Now not trying to start a war here but.......why dose Ford GM Dodge stuff V6s and I6s in Full-sizes the dodge 3.9 litre V6 gets horrible gas economy has no power or throttle response requires full throttle on some hills just to mantain speed it dosent evan cruise good it idles rough and pulls higer rpms than normal???

Than the chevy 4.3 V6 little more power and throttle response but still horrid gas economy

Ive had no experince with a Ford 4.9 I6 but from what Ive heard It has alot of torq its this true?

 

I spent a year working at a GMC/Buick/Pontiac dealership so here are some common issues with GM engines:

3.8 V6 (3800 Mk.II) - Intake gasket leaks, crappy gasket material according to the mechanics there. We fixed tons of these because they use this engine in practically everything (Venture, Montana, Grang Prix, Bonneville, Park Avenue, Riviera, Monte Carlo, new Impala, Century, LeSabre, Regal). Other than that issue I really think the 3800 is one of GM's best engines.

5.3 V8 (5300 Vortec) - Valve Lifter Tapping, that the mechanics couldn't seem to nail down. About 1 in 5 of these engines had this issue. Normally it could only be heard on startup, but sometimes we would get one that did it all the time. GM warranty people told us that if the customer made a fuss to go ahead and swap all the lifters.

8 liter V8 - The new V8 people love - Drinks oil. This engine consumes about 1 quart of oil every 2500 miles. GM says this is normal.

Not that this is really a engine issue, but the 4.3 V6 (4300 Vortech) in the Jimmy/Blazer/S-10/Sonoma makes a godawful racket whenever the cooling fan kicks in. Quite possibly one of the loudest cooling fans ever installed on a vehicle. If you have never heard this sound before you will think something is wrong with the truck (I did).


That's all I can think of right now. It's too early. Perhaps I'll think up some more later.

 

Oh, and the I6 300ci Ford DID in fact have more torque than the 302ci V8. A excellent engine for towing.

 

Hey3eggOmelet Someone that has worked in the shop of a dealership. You know what goes on firsthand. Here are some of the the things I have heard when I go to dealer with a problem,

1. Your the first person to ever have that problem.

2.Is this common No not really.

3.How is this motor holding up. Oh just great. No problems {really}

I would sure like to be an invisible man and be back inthe dealerships shop for one week. That would educate a guy in a hurrey. If you of some more stories please let us know. Thanks

 

completely true.
they will never admit to a customer that a certain motor has certain problems that are sure to pop up. they will also never admit to a problem with your car being a "common" problem (window motors and door panels on friggin' Grand-Am's).
GM's issues from what I can tell all have to do with not enough Quality control and parts testing.

 

You know, the door lock actuators are really a work of art On our Excursion, they work about 1/3 of the time.. need to be replaced again. A very well Known Weakness in this Vehicle.. as is the ball joints, "poorest in the industry seat heaters", and pathetic brakes. SO lets Talk Quality Control About My Vehicle, Because I swear sometimes, it was Built in China By someone working out of their backyard. Lets Talk about the Quality Control that Goes into the 6.0 Diesel..Boy wouldnt THAT open a can of worms?


I do Agree with the V-6 though, as Im not sure why some Full size vehicles get stuck with a V-6 THINKING it will have better gas mileage..It just has to struggle too much to pull around a full size vehicle.

Ron

00 Excursion Limited 4x4 V-10

 

V-6's have plenty of power for light loads or even light towing in a full size pickup. My brother-in-law has an F-150 with the 4.2, M5Od and 3.55 gears. It does just fine, and his gas mileage is far more than my 5.0 E4OD 3.55 geared F-150. My Chevy had a 4.3, automatic and 3.42 gears. Mileage wasnt great, still better than the 5.0, and I had no trouble towing, even in the mountains. I have never experienced the Dodge V-6.

In the late 1950's to mid 1960's GMC (not Chevy) had the strongest V-6's ever. They were a true 60 degree V-6 designed for truck use and were not "cut down" 90 degree V-8's.

Jim

 

I'll wager that the 3800 2 and 3 all get 25-30 mpg in their apps, except maybe the s/c versions, I would have never thought the best Buick motor would have been a V6, but that thing is dynamite, the history of it is phenominal also

I will say the plastic intake on it is prone to cracks and I know the 3100's were eating intake gaskets and leaking coolant, good coolant maintenance is critical on these alloy motors, they aint made out of heavy Detroit iron anymore.........Die Casting In, Sand Casting out

 

I will say thet generally Gm makes a good v6, though they do have some issues and exceptions. I don't really like any of their 4 bangers, the ecotec has potential though.

 

As far as turd motors go, i would just like to mention the 2.8L gm v6, that is all. And the intake manifold gasket problem on vortec 350s from 96-98.

 

You think the GM 2.8L was a turd... look at the 2.8L that Ford put in the Mustang 2's and the 84-85 B2's... that was a turd in a well. Solid lifter, no power, smokin chokin POS. The heads cracked if the engine ever broke 210 degrees (maybe stretching it there but still)... I was never able to keep one in for more than 60K miles, some less, and I could count the times it had enough power to pull some poor stuck fella out of the ditch on one hand. I was doing good to pull it's self down the road.

My full size Bronco with the 300 I-6 will drive circles around it. And even with the lift, lower gears, and 35" tires I still get about 14-16 MPG and I rarely use the O.D. The 300 is a great engine, durable, tons of torque, but the late model EFI engines aren't that great on gas. I prefer my carb engine with the swapped 2bbl instead of the stock 1bbl. Plenty of power and better mpg than the EFI engines.

Ford did make one good V-6 that I know of, or atleast I think so. My 91 explorer has the first generation 4.0L V-6 in it, before they went to the SOHC engine that is a little more problamatic. I have almost 220,000 miles on mine. I put a clutch in at 174K... and a radiator in Dec last year, other than that just routine maint. And even with the 31X10.50's on it I can still burn the back tire for about 15' and break it loose in 2nd again. I put about 700 miles a week on it and use the 4 wheel drive about every week too... use it in the summers to pull my boat to the lake, it's never left me stranded.

But as far as six's in full sizes the only one I've had was my 95 F-250 with the 300 EFI Six and a 5 speed, and I never had any complaints, other than the 90 mph shut down on it. I've pulled a 16' tandom axle trailer with my Full Size Bronco on it from OK to GA through the hills and mountains of Tennessee and can't say that it ever felt underpowered. It struggled a bit there in Chattanooga coming over the mountain but I was still passing tractor trailers who were having a lot more trouble than I was. I pulled most of the mountain in 4th at 50-60 mph but I remember having to downshift to 3rd a couple of times. Drove in O.D. most of the trip though and got around 12-14 mpg. It usually didn't do much better than that on gas without a load either.

 

I had a mustang 2 with the 2.8L I got me through high school, but yer right about cracked heads, shortly after i sold it, the guy overheated it and cracked a head. I am surpised it made it that long, it had more valve train noise than anyone i know.

 

I had a 93 S-10 2wd 5 speed with the 2.8. My right foot and the Michigan roads provided the abuse. Got rid of it with 135,000 on it still going strong.

 

This is normal --------- "Heartbeat of America"

 

I've been impressed by the 4.2L, but I liked the 300 a lot better.

Why do they use V6 engines when they don't get much better mileage than the smaller V8s? Because they're cheaper to manufacture, and not everybody can afford a truck with a V8.

That being said, I think that the Ford 2.9L and 4.0L OHV engines were great, but those weren't used in fullsize trucks and would not have done well in that application. I was not impressed by the Dodge 3.9L, but Dodge has yet to inspire me. The GM 4.3L isn't a bad engine at all, and I don't think that the GM 2.8L is that bad either. I used to know a guy who raced an S10 with a 2.8. I thought he wasted a lot of money building the engine up, but he seemed to be moderately successful.