Let’s discuss and name engines that are legendary.
The Nissan RB and Toyota JZ. Obvious choices, But also the VW Aircooled flat 4 is somewhat iconic I feel.
Ford 302 V8, started as a 221 in 1962 and proved themselves reliable and a decent performer through the mid/late 1990s. The appeal of the Mustang “5.0” liter 302 was so great that Ford is again making a new/different 5.0 engine, the Coyote.
Ford 300/straight 6. This engine was produced from 1965 into the 1990s. They appeared in everything from regular cars to dump trucks to tractors to Baja 1000 trucks.
Ford 302 V8, started as a 221 in 1962
The 351W is also legendary – same Windsor block as the 302, but cast with a taller deck.
The AMC straight-six, which was used in AMC passenger cars and Jeeps from 1964-2006.
Chrysler bought out AMC in 1987, yet continued to produce this engine.
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Toyota 2UZ-FE. Powerful, torquey, and near indestructible. Also, Toyota had the ah-hah moment to take an engine designed for pickups and heavy duty applications and cram it into the 4Runner.
As an owner of a 1990 Lexus LS400, may I vote for the 1UZ-FE. Not as powerful, but absolutely indestructible. It’s a non-interference engine, which means the timing belt can snap and all you have to do is put on a new timing belt.
Volvo’s B engines, as reliable as a hammer, could last hundreds of thousands of miles at a time when other engines would last 100k miles and people thought that was normal.
The Jeep inline 4.0 should probably be on the list. Although mine currently has a cracked head and oil pressure issues…
As a Honda guy (and S2000 owner) the F20C/F22C gotta be in the hall of fame. A production, naturally-aspirated 2.0L four cylinder making 240HP and revving to 9K RPM in 1999 is bonkers! It set the world record for HP per liter from an NA engine at the time, and it took Ferrari to beat that record 10 YEARS LATER with the 458 Italia. And on top of all that, they’re bulletproof and can make massive power with stock internals and boost. What a marvel of engineering!
Oh yeah, K20 and K24 obviously belong on that list too :P
I know it doesn’t have the same status, but I’ve always loved J series engines. Torque is so good on those, and the extra displacement makes for some good headroom for HP, with some able to go over 400 with the right mods
Right there with you on the J series. I have a 1st gen TLX V6 and you can’t beat the smooth power delivery and reliability. I also have an F-Type V6 and while the supercharger means it makes more power the J series feels soooo much more refined
I was going to say the Chevrolet small-block 350 LT1, but instead decided on the LS2.
I respect the former, but consider the latter to be iconic due to the amount of LS swaps that happen around the world (sometimes instead using other LS variants such as the LS1 or LS3).
