Motor Trend on why the inline-6 might come back

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Good bedtime read, lol. Some interesting physics reasoning leading to the death of the v6 that I would have never thought about. Thanks for sharing!
 
It didn't mention one of the major reasons inline 6 engines are uncommon. Having a longitudinal inline 6 reduces the amount of space for a crumple zone, and making an inline 6 narrow enough to be used transversly is also a challenge. Take a look at any I-6 Volvo with a transverse engine.

I too hate the elimination of inline 6 engines. It was one of 2 things I didn't like about the 2008-up Nissan GT-R.
 
Originally Posted By: lugNutz
Good bedtime read, lol.


Man no kidding!
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A V6 has never been anything better than a packaging solution. A front wheel drive car is only so wide and the fore and aft space only so much if you want to focus on passenger space. The fact that a V6 works at all is a tribute to engineering excellence from motor mounts to balance shafts and expensive crankshafts with lots of computer time, too.
 
The V6 is just for packaging and cost, mostly for FWD cars. I6 is superior as is the RWD layout.

I still think its a crying shame Mercedes ditched their wonderful line of six cylinders for V engines back in the late 90's when they owned Chrysler. The M104 is still a wonderful engine.
 
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My longest lasting engine was my 1966 Chevy 230 I-6 which went well over 500k without a rebuild. 2bbl carb 3 speed on the tree.

It was indestructible.

But today my Toyota 3.5L 2GR-FE is the way to go. I am on #3 and think it is by far the best V-6 on the road.
 
Originally Posted By: DoubleWasp
Love my inline 6.
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The I-6 in the Chevy TrailBlazer was and still is a torquey 6 cylinder and has the tenacity of a fighter.
 
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That was a good read. I am a fan of the inline 6 as well. They just seem super smooth...at least the one in my Trailblazer is. Good ol' GM Atlas engines.
 
I thought the first gen IS 300 was pretty nice. Wondering why they canned the I6 in the US. The history of that engine design was that Toyota was still selling those in Japan up to 2007.
 
You can add the Ford 4.9, Jeep 4.2 and 4.0 to the list.....oh and Cummins diesels too.
 
TV + short edit time = two posts. Nice article and sound reasoning. Seems the only reason not to have an inline 6 is space and use across.platforms. Same reason the straight-8 engines went away in.favor of the V8.
 
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