Wards 10 Best Engines 2006: No more Renesis, but...
 

at least there's a new Mazda engine in its place. Sad to see it's gone, and to see nissan's ridiculously overrated and overused VQ is still there.

Ugh! I can't believe the Cobalt SS engine made it.

Exactly, there is nothing special about that engine. POS if you ask me, pretty much like all other GM products, except maybe the new vette.

Why?

Rejoice!!! No Honda Engine :ylsuper:

It's just a 2L ecotech (or whatever shitty name they gave it) with a supercharger bolted to it, nothing special. Just don't like GM products one bit.

I'm surprised the LS7 didn't make it. Sure, the Ecotec can be built to crazily high power numbers for its displacement using catalog parts, and the Saab V6 is supposed to be quite the nice engine, but IMHO the LS7 is a more advanced engine than either of those two. Maybe there's a lower limit on the number of production units that precludes that engine? Not sure what else would keep it off the list.

Why?

:)

Personal bias is no reason for the engine not to make the list.

Sodium cooled exhaust valves, forged crank, forged connecting rods, all aluminum block, heads, pistons. I don't see any other economy performance engine touching it.

:mdrmed: :mdrmed:

Good call.

Add to that over 100hp/L and a fuel economy of 24/29 mpg and it looks pretty good.

Yeah, I'd also love to hear a good reason why the 3.5L VQ shouldn't be on there (one of the most versatile and reliable engines on the market).

No doubt. It's got excellent torque, decent fuel economy, it's fairly smooth...I'm not finding a whole lot of downside. Exhaust note could be better. As for the Ecotech, GM's starting to make some quality shit. Guess seeing Ford knocked out of #2 by Toyota woke 'em up a bit.

The 3.5 Liter Nissan is one of the best V6 engines of all time. The 3.0 Liter is none too shabby, either. Both rank right up there with the best BMW has to offer.

What's the objection to its inclusion on the list?

Hmm, interesting.


The Nissan VQ in 3.5 form makes very impressive power- but is a bit rough at high rpm. (starts to feel like a good ol reliable push rod...) but it is still am impressive engine for the price.


Isn't the Toyota 3.5 in the new Avalon too?


It's hard to get excited about the Audi and BMW engines, considering their price- they should be dayum good engines!

I am not familiar with the new 2.8 turbo GM/Saab engine. Hmm. Didn't Popular Mechanics give an award to a pushrod GM V6 engine recently?


The Supercharged Ecotec is interesting. I would be curious to see long term reliability and real world fuel economy numbers before I get too excited about it. I still remember the much talked about Qaud Fours.......


The Ford 4.6 is now becoming a great engine for the price range- just like the ol 5.0 was.

The new Hemi even though the Nissan 5.6 'Endurance' V8 is less expensive and offers better performance? Wow. Is this the one with DOD?

And mazda made the list with the Mazdaspeed6 engine. Hmm, makes me want to test drive one. When this new engine class first arrived, I heard stuff about how it was a Cosworth design that Mazda inherited to make production engines from, and how it could take very high boost. It will be interesting to see how this engines pans out.

On paper, anyway.

Very rough. Sounds like shit in the process, too.
No matter which of the MANY classes they include it, there are better engine choices for similar money.

On paper? It moves the Z's fat ass with plenty of authority. I still don't see where you get "ridiculously overrated," and what comparable engines are you referring to?

Sorry but I'll take the exhaust note of the Z/G35 over the RX-8 any day, I'll also take the horsepower...

10 best or not, there's no engine that sounds as sweet or feels as smooth as the rotary to me... :) nor any that makes me actually want to turn the stereo down- just to listen to it hum... :mdrmed:

vq engines sounds very agricultural to me. Doesn't sound exotic... more like a high revving tractor... my opinion. However, it has good low down torque... but crap top end... power tapers off quickly... some or most ppl prefer to have an engine characteristic such as the vq as ppl tend to use these engines for everyday city driving. Spirited driving with soul... nothing beats a rotary... VQ does not come close.... I am biased... but it's just my opinion.

I guess it is just personal bias then. It's made by GM, it will run for 40k and then have to be rebuilt.

You are basing the 100hp/L on a FI engine, hell any manufacturer can do that, when you use that card the motor has to be NA. I don't like Hondas one bit, but the S2000 engine is impressive, over 100hp/L from an NA engine, same as the rotary - NA.

The Ecotec isn't a new engine. It has been taking boost in Saabs for years without any major problems and it returned its rated fuel economy numbers in those applications. I would expect the supercharged version to be at least as reliable as the turbocharged version and probably return approximately the same gas mileage figures as well.

Yeah I bet my piece of shit can kick your ass.

That's nonsense, people said the same thing about the engine in the SRT-4 and it has proven to be VERY reliable.

OK...enough with the haters, gosh people you sometimes act like scorned woman remembering a past hurt GM or another American car company did to you which has twisted your view since. (we know...we know, at least a generation of crappy to OK products but show some mercy and give them a break)

No offense, but it's unfair to label all they do as "crap"...

The VQ is a good engine, while not very impressive in fuel economy.

Me too!!!! What in the world, I think those awards are bias to tell you the truth. How did the best dang V8 in the world (my opinion) based on power to fuel economy ratio, to say the least, get passed over by the just average 4.6 Ford?

I know I say this all the time, but 400HP (LS6 if I remember right) with 19/28mpg is just amazing to me and I have no clue how they passed over the Chevy V8 for that.

Then....then...they overlook one of the most unique engines in the world which makes ALOT of power for it's size and hits the stratosphere of rpm's, the Renesis...I mean....whaaaaa...