It may be have been swapped into some hot cars, but my point is its a run of the mill V-6 that isn’t super special, it doesn’t have a storied racing history or known for being in production for a long time.
JZ series are all Inline 6.
BMW Inline 6. Just pick one, they’re all amazing.
Fiat/Lancia DOHC is probably one of the most successful engines in motorsport. Several wins in both Rallying and Touring cars to it’s name.
Too late to poke in here?
I think the subject of greatest engine is pretty, well, subjective. Depends on what you’re after.
For me, I like longevity, simplicity, and reliability. In that case, mine would go:
International Harvester Comanche series engines
- In 304, 345, and 392 cubic inch flavors
- low revving, low end torque pushrod engines, the 304 was built to easily take 400+ hp though it produced less than 190 most of it’s life
- even though they are a somewhat uncommon engine, parts are plentiful and quite cheap, not that you will ever need to replace any
- very heavy
AMC 401 V8
- forged steel connecting rods and crankshaft from the factory
- extremely strong engine, very sought after for power potential
Buick V6 Engines
- good low end torque
- very tough engines that run forever
- millions made, cheap and easy to locate parts/replacements
[quote=“loady740”]
[quote=“nikhowe”]@Drake
No worries. Cummins all the way though 
[/quote]
hell yeah CUMMINS !!![/quote]
*Detroit Diesel all the way
I’ve started to really LOVE the BMW M30B34 in my 535i. The nearly 30 years of development that went into the M30 really shows. That engine is freaking indestructible!! My car broke down as the previous owner was driving it to the shop I work at. I’ve put about $300 into it and almost have the engine running perfect now. It’s a true back from the dead tale. Ive always been partial to the M20 and M52 for non-M cars, but the M30 is quickly becoming my favorite non-M inline 6.
Of course we cant forget the BMW S70/2 though. That’s still the engine that powers the fastest naturally aspirated production car in the history of the world, the McLaren F1.
BMW engines are a big reason why Im studying to be a mechanical engineer now. And thats also a big reason why this game demo facinates me. 
subaru eg33, way ahead of its time and super stout in stock form.
Oh boy you haven’t seen tough engines until you have seen the Lada/Vaz 1.5L engine!
One man had a Lada, then he totaled the car absolutely. I mean, totaled like you wouldn’t recognize the car. He survived and sold some parts that survived the crash to his friend who put it in his Lada 2105, which he then drowned in a lake. The car sat there for 2 days before being pulled up, the interior all ruined and the engine full of water. He lifted out the engine from the car and sold it to me for a couple of beer-bottles. I removed the spark-plugs, changed the oil, mounted a battery then cranked it like a madman until all water was out of the cylinders. Screw back those plugs and give it some gasoline and then she ran like… well, pretty horribly i must say, but she ran!
Totally indestructible, but thirsty and sluggish. Makes for my top 10 at least! 
my father had a lada once ; 2107 with the 1.5 unit. nasty cars. he used it for carying construction materials and workers. ) he once put 1 ton of bricks in it an managed to take the load. was lower than the most hardcore low riders:)). wasn’t5 that reliable though, except for the bodywork which took quite a beating.
I’m utterly shocked nobody mentioned this. The best four-cylinder, power wise, in my mind is the 4G63. Specifically, the Sirius II series of 4G63. What other four-cylinder can you just throw PSI at like it’s nothing and it’ll take it like a champ? It can rev up high, the aftermarket support is unbelievable, the platforms they were put in (matching them up to AWD and whatnot) made for truly amazing rally cars. I don’t even have a 4G63, I have a 4G64, and I can throw 20psi at it like it’s nothing, spin it up to 8k (though I don’t for my own concern on my build), and I have no problems whatsoever.
Inline-six? 2JZ without a question.
V8? Tie between the LS1 and the Ford Coyote 5.0. The LS1 and all LS-series motors are just the pinnacle of development of modern OHV motors, they can hit very high numbers with forced induction, and support is very high. The 5.0 has less support so far, but, in my opinion, is a true V8 laced with the modern technologies and designs you see in well-designed, Japanese four-bangers: VVT, DOHC, etc., just needs direct injection… Put it this way, break it up into two 2.5L four-cylinders and you’re making about 205-210hp each, N/A, stock. The Impreza’s 2.5L N/A Boxer makes 170hp. The brand-new Altima coupe’s 2.5L only makes 175hp. And that’s for the new gen, three years newer than the Coyote 5.0.
Oh man, I’ve been through this topic and I’m surprised nobody said :
THE FREAKIN’ HEMI !!!
This is hell of an engine. Back in the sixties, it was a monster which could go beyond 700hp. Still used in drag races btw.
I heard that it also was quite indestructible : lifetime-lasting engine ? Oh yeah !
I’m not a Mopar-fan though. If I could choose, I’d rather have a Pontiac T/A Firebird SD-455 from 1973.
Other good engines imho :
- RB26DETT (Skyline GT-R engine)
- 2JZ-GTE (Supra Mk. IV engine)
- Of course, the Ford 427 and Chevy small-block
- And still “of course”, the Porsche flat-6s !
EDIT : oh, and the Ford Modular was quite effective : Lincoln Navigator up to Ford GT through the Mustang Cobra R…
Mainly because they weren’t the greatest engines. they were large , heavy and undepowered. on the other hand jaguar, aston , porsche and mitsubishi made great use of hemispherical chambers in the 60s and 70s.
and example of great engines would be the f20c and f22c from honda or inline 6s compliments of porsche, BMW and mercedes, even nissan. and these are production units. if we we look at what ferrari, lamborghini, aston and others it’s even more impresive.
Well, I understand what you mean. But the Hemi was one of the most powerful engines back in its days. Even if it is waaay too heavy, it still packs the raw power that makes it a legend.
And for the other engines, they may not be the best ones, but they’re powering great cars and are great basis if you want to tune them up. A Skyline GT-R r34 can make more than 1000 hp if given the right parts and tune. It already has been done.
I also like european engines, yes, but I think these engines, even if they aren’t the greatest, deserve a place in the ranking. Not in first place, but they had an impact on current engines. Just look at the flat-6 : still used since more than forty years.
chrysler hemis were not great by a long shot , but were very sturdy and qithstood the test of time and their architecture makes them suitable for extracting huge amounts of torque by different mods.
any engine can be modified to produce large power figures, but these are just expensive versions of bikes, acceleration and no control. the supra suffered from this nonesense time and time again. that car was made with great ballance and handling in mind. and many people that got their hands on one installed rock hard sprins, 2 huge turbos and other things and compromised their best attributes.
6 cyl boxer engines are virtualy inline 6 engine with every other cyl on the opposite side of the crank. in inline 4 vs boxer 4 there is ballance advantage as well as lower center of G.
boxer 6 engines have thbe same ballane as an inline 6 engine, but are much shorter and have a lower center of G.
Well, when we’re talking about the best ENGINES made, I’d say it doesn’t really matter if a lot of the cars they came in didn’t handle that well.
You said it ! And I totally agree with you darkjedi.
The problem is : what is a good engine ? Great potential ? Lots of power ? Lightweight ? What about torque ?
Some engines became known for the the car they fit, some of them for their competition use…
Tuning is revealing the true performance of an engine, but they’re not good for an average use. As the definition of a good engine changes with time, (60’s : power and torque / now : emissions and consumption)
We can’t say which one is the best. Also, the technologies changed too, making some engines better than other thanks/because of this : If the classic Hemi was adapted with direct injection, would the Modular still be great ? What about the changes in history : the Oldsmobile 88 and Hudson Hornet are known for launching the american performance engines, while the Plymouth Roadrunner started the muscle car industry. And waht about the Ford 289 which powered the first pony car : the Mustang ?
So maybe this is not performance or handling, but the impact in the automotive history that matters ?
well i`d say the best engine is one that does the best job at whatever task is set to do and be very realiable. you can never pickone engine and say THIS IS THE BEST ENGINE. there are many engines that are notorious for doing a great job also keeping in mind the era and geographical location it was built in.
you said it: the impact on the automotive industry is what matters.
there is an engine that was best suited for racing and yet it only saw action in a handful of production cars: the wankel
smooth power delivery (in natural aspirated version), reliability and huge power to weight ratio.
unfortunately the large fuel consumption, oil consumption and complicated maintenance and operation saw its demise in the main automotive production.
it did see succes in naval , aeronautical and street racing apllications though
Oh. Well, that is interisting.
I knew it didn’t sell for it’s consumption or emissions, can’t remember.
But I did not know about those facts.
By the way, how is Mazda going ? Any chance to see a RX-9 ?
no more RX-9. they could not make an ecofriendly engine and are not allowed to sell it , so the project was abandoned. a shame really.