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Japanese four-cylinder engine is so reliable still in production after 25 years

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Re: Japanese four-cylinder engine is so reliable still in production after 25 years

#81

Post by veunes »

potato3732842 wrote: post #27

25yr is "meeting expectations" for any mass market[1] engine designed after about the mid 1970s or so. A design that is both not fundamentally flawed in some way and cutting edge enough for its time to not quickly rendered obsolete the steady increase in expectations should go far longer. A design that is "ok" and cutting edge will probably go 20-30yr. A design that is behind the times, and very good (easier to not m…

Plenty of engines hit the 20-year mark, but not many do it while still powering everything from family sedans to track-ready Type Rs

Re: Japanese four-cylinder engine is so reliable still in production after 25 years

#82

Post by veunes »

kleiba wrote: post #15

I don't think that lack of reliability is the key factor for why new motors are still being developed. Fuel efficiency or changing emission standards are two points that come to mind that drive further optimizations.

What's tricky is that even tiny improvements in fuel economy or emissions can justify a redesign when you're building at scale

Re: Japanese four-cylinder engine is so reliable still in production after 25 years

#83

Post by RickJWagner »

I just sold my 2005 CRV with the same 4. At 170,000 miles, the engine burned no oil, started first crank every time, moved the car adequately, and got 25 mpg in an suv.

I replaced it with a Corolla hybrid. It gets 60 mpg. I have expectations of longevity for this one, too.

Re: Japanese four-cylinder engine is so reliable still in production after 25 years

#84

Post by veunes »

bmurphy1976 wrote: post #69

I strongly suspected it was going to be a Honda before even clicking the link. I traded in my RSX-s many years ago for Cherokee because kids. I miss that car, that was a lovely engine even though the low-end torque was a bit anemic.

That engine had character

Re: Japanese four-cylinder engine is so reliable still in production after 25 years

#85

Post by 6SixTy »

officeplant wrote: post #44
potato3732842 wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A lot of bigger engines are running right on the edge of oiling problems these days. With fuel economy rules being what they are it's just how it is. GM isn't special in this regard. Ford is killing a lot of cams and lifters (a problem GM fought through some years ago). Meanwhile Toyota[1] is recalling blown up turbo v6s left and right (for problems that you can't just dump different oil in to solve) because they did…

To be fair Ford's small turbos are also notorious for shitting the bed, but mostly due to cooling system failures or the terrible choice of still running a timing belt. (1.0L Ecoboost engines)

Ford's big mistake with the 1.0L Ecoboost wasn't exclusively using a timing belt, it was using a timing belt submerged in oil. They did state that they engineered the rubber to withstand being submerged in oil, but ultimately it didn't really work out like they had hoped.

Re: Japanese four-cylinder engine is so reliable still in production after 25 years

#86

Post by RickJWagner »

pmontra wrote: post #30

That's a series of engines, not a single model. The FIAT FIRE [1] series has been in production for 36 years from 1985 to 2021 and, maybe you wouldn't expect it from FIAT, those engines were reliable. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fully_Integrated_Robotised_Eng...

I’d consider it very bad marketing for Fiat to use the brand ‘FIRE’ for their engine. :)

Re: Japanese four-cylinder engine is so reliable still in production after 25 years

#88

Post by relaxing »

TheCondor wrote: post #65
pmontra wrote: post #30

That's a series of engines, not a single model. The FIAT FIRE [1] series has been in production for 36 years from 1985 to 2021 and, maybe you wouldn't expect it from FIAT, those engines were reliable. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fully_Integrated_Robotised_Eng...

The Jag XK platform had 45+ year run. I'd bet that as long as the 911 is made, it'll have an inline 6 and to someone's thinking it will be the same platform as the air-cooled version from 1964. Engine architectures tend to last unless they are bad. They can do a lot on one also, the Toyota GR platform started out as a fairly vanilla V-6 but it has variations with GDI and variations with turbochargers and has been use…

There is zero commonality between a ‘64 911 and a modern 992.

Re: Japanese four-cylinder engine is so reliable still in production after 25 years

#89

Post by [deleted] »

potato3732842 wrote: post #27

25yr is "meeting expectations" for any mass market[1] engine designed after about the mid 1970s or so. A design that is both not fundamentally flawed in some way and cutting edge enough for its time to not quickly rendered obsolete the steady increase in expectations should go far longer. A design that is "ok" and cutting edge will probably go 20-30yr. A design that is behind the times, and very good (easier to not m…

[deleted]

Re: Japanese four-cylinder engine is so reliable still in production after 25 years

#90

Post by jabl »

bluGill wrote: post #73
potato3732842 wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

On older heavy equipment of low value and high difficulty servicing (think like a forklift or skid steer) it's not uncommon to replace the coolant with oil to mitigate a head gasket issue and simply drain some oil and add to the coolant on some semblance of a schedule.

One of my favorite tractors was the old Oil Pull's which were designed for oil in the radiator. (they were a gas engine, but designed to run on "tractor fuel" which is closer to diesel than gasoline - in order to work the engine had to be very hot)

It's of course possible to design engines to be oil cooled, though water-glycol tends to be preferred due to about twice the specific heat capacity, meaning smaller coolant channels, radiators, and fans are required.
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