to differ on the Dodge 318. It was a gas hog no doubt but it was reliable. I would compare it to the gm 305 and the ford 302. They were all equally matched in gas usage and power. Out of those I'd actually prefer the 318 from Dodge. I've seen many that had 200,000 or even more miles on them before they were rebuilt. The GM 350 had got to be the winner over all of them but each manufacturer has built some lemons along the way.

Winners:
Gm 350
Ford 300 I-6,302
Dodge 318,360

Loosers:
Gm 2.8--gutless in even an s-10, 350 diesel--converted gas 350 to diesel, what gm was thinking we will never know
Ford 4.2 v-6 head gaskets, head gaskets, head gaskets
Dodge 3.9 gutless and burned gas like a tank

Deadeye351 · « **Reply #3 on:** August 09, 2007, 07:26:24 AM »

FORDS 300 6 cyl , and the Jeep 4.0 ROCK

ACE has serious mental malfunctions sometimes

Drilling Man · « **Reply #4 on:** August 09, 2007, 09:58:51 AM »

Best gas engine, 350 Chevy.... They had decent power even after they are wore down a bit, (unlike the 305's) and later ones were much better on fuel. I never had much use for the Ford 300 six.... Many like them, but i've seen quite a few blown up.. I think the old Chevy 292 Six was better, even the 250 six was pretty good.

Some of the worse gas hogs were the GMC V6's, those baby's made excelent low end torque, but sure ate fuel.

Hard to beat the 12 valve 5.9 Cummins as a loooooooooooooooooooong lasting engine in a pu!! Lots of them around with 300 + thousand miles on them, and still all origional.

DM

Redhawk1 · « **Reply #5 on:** August 09, 2007, 10:07:18 AM »

The worst in mileage was my 2002 Dodge Ram 1500 4X4 with a 5.9L gas motor, but it had plenty of power. Now my new 2007 Dodge 3500 with a 5.9L Cummings Turbo diesel is great on power and gas mileage. I get 18 miles on the highway pulling my small trailer. I always wanted a Cummings and now I will never go back to gas.

Keith L · « **Reply #6 on:** August 09, 2007, 10:47:45 AM »

I had two Fords with 300 6es, and they both just ran and ran without any real problems. I had a 350 Chevy that ate a cam that disappointed me. Turned out that there were lots of them with soft cams. The worst one was the Mazda 4 in my Ford Courier. What a hunk of junk.

Drilling Man · « **Reply #7 on:** August 09, 2007, 12:57:24 PM »

Quote

Now my new 2007 Dodge 3500 with a 5.9L Cummings Turbo diesel is great on power and gas mileage.

My 5.9 Cummins hasn't burned a drop of gas since i bought it! Now, there's some "gas" millage for you!!!

DM

goodwrench6710 · « **Reply #8 on:** August 09, 2007, 01:14:47 PM »

That's a really hard one to judge. I have seen 1/2 million mile engines with the Ford 300 6, the Chevy 250 6 & the Mopar 225 slant 6. If I had to choose between them, the 225 slant six was almost impossible to kill. When I was a teen, I had one that I ran with changing the oil for over 30,000 miles! They weren't the most powerful, but they were tuff. As far as the 318 engine, you either got a good one or a flat out turd, no in between. Had one in a 73 Dodge Challenger that had 200,000 miles on it & got 27 mpg & would burn the tires down to the cords. If you want a performer though, the Chevy 327 is the one! I don't think GM has produced a better engine for performance period. Big block Chevys are too easy to blow up, they aren't very forgiving if overreved or overworked. With the big blocks, the Mopar 440 & Ford 390 were awesome!
This is based on gas engines only.
On the big trucks, The 425 CAT rules!

Redhawk1 · « **Reply #9 on:** August 09, 2007, 01:38:40 PM »

Quote from: Drilling Man on August 09, 2007, 12:57:24 PM

Quote
Now my new 2007 Dodge 3500 with a 5.9L Cummings Turbo diesel is great on power and gas mileage.

My 5.9 Cummins hasn't burned a drop of gas since i bought it! Now, there's some "gas" millage for you!!!

DM

OK. OK diesel....

R.W.Dale · « **Reply #10 on:** August 09, 2007, 01:42:39 PM »

Quote

Now my new 2007 Dodge 3500 with a 5.9L Cummings Turbo diesel

LOL gotcha!

DirtyHarry · « **Reply #11 on:** August 13, 2007, 07:09:20 AM »

Best Gasser, The 350 Chevy.Very reliable and can be built to suit almost any application.
Worst Gasser, Ford Ranger 2.8L V6. Notorious for cracked heads and super noisy valvetrain.

Best Diesel, No question, the Cummins 5.9L B series.
Worst Diesel, Ford 6.0L Powerstroke, multitude of problems, Turbo seals, Injectors, Broken Rods etc.. etc...

goodwrench6710 · « **Reply #12 on:** August 13, 2007, 04:00:57 PM »

Oh, I forgot a good one, although this one isn't in a truck, they did come in trucks. The Chevrolet small block 283.
I rebuilt the engine in this one, had the paint mixed & sprayed with a gun. Has a mild Sealed Power Speed Pro cam, 0.010" over with flat tops, 500 cfm Performer carb. Has a 3 in the tree with 4.11 rear.

Hooker · « **Reply #13 on:** August 13, 2007, 04:34:53 PM »

I'm a hardcore Ford man but I'm also a mechanic so I will be fair. This is a over all view from my experience, remember there are a few wormy apples in every barrel.
The best gasoline truck engine Ford 300 I6 ( need more be said )
The best diesel truck engine Cummins 5.9 12v
The worst gasoline truck engine Chevy 4.3 Vortec (personal,and professional experience)
The worst diesel truck engine Chevy 6.2 Ford 6.0 Olds conversion POS ( this is real a toss up here )
Y'alls mileage may vary on these but after 35 yrs of busted knuckles I'm sure my picks will be hard to beat.
This not to say that other engines are not good or that some of them aren't turkeys. IMO these are the ones that stand out the most.

Krochus you must be young, The early narrow block 318s Pre smog engines made good HP and got very decent mileage.

Goodwrench6710 You said a mouth full. The only thing wrong with 425 Cat is when it breaks you wish it was a Cummins or a 60 series Detroit when you step up to the parts counter.

3030 man I agree the 2.8 Chevy was junk but I do not consider it a truck engine but then i don't think of the S-10 as a truck.
The Dodge 3.9 magnum is sure enough a gas guzzling toad for the power it produces but the pre-magnum 3.9 got fair mileage my 90 Dakota still gets 21 with 325,000 on the clock.

Pat

Tn Jim · « **Reply #14 on:** August 13, 2007, 04:42:27 PM »

My vote for best goes to my 360 in my '96 Ram 1500 4X4. It's never met a gas pump it didn't like, but I can pull a mountain if I can get traction. Worst goes to the Ford 2.8 V6 I had in a '86 Bronco II. Horrible gas mileage and didn't have enough power to get out of its own way. Whoever thought of that one needs his butt kicked.

OLDHandgunner · « **Reply #15 on:** August 13, 2007, 05:07:38 PM »

The Cummins diesel is the best towing motor. My 2000 Dodge 3/4 ton diesel is great. And from what I've been hearing from the Ford guys, the Powerstroke has to be the worst. Turbo problems, plus many other things.
If it don't make noise, it's not a real diesel.

weasel · « **Reply #16 on:** August 14, 2007, 11:12:42 AM »

While not big enough to pull a hen off her nest, the toyota 22R is impressive for durability, their V6's are great as far as small trucks go also.

R.W.Dale · « **Reply #17 on:** August 14, 2007, 12:24:47 PM »

Quote

Krochus you must be young, The early narrow block 318s Pre smog engines made good HP and got very decent mileage.

That may very well be if you want to delve into the depths of time, I'm 29 and my expertise is largely with 1975 forward. I stand by my statment that all the millions of 318's made since then are turds of the highest order. Way more so than a 4.3, now granted the central port injected Vortecs were total crap. But you couldn't kill a TBI or carberated 4.3 . good motors essentially a 350 minus 2 cylinders

you wanna know what 318 stands for

You should have bought the slant 6

SHOOTALL · « **Reply #18 on:** August 14, 2007, 01:34:01 PM »

power- dodge V-10
long lasting - ford 7.3 tc the one i had now has 340 thousand miles
or chevy 292 6 cyl. the one i had i sold with 260 thousand miles the last time i saw it , it had over 370 thousand on it
dodge diesel also good !
the 300 in ford were ok !as were the 4.3 chevy , had 5 that went over 200000
some of our small block chevy's went over 180000 not many though ! they started to nickle and dime us ! as do the fords . dodge has some good gas engines also 318 and 360 the rest so so ! the himi so far is ok none ove 100000 yet !
bad - gm diesels , except the new one , i have 130000 on mine , its fast but the dodge will out pull it and the ford got more mpg !
any of them can be bad !
the ones that are good were a good match , ie: engine , trans. rear all set up for the job they were intended to do ! a mis match just won't hold up ! like a 411 rear in a truck that stays on the interstate etc. is the engine bad because it wore out turning a third more rpm's than it needed to ? how much more use could be realized with a 373 0r 356 ? or a 308 gear in a truck used in town !

mountainman_66 · « **Reply #19 on:** August 14, 2007, 02:29:02 PM »

ok...here are some good ones.........
Ford's FE engines ......390 is a favorite. So is the 428. Also the 512 ford is a good call.
Chrysler's B and RB motors come to mind....383, 400 and the 440.
Chevrolet......454 , but can be prone to overheating...siamese bores and all.
Currently ive got a 5.4 OHC V-8 ford motor and it seems to do the trick.....but Id really love to stuff a 390 in its place with a decent low rpm cam and a modern 600cfm carb on it : )

rockbilly · « **Reply #20 on:** August 15, 2007, 06:19:18 AM »

My old 59 GMG, 270 with 4 speed stick, 4x4 (With the granny gear) will out perform most of those newer trucks on the road today. She wasn't fast, used a bit of gas, but would pull a mountain down, a 100 proof work horse, and she went well over 150,00 miles with just a couple of clutch replacements, a starter and alternator, and the usual belts, tires, etc.

They were simple to work on, and reliable as could be.

goodwrench6710 · « **Reply #21 on:** August 15, 2007, 02:39:25 PM »

The biggest problem with the later model 4.3 (vortec) & 5.0 & 5.7 is they tightened up the bearing clearances in these engines for light viscosity oils. The intake gaskets were a crap design & blow out & leak coolant into the oil & destroy the bearings or the person who is replacing gaskets in these motors should beware that they willnot tolerate any abrasives or debris in the engine! If you must repair them it must be done with operating room conditions (practically) or you will wipe out the bearings. If they don't leak coolant or get messed up by an inexperienced technician or mechanic, they will run a long time.

30-30man · « **Reply #22 on:** August 15, 2007, 03:15:56 PM »

The 2.2, they put in the s-10 takes the cake as the worst gutless hunk of dung ever put in a truck. It was even worse than the 2.6 v-6. My brother owned one that got beat by a Dodge Neon ( my neice) going up 1-40 over the mountains. It could not keep up empty and in 2nd gear going up the grades. His truck was a 98 and was about 2 months old at the time. It was so bad we had to move his luggage to my camper with no better results. I thought he didn't know how to drive a stick, so I gave it a try. It was a terrible dog and I felt like I was driving a moped.

R.W.Dale · « **Reply #23 on:** August 19, 2007, 11:45:51 AM »

Quote

My brother owned one that got beat by a Dodge Neon ( my neice) going up 1-40 over the mountains.

A 4cyl truck getting outran by a small lightweight nimble car

NO WAY get outta here!

30-30man · « **Reply #24 on:** August 19, 2007, 02:11:55 PM »

I know what you're thinking but the s-10 could not come out of third and was in 2nd most of the time with no load in the bed going up 1-40. It wasn't even close. I was pulling a 29ft camper with a slide out and even I had to constantly slow down and wait on him. The truck was a short bed but then I wouldn't call that thing a truck either. I don't know how much lighter the Neon was as it was packed to the gills. I bet the weight difference was not all that much. He only kept the truck about 4months and traded it in on a Ford Ranger 4 banger. It was a much better truck, not a speed demon but much more power than that 2.2 S-10.

Drilling Man · « **Reply #25 on:** August 19, 2007, 02:53:44 PM »

You should have checked to see what was wrong with "that" S10. I drove one with the 4 banger and auto tranny that was loaded to the gills all the way to Alaska. I cruised 70 to 70 all the way... I got near 30 mpg doing it, and i thought it did pretty good.

I drove another that had a 5 speed, and it easily got 30 mpg and did just fine, even with having to shift out of OD on big hills it also was fine.

No i don't own one, but i've put enough miles on them to know your's wasn't the norm...

DM

After posting, i'm editing in that, i now remember that i have driven two with 5 speed trannys, and one with the auto...

R.W.Dale · « **Reply #26 on:** August 19, 2007, 03:10:22 PM »

I agree with drilling man there was sumpin wrong with that s-10, I've driven a few even an extended cab auto that had plenty of spunk.

Sourdough · « **Reply #27 on:** August 29, 2007, 08:33:18 AM »

I have to agree with others here. The Ford 300 inline six. I have owned three, the first two were wrecked with over 350k on them and still running strong. The third I drove to over 370K then sold it to a teenager two years ago. He is still driving it. Talked to his dad and was told he had to replace the tranny but the engine runs fine. But the kid is slowly tearing the body up. Told the Dad when the kid finishes with it I want it back. Picked up an old 74 Ford 4X4 last week with no engine, good body and interior, needs a good engine, Owner removed the 300 six it had for his newer Ford truck that had an aluminium engine. Too bad the 300 engine won't fit in a Sammy.

urbaneruralite · « **Reply #28 on:** August 29, 2007, 09:36:01 AM »

I'd say the heavy duty version of the 300 straight six. Especially so since the same basic block was made in several versions and displacements. Kinda an /06 of designs.
22R wasn't bad either.

I would like to get a Scout with the Nissan SD33 with the turbo on it. Those were also used for forklifts, so the design gets credit for universal application as well.

Worst...Ford 2.8 V6. Horrible design.

Lloyd Smale · « **Reply #29 on:** October 04, 2007, 09:07:03 AM »

Im a chev man through and through but will answer this honestly. The best is a toss up between the 300 6 ford and the small block chev (either the old 350 or the new generation motor both are excellent motors. Worse again is a chev ford toss up. The chev 305 was completely gutless and had many problems and the for 4.6 just because iits about the most gutless thing that uses 8 spark plugs thats made today and gets worse gas milage then a chev that puts out almost a 100 more hp.