Best and worst van engine

[jumpstart and nala]

Any information on the reliability  of the different van engines. I remember reading about some of them, can't remember which one was the best.

 

[darude]

i would run like hell from any diesel engines made after 2009 as there nothing but lawn ornaments thanks to all of the emissions bullshit on them. as i have seen constant break down to ecm and egr and the nox sensors. my goal is to find a diesel built before 2007 no emissions bullshit and no DPF diesel particulate filter. wich BTW can plug up. i would be doing a WVO waste vegtable oil conversion on it as well to save a few bucks at the pump and to be off the grid as much as possible. i would run like hell from the sprinter vans you can't get them fixed at any mercedes shop and if they do break down they will cost as much as a big rig to get fixed  !!

 

[jumpstart and nala]

Thanks, I was thinking of gas engines, I believe that it was the 6.0 that was good and a5.? that was carp. I like the size of the sprinter, but really only worked on gas, and very little at that.

 

[ZoNiE]

Nothing beats a well maintained Chevy 5.7 (350), though the transmissions backing many of them up are some of the worst.
Ford 300 Inline 6 is probably just as good, but not too many around.

 

[darude]

Thanks, I was thinking of gas engines, I believe that it was the 6.0 that was good and a5.? that was carp. I like the size of the sprinter, but really only worked on gas, and very little at that.

the ford 6.0 engines were total crap from bad EGR'S to bad turbo's in some. Mercedes just put out the metris out that's a gasser but still I wouldn't want the repair bills :s .

 

[cortttt]

Nothing beats a well maintained Chevy 5.7 (350), though the transmissions backing many of them up are some of the worst.
Ford 300 Inline 6 is probably just as good, but not too many around.

What's the best engine-tranny combo then?

How about the Chevy 4.8/5.3L / 6speed?

The engines seem pretty bulletproof - how about the trannies; how do they hold up?

 

[steamjam1]

Nothing beats a well maintained Chevy 5.7 (350), though the transmissions backing many of them up are some of the worst.
Ford 300 Inline 6 is probably just as good, but not too many around.

The small block Chevy is a great engine. Millions built. The 4 speed 700R4's don't last that long, and wont take alot of abuse, but for normal everyday honking around they are fine. The 3 speeds tend to last a long time.

The Ford Windsor engine is also a great engine. The 3 speed transmission are well built, and the AOD overdrive, although slightly clunky, are perfectly reliable. The Ford 300 straight 6 is quite possibly the best American gas engine ever built.

The LA series Dodge always lagged behind the other big three in adopting fuel injection and other enhancements over the years. But at its core the LA is a great engine as well. He slant-6 is second only to the Ford 300 in durability/longevity. The LA3.9 surprised me on how tough they are. The Dodge transmission are strong, and durable if your religious on servicing it, and add a cooler. The 518's tend to last only a 100K miles between rebuilds. I keep a spare transmission around for my Dodge just incase. (727 3-speed)

Worst engine?

I'd say the old GM 5.7L diesel. I remember the old GM 6.2's weren't' all that good either.

 

[highdesertranger]

I agree the 5.7 GM diesel was a poor engine. it's an Oldsmobile 350 gasser converted to diesel. the 6.2/6.5 on the other hand was a great engine if you take it for what it was intended, an economy engine. after all the military still uses this engine, it has been in production since 1981 to present. it is by far the most economical diesel engine that was mass produced. now back to the bad, Ford v-8 gassers with aluminum heads and Ford diesels after the 7.3 I would stay away from. Toyota v-6 also bad news. all newer Dodge's except for the Cummins and the 318, 360 gassers. highdesertranger

 

[GotSmart]

My 318 Dodge is on it's 3rd vehicle that I know about. 

 

[rvpopeye]

I had one of those 318's , I found it in a field with carb off and full of water which was frozen !
It was in a Coronet and had 340 heads. The guy said he had rebuilt the block when he put the 340's on and got about 50K on it before the Coronet rusted out !
Paid $150 . Pulled it and took it home.

Thawed it out , siphoned the water and replaced the freeze plugs . I squirted a quart of a mixture of all the oils I had in the truck (10 w30 , 80-90w , Marvel Mystery , ATF , WD40 and a dash of PB !) into the cylinders , put a 1/2" breaker bar on the crank bolt and jumped on it !
It broke loose on the third jump and I hand cranked it for an hour more.
Dropped it in the truck ( a 1969 D100 sweptline) bolted on a carb and the exhaust and installed the old set of plugs . Then I hooked up the radiator and heater hoses and filled it with antifreeze .

Towed it in second gear a 1/2 mile to pump up the lifters , turned the key and it roared to life (with a huge cloud of smoke). Burned some rubber to see what it had , then drove back to the ranch and put new plugs in .I then drove it for 150,000 miles around the northeast and across the continent several times ! My truck was rusting out too so I pulled it out and gave it to a good bud who put it in his D150 !

Not a bad run !

 

[steamjam1]

I had one of those 318's , I found it in a field with carb off and full of water which was frozen !
It was in a Coronet and had 340 heads. The guy said he had rebuilt the block when he put the 340's on and got about 50K on it before the Coronet rusted out !
Paid $150 . Pulled it and took it home.

Thawed it out , siphoned the water and replaced the freeze plugs . I squirted a quart of a mixture of all the oils I had in the truck (10 w30 , 80-90w , Marvel Mystery , ATF , WD40 and a dash of PB !) into the cylinders , put a 1/2" breaker bar on the crank bolt and jumped on it !
It broke loose on the third jump and I hand cranked it for an hour more.
Dropped it in the truck ( a 1969 D100 sweptline) bolted on a carb and the exhaust and installed  the old set of plugs . Then I hooked up the radiator and heater hoses and filled it with antifreeze .

Towed it in second gear a 1/2 mile to pump up the lifters , turned the key and it roared to life (with a huge cloud of smoke). Burned some rubber to see what it had , then drove back to the ranch and put new plugs in .I then drove it for 150,000 miles around the northeast and across the continent  several times !  My truck was rusting out  too so I pulled it out and gave it to a good bud who put it in his D150 !

Not a bad run !

The 318 is a rock solid engine for sure. I did something not-quite-THAT-extreme with a Dodge 360. Bought a truck, the motor was stuck, took it home, poured marvel mystery oil into the cylinders, threw a breaker bar onto the crank bolt, worked the engine loose, then used the starter without the plugs in to turn it over a bunch... Put it back together, and she fired up... Ran for another 25K miles before I sold it.

 

[ArtW]

LA V8s and the slant 6 in early dodges were a clear case of the motor being too good for the car it was in
Witness all the late 60s darts running down the road in perfect mechanical synchronicity, sometimes with 0 maintenance, while parts literally rusted off the cars

 

[Ballenxj]

After much research, I opted for a Dodge 318. I found a 3/4 ton Dodge van that had some body damage, but the complete drive train had less than 70,000 miles on it. After a thorough once over I bought it. Just took it on a 650 mile trip and found it burned no oil either.
I'm very happy with it so far.

 

[Telcobilly]

That's incredible! That could never be done with a newer engine..