Well... that's okay because I am the only Ford guy in my group of 4 wheeling buddies. And I feel no shame in pulling their small block powered Chebbys and Dodges out of the mud with my 300 I6. They never seem to question whether the ol six will be able to get em out, cause she does it every time!

 

2.8,2.9 =worst 4.6=alright=older 302=better 2.2 subaru boxer=better cummins turbo diesel=best

 

There has been quite a few of these "350 conversion" myths being dropped as I read this thread. I'd like to set the record straight so we don't all go through life believing that 5.7 diesels are just converted gas motors, they most certainly are NOT.
The block is not the same, it's beefier but has the same motor mounts (as it did have to fit in the same vehicles), different pistons,rods, heads, crank, rockers, cam, pushrods, valves, valve springs and intake. About the only things the same as the Olds 350 would be valve covers, oil pan, water and oil pump, and the exhaust manifolds. Pretty minor similarities if you ask me.
Now if someone could list the differences between a 6.9 diesel and an International gas powered v8 with almost the same displacement... About the only real problem with the 5.7 diesel were the head bolts, use ARP bolts, problem solved.

In keeping with the thread topic, I would have to say:

Best; Almost any inline 6 produced by the big 3 (with a nod going to the solid lifter "Leaning Tower of Power" for being ultimate)

Worst; In my mind, there isn't one, if there is, it would be a shared spot. My attitude is that I haven't seen a truly bad line of motors, only stupid little problems that bean counters should have been fired for (like poor quality bolts and gaskets, and things like proper windage trays in 351C's) Doesn't matter how good the block and heads are, if a company tries to save a buck somewhere on the motor, the comsumer will find it

 

Any General Motors diesel engine is junk.

 

Your authority on the subject knows no bounds...

But seriously, try telling that to an average 7.3 diesel owner that followed his owners manual to the letter and still developed severe cavitation problems at about 65000 miles, you know the story, off warranty, block needs to be replaced, costs a ton of cash, into the 3rd year of a 4 year loan on said vehicle... Think he'd agree with you?
Doesn't make the Ford diesel a bad motor, as the fix for this was incredibly inexpensive (if done from day one). Same goes for any GM diesel, the fixes are simple, the stigma it can generate, however, may never go away.

Case in point, anyone remember Mohawk EM unleaded? To this day, people will not use Mohawk gas for fear of wrecking fuel pumps/carbs/injectors. News flash, methanol isn't used in their fuel anymore, only ethanol, and every car maker in the known universe has given the o.k. to use this in fuel on their vehicles.
Stigma, guess it can last forever in those that choose to be ignorant of fact.

 

GM diesels seem to work fine in Humvees. Does that make them junk? Not a big GM diesel fan by the way.

 

As a former owner of a 1989 3.8 L Sable, I respectfully disagree with your statment about stupid little problems. There are thousands of us who got caught up in the 3.8 nightmare and to us, it was not a little problem. I consider myself one of the lucky ones, in that the financial hits I took (because of that engine) were not as disastrous as some of the people I know. To many people, having to pay for those repairs was the equivalent of 1-2 months of rent/mortgage payments. That's a huge problem when you are living paycheck to paycheck or you are a single parent household.

 

I feel your pain (Bill Clinton humor, sorry) but my point still stands valid. It was a gasket failure problem on these engines, and gaskets are not exactly "big bucks" and because of this, I lump them into "stupid little problems", where, for all intents and purposes, it belongs.
Having said that, I agree with you, it does cost the end user a ton of cash to fix this stuff after the fact, money we can ill afford to waste on something that happened to save Ford a couple of bucks. Apparently Ford will warranty this problem for up to 100000 miles, kudos to them for standing up to it.

Again, I stick with what I said, I don't believe there are any truly bad motors out there, even the ford 3.8, just little quirks with each of them.

 

I'm glad that we can agree to agree and agree to disagree in a civilized manner. I guess it boils down to semantics and perspective. From the mechanically talented, a head gasket job is probably not that big of a deal. From the consumer point of view any engine problem strikes immediate terror, hence my definition of "bad" motor. Also, Ford only extended the warranty on this problem for people whose vehicles were built after 1993 and that was only after being pressured to do so. If your vehicle was built before 1994 (even though you were under the mileage limit) you were out of luck.

However, I must say that I enjoyed the way that car drove and handled. I always felt in control of the vehicle and it was a comfortable riding automobile.

 

the earlier gm diesels sucked bad they always broke down but the dodge 5.9 diesel is strong and they do last forever

 

The GM diesels in Humvees do have a lot of problems, they are in constant need of attention. I know I drive em and work on em everyday (USMC) The most common problems have been head gaskets, cracked heads, and fuel system problems. They lack power big time, the biggest HMMWV engine is the 6.5 it only makes 170 horsepower and some 250 or so ft lbs of torque. That is fine in a pickup truck, but a HMMWV weighs upwards of 6000 lbs. They have 2.73 gears LS Dana 44s ft & rr with 2.1 geared hubs. Even with that gearing they still have to be put into low range before they will climb anything. I would like to see a Duramax in a HMMWV backed by an Allison 5 speed auto, now that would be a good combo.

 

Then I don't have to tell you how to fix the problems, you already know

But seriously, if you are USMC, and think the hummers are underpowered, just what do you want out of them? Are you towing heavy holiday trailers? Are you testing it on a 1/4 mile to see if your most recent mods will shave a few tenths? If you answered no to the previous questions, you have already answered the questions that top brass had put to them when they made the purchase. Perhaps you would like to go back to the hummers predecessor? Perhaps you could enlighten us as to what it had for hp/tq? And really, cracked heads, head gaskets, and fuel system problems... Describes about every line of diesel motors ever produced by any company.

 

Well this a good, fun and entertaining read first thing on a Sunday morning. I think that the Chevrolet 327,283,350 are awesome motors as are the Ford 302,351. In my opinion if you had 5 cars, each with one of these engines in it and maintained them religisouly the test would take a very, very, very long time first of all and who would be the last one standing is a debate that could go on forever and does! In my opinion it would come down to the 283 and 302 with the 283 coming out on top. Just my opinion and nothing more. Worst engine ever...Chevrolet 350 Diesel...Hands down!!

 

ok we have over 200,000 miles on our 95 dodge dually 5 speed and we pull heavy loads with it. we had nothing done to it as far as repair work. so i guess you are going to say that cummins diesels have cracked heads and blow the gaskets all the time like those crappy hummers. dodge could outpull any gm any day of the week

 

What is it they say about "bliss"....? Have a day! (as if you have a choice...)