In the 1960s and 1970s Peugeots were widely used in parts of Africa and Asia because they were rugged and reliable. So whatever engines Peugeot used then probably qualify for our list.
What was/is the most reliable IC engine of all time?
- Thread starter OppositeLocK
- Start date
- Joined
- Feb 27, 2019
- Messages
- 631
Quantity produced and being transformative don't have anything to do with reliability in my mind.
I'd be willing to bet any Honda engine for the 90's would demolish it from a MTBF perspective.
Hermann
Site Donor 2023
Toyota 22re
My understanding is that the Model T engine was pretty rugged and actually ahead of its time on materials usage, but needed valve adjustments and other tinkering often. That was typical of its era. Ford sold the T and its successor, the Model A, with a small set of tools for this purpose. A common find at swap meets is the monkey wrench with the Ford logo.
Ya think?
Exactly. I suspected some modern engine comparisons which is apples to oranges, but to step back well over 100 years in time and compare to engines of the day I imagine the Ford would have been pretty darn durable. I remember old timers back in the day saying all that was needed to keep them running was pliers and bailing wire.
300 Ford 6 cylinder inline or a slant six Dodge. Honda 1.8 inline 4 cylinder or even some of the older Honda engines. For some reason those inline 4 cylinder Hondas just do not die.
- Joined
- Dec 28, 2014
- Messages
- 3,001
Some of my favorites for reliability...
GM LS 5.3 (pre 2007)
Chrisyler 4.0 straight six
Toyota 2GRFE
GM 3.8
Honda 2.3 4 cylinder
Some of these ive owned, some I’ve marveled at while others took them to high mileage with a lot of abuse.
GM LS 5.3 (pre 2007)
Chrisyler 4.0 straight six
Toyota 2GRFE
GM 3.8
Honda 2.3 4 cylinder
Some of these ive owned, some I’ve marveled at while others took them to high mileage with a lot of abuse.
Hasn’t been around long enough (yet) to be able to be called most reliable of all time, but the Toyota 1GR-FE (4.0 V6) is making quite a name for itself in the longevity department.
- Joined
- Jul 14, 2020
- Messages
- 1,487
Mid-2000’s Honda 2.4L
VW 8v 2.0L gas (slow as heck but I have seen them take stupid amounts of abuse)
GM 3800 Series 2 and 3
Ford 300ci inline-6
Toyota 1ZZ-FE
Nissan 1.8L and 2.4L
Volvo Redblock family
AMC 4.0L inline-6
GM 3800 Series 2 and 3
Ford 300ci inline-6
Toyota 1ZZ-FE
Nissan 1.8L and 2.4L
Volvo Redblock family
AMC 4.0L inline-6
But how many others can say that their car is more aerodynamic in reverse than forward?
The old 8N Ford tractor engines were really good. They were so simple to work on too.
I honestly have not had an unreliable vehicle engine wise and driven to 200k+ including Jeep 4.2 AMC, Toyota PU 22RE, 95 Civic, Subaru WRX, Acura MDX 3.7 , and now Honda Pilot.
Yep. If you don't let them overheat and change the oil semi-regularly, most every modern car can go a lot longer than most folks realize. 300k is the new 100k.
Edit:
When was the last time you saw a car on the road today that was giving off any significant amount of visible smoke from the tail pipe? It seems pretty rare these days. Those of us of more "advanced years," if we thought about it, can remember a time when A LOT more cars were running down the road with worn out rings and smoking tailpipes.
Last edited:
Boring answer but I imagine the longest lasting engine is in a giant ship.
Along those lines there are a lot of ruston hornsby heavy oil engines still running in India and other parts of the world
All time is sure tough, but I'll throw in my .02. I'll stick (mostly) to gassers, I am not and never will be a diesel guy. Some of these will be controversial, but here goes:
Buick 231 V6. Yes, it was occasionally plagued with ENGINEERING faults due to cost-cutting, however the basic design is legendary
Obviously, the SBC. Including the 4.3 V6.
LS engines (type dependent)
Buick 215 V8. All aluminum, developed in the 50's, put into production in the 60's. Rights purchased by British Leyland who continued to build and enhance the engine until it's last gasp in 2004. Sure, the Brits ruined it with the electronics however the basic engine is almost impossible to kill.
Most inline 6 engines. Be it the Chevy 325, the Ford 300, the AMC 4.0, the Chrysler slant-6. All amazing feats of engineering.
Ford modular motor, the original 4.6/5.4. Faults? Sure. Reliable with very little maintenance? Absolutely.
Chrysler 318/360
Toyota 5SFE
Toyota 1ZZ
Nissan VQ
Honda J-series (and many others)
Mitsubishi 4G and 6g engines
I'll cut the list there, but I will say the topic brings up a good point: building a reliable engine in the current is much more difficult than it was not even 15 years ago. For example, imagine trying to make the Buick 3800 viable in 2022... it would be impossible. Cast iron? What in the world is that. Pushrods? Those are for pickups. Add all the modern tech to a 3800 and you can kiss reliability goodbye. DI, VVT, AFM, an 8-9-10 speed trans, take your pick. The LIM gasket "issue" is peanuts compared to the stuff I see with modern engines.
Buick 231 V6. Yes, it was occasionally plagued with ENGINEERING faults due to cost-cutting, however the basic design is legendary
Obviously, the SBC. Including the 4.3 V6.
LS engines (type dependent)
Buick 215 V8. All aluminum, developed in the 50's, put into production in the 60's. Rights purchased by British Leyland who continued to build and enhance the engine until it's last gasp in 2004. Sure, the Brits ruined it with the electronics however the basic engine is almost impossible to kill.
Most inline 6 engines. Be it the Chevy 325, the Ford 300, the AMC 4.0, the Chrysler slant-6. All amazing feats of engineering.
Ford modular motor, the original 4.6/5.4. Faults? Sure. Reliable with very little maintenance? Absolutely.
Chrysler 318/360
Toyota 5SFE
Toyota 1ZZ
Nissan VQ
Honda J-series (and many others)
Mitsubishi 4G and 6g engines
I'll cut the list there, but I will say the topic brings up a good point: building a reliable engine in the current is much more difficult than it was not even 15 years ago. For example, imagine trying to make the Buick 3800 viable in 2022... it would be impossible. Cast iron? What in the world is that. Pushrods? Those are for pickups. Add all the modern tech to a 3800 and you can kiss reliability goodbye. DI, VVT, AFM, an 8-9-10 speed trans, take your pick. The LIM gasket "issue" is peanuts compared to the stuff I see with modern engines.
Similar threads
