Ranking The 8 Best V8 Engines Of All Time (And The 7 Worst)
I dont agree with the 6.6 pontiac being worst.I had a 77 trans am with ta 6.6 that ran quite well...............................jeff
The 6.6 Oldsmobile was a big bore, short stroke mill very much like the MoPar 400. The biggest problem with both of these engines are the year they were produced. Smog era engines suffered greatly from lack of compression and emissions equipment on top that further choked out any performance potential. The MoPar 360 suffered from this as well. As well as other smog era engines.
The best fix outside a cam swap, supercharger and headers would be a rebuild with compression. I think the Poncho 400 was the worst of them all in that era. As far as I’m concerned, once the 1st muscle car era passed into the smog era, all engines sucked rotten eggs. It was what it was. Now we are in the second coming of the muscle age! Enjoy it while it lasts! Who knows what’s around the corner to kill it again.
I have heard that Mopar small blocks used better metal for the blocks, and I believe our lifters are larger in diameter. That makes the valve train more stable. Any truth to that?
Fact.
Our stock blocks are as strong or stronger than there race blocks. We have there higher nickel content in our blocks equal to or exceeding there race blocks.
Fact. Our lifters are among the largest. They are not the biggest in diameter.
POP QUIZ! Who has the stock 1 inch diameter lifter?
(Hint, it’s a GM.)
Fact. This large diameter allows for more aggressive cam lobe to lift the valves quicker. This IS power! The quicker you can raise the valve the more air and fuel you can get into the cylinder.
Fact. The valve train, rockers on a bar, which are not MoPar exclusive (Buick) are a more stable system than what you know as the Chevy was of doing things.
Misnomer. A larger lifter does NOT make the valve train more stable.
The MoPar engines have there pros and cons like any other engine. I made my choice a long time ago on several factors
(no one wanted the MoPars, equals cheap cars and parts, the Direct Connection books instructions made a list on parts to use to go fast that they had for you and your engine. Follow the recipe! Home run!)
and decided to stay and dance with the devil I got to know. Once you know the tune and the dance, your good to go.
