What are some motors out there that seem to just go and go even when abused? I'm talking infrequent oil changes, no proper warm up time, and being driven like it was stolen, yet still can be driven across the country with no second thoughts? Of course, I would never treat my motor that way, but it would be nice knowing the vehicle's motor I'm driving can handle anything in its path.

Ford 4.6SOHC

Jeep 4.0, Olds 307, slant 6 225

I would have to second chevrofreak, I put 180k on a 94 cv that had been a police car with 100k when I bought it. I finally sold it at 280k to a friend who put another 40k on it before rust made it unsafe to drive. Aside from routine maintenance, it got a water pump, a set of idler pulleys and 2 alternators while I owned it.

x2 on the Jeep 4.0.

I'd also vote for the GM 60*V6 family of engines. I drove my '97 Monte with the 3100 to 195K miles, including starts in -20*F, frequent full throttle acceleration (it wasn't a very fast car, really), and many long distance trips and it never missed a beat. I did have to replace an intake gasket or two along the way, but other than that the motor was solid. When I pulled it open at 190K to change the gaskets, the inside of the engine looked like brand new. Sold it at 195K running perfectly, in retrospect I wish I'd held onto that car.

Ford 300 cid I-6

Ford Vulcan 3.0 V6
Ford Lima I4s
Jeep 4.0 I6
Ford 4.9 I6
Ford 5.0 V8
Ford 4.0 V6 (pushrod)

There are plenty of others from almost every brand, those are just the ones I have the most experience with.

My 2002 CR-V's K24A1 2.4l has been a great, if mild, engine. Oil gets changed 2-3 times a year but I did go one year with only one change and that was with dino.... It's had 6 years of stop and go with no worries. It's mostly driven by the wife who has no idea what proper warm up is. For her, warm up is back out the driveway and floor it.

MB OM616 and 617 diesels. 500k is easy with changes, but 250-300k with poor service is easily doable too; given that they are purely mechanical engines, they will just run. 250-300k is more or less going and going for most folks.

Toyota 4AFE (1.6L, not the 7AFE 1.8L)
Honda D series (Civic)
Honda B series (Integra, CRV, etc)
Ford Vulcan V6

The pre light weight casting G.M. motors were able to take abuse and keep on running. The Chry slant 6 and the Ford 300 were incredable I have lots of experience looking at them, other than oil changes and tuneups that is it.

GM 3800. I've seen many LeSabre's and Park Avenues with 250,000 miles (and up), still running great. Plus, they get great highway gas mileage.

Biggest issue (which is not a fault of the engine) is failure of the intake gasket.

+1

I would also have to say the Ford 4.6, 5.4, and 6.8

3.3 and 3.8 GM
3.0 VTECH Honda
Absolutely great engines.

In my experience, the longest running engine so far has been a mazda KL 2.5L V6 in a 626. 200,000 miles and was going strong when traded in. It also ran at around 3200 rpm at 70mph and saw 7000rpm fairly often so didn't do it the easy way ;-)
Here's one on a dyno.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OE0CyHRkWRs

Hyundai Beta I-4
GM 3800 V6, when you catch the intake gaskets.

Toyota 22R(E)
Toyota Inline 6 (in the old and newer land-cruisers, cressidas, supras)

Olds 307-4V

The two I have experience with:

Ford 4.6l V8
Jeep 4.0l I6

They keep going, and going, and going...

+1 on Jeep 4.0L I6. Sold a 92 Cherokee to my wife's cousin with 210,000 on it, original tranny etc. All it needed was a new radiator to solve an overheating problem it had. Now it is running great for him and he is hard on vehicles. 4 wheel drive still works great on it.

Worked for a Pest Control company who had a fleet of the F-150's with the 4.6 in it. Every one of those f-150's had in excess of 200K, with some in daily fleet use at 250K. The company swore by these trucks. This is in the Duluth, MN area that is tough on vehicles in the winter.

GM 60 degree V-6's (3.1, 3.3, 3.4, 3.8 etc) minus the intake gasket fiasco
The GM 2.0, 2.2
Plymouth slant 6
Mopar 318, 383, 440
Ford 289, 4.6 SOHC, 200 and 250 straight six
Saturn 1.8 DOHC and SOHC
Toronado 425 and Cadillac 425

Nissan's GA16DE and SR20DE are pretty much indestructible.

Nissan VQ's....

I vote again for the Ford Vulcan V6.

I agree! Especially on the VQ30 as the VQ35 had some consumption problems.

Saturn S series engines are also strong except for oil consumption.

Saturn 1.9L SOHC and DOHC

A large number of members have original engines with 300k+ miles on them, with one guy that has over 500k over at saturnfans.com

Granted, you have to keep pouring in that oil because they eat it up! Sadly, many of these engines meet early demises from people not checking their oil.

Chevy Vortec 2.2L in the 4 banger Chevy S10s. I know people who used them for work trucks to tow/haul way more than they should have. Some of these things have 300k+ miles on them in some of the roughest terrain.

Another one that comes to mind is those Vtecs in the old Civic Hatchbacks. Just watch the ricers who drive them....they don't die.

Oh yea, those 4.9L Inline 6 ford engines from the 1992-97 F250s. Those things belong in tanks. Ford originally made them for tractors.

Duratec's or anything designed by Mazda

I have been driving a 305 Chevrolet Small Block sice 1987 that has 364,000 miles, I have not driven anything else.

Ford 3.0L V6 Vulcan
Ford 4.9L I6 Bullet Proof!


Chevy 250 I6
Chevy 350 V8

Frank D

Any Honda four banger.

My son's 9 F150 with a 4.9L I6 with about 140k miles got 18 mpg mixed city driving on the last tank, uses less than 1/2 qt of oil every 5k miles, and did very well on the recent emissions test. The 99 Taurus with a 3.0 V6 and about 140k miles is also doing well, better than the 93 Taurus with a 3.0 V6 did at the same mileage. I expect 500k out of the Cummins in the Dodge.

Ford 4.9L I6
Ford 4.6L V8
Ford 5.4L V8
Ford 5.0L HO ( have owned three with in excess of 300,000Km on them with the living [censored] beaten out of them and they LOVE it)
Dodge 318 V8
Chevy 350 V8
Chevy 305 V8
Ford 2.3L I4
Ford 3.0L Vulcan
Ford 460 V8
Saturn 1.9L SOHC
Ford/International DT444 (Ford 7.3L Powerstroke)
Dodge/Cummins 5.9L ISB.

Even the Rotary?!?!?!



lol

Ford's SOHC 4.6 is an absolute TANK. My brother ran the dog do-do out of one for 5 years and 145,000 miles in a 1998 F150. He destroyed the transmission after 120,000 but that ol' 4.6 still ran GREAT and used ZERO oil.

I hope to drive my Vulcan powered Taurus to at least 150,000. (knocks on wood, lol.)

Also, the LSx based engines. I have a buddy with a 1998 TA M6 and he drives the [censored] out of that car and has ran numerous bottles of nitrous through it at the track, still his daily driver with 135,000 on the clock.

chrysler 3.5HO
nissan sr20de
ford 3.0 vulcan

jeep 2.5 4

+1 Toyota 22R or RE

As long as the timing chain aint slappin' it'll keep on running forever.

just about any domestic engine. the SB chevy was always a great motor, even when it was choked in the mid '70's. they still ran great, even when neglected, easy to work on, will run w/ 1/2 its plugs fouled and its oil galleys plugged. great stuff.

I have to add, I disagree w/ the mazda fans. now, I DO like mazdas (on my 4th one), but I don't think they make the best engines. the 2.5 V6 in my '94 626's were ridiculous; only 162hp IIRC, 25mpg hwy (maybe) and req premium fuel! leaky valve cover gaskets less than 60K. I did like them, but I would do a 4cyl next time.
the 3.0 in my MPV is not too bad, but they have O-rings all over the place that you WILL learn to replace-often. known lifter problems, and of course, underpowered.
don't even get me started on the rotary...
I have to disagree on the saturn comment also. the SOHC 1.9 has known head cracking issues, besides the oil consumption problem. yes, it has a chain, but they WILL fail when the oil is neglected.
the DOHC 1.9 only has the oil problem, the head is reliable. simple ignition, easy to work on also.

+1, Don't know how many of those I have seen on the used market with 275K and up. One of the most durable engines ever.

Toyota 1MZ-FE (If you change the oil)
Ford 3.0L Vulcan
Ford 5.0L OHV
GM 3.8L

ford 4.6
ford 4.0
jeep 4.0
honda d-series

Chrysler slant 6.
Chrysler 318.
Ford 300 6 cylinder.

Toyota 3.4L

Aircooled VW Flat-4!

Thought about the rotary after I posted. But some have racked alot of miles on rotary's with proper maintenance.. or alot of maintenance one of the two.

You are correct on the mileage, mazda isn't that great. However we never ran anything but 87 octane in the 2.5 V6, seemed to like it just fine. So far, its got the record in my family for most mileage with the least problems, but I guess we don't drive to much compared to some.
Ian

Toyota 1.8L
GM 2.2L OHV--this is a piston slapper, but can take abuse!

That's true. The SOHC can develop cracked heads. Not a problem on the DOHC engines. A member at saturnfans.com has 545k miles on his original DOHC engine, although I think it burns a quart every 200 miles!

toyota 4.7 v8 2uz-fe. this engine never dies, and it appears from the uoa's this engine lubricates the oil not vice-versa!

I believe the DOHC to be the stronger of the two, but I used a SOHC SL1 as a taxi years back before it blew a head gasket and around 450k miles.

In my experience the ones that ended up with a cracked head came from extreme oil starvation. Almost everyone I knew with the cracked head was a woman that would run it until the oil light came on (by then it was 2 - 2 1/2 quarts low. In an oil burning engine like that you have to keep an eye on the dipstick, and lets face it, most people don't.

+1, well said kingrob. I know a ton of folks with SOHC Saturns that routinely have 250K+ on them. A relative has a 99 SOHC and he is working on 275K as we speak with original transmission, etc.

You have to check the oil on these, plain and simple.

X2!

Subaru 2.2 and 1.8 H4 engines.

Better yet would be to modify the question to exclude any engine that hasn't been in production for more than 10 years.

Sheesh.... after looking at some of the antiques mentioned in some of these replies, I'm surprised that no one has mentioned the International 392.

Cummins 5.9
Ford 300I6
Jeep I6
Toyota I6
Toyota 22R
Mercedes Diesel in the 240D and 300D
Ford 4.6
Chevy's 5.3 seems good so far!

What about the GM 3.1 v6? I have one with 192,xxx miles on it dosn't burn any oil at all but it is a piston slapper for sure

Another oldie but goodie.

Chevy 292 I6

Frank D

Chrysler slant 6. Produced 1959-2000
Chrysler 318. Produced 1967-2002

These would still qualify.

I certainly second the Ford 4.9L I6 and the Ford Vulcan 3.0 V6. Probably the Chevy Stovebolt six.

I have my doubts about any OHC engine that runs a chain being that resistant to abuse, especially low oil abuse.

225 CI Slant6, 4.0 Jeep, Red Block Volvo I4. These engines will do 300,000 with reasonable care. I notice all of them are iron block & heads. I'm not aware of any AL engines that routinely go for 300,000 miles in normal driving.

Small Block Chevy (Gen I).
I've got 298,000 on mine. Doesn't burn a drop.
I've got JAX 5W-30 in it right now.

From my experience:

Toyota 1.6 4AFE. I drove it to 135k miles, sold it to a buddy who drove it to 250k.

Mazda 1.6 SOHC (323). Abused the heck out of one - poor maintenance, high-revving, etc...it ran like a top, burned next to no oil.

Chevrolet 2.2 OHV. What I have now, only 110k miles, but runs great, uses next to no oil...

From the 'family archives':

Ford 289 V-8. Dad drove one to about 150k miles in the 1970's in Canada. Body rusted out long before engine had any problems...

My dad has a 1MZ-FE in a 96 Avalon that has over 250k on it, still running good. He drives alot of miles every day, but I still worry about sludge even though its not my car

There have been a lot of well-designed engines that will last next to forever. Honda has had a series of great 4 bangers that have been well known for going 200K+ and not burning any oil. Every Honda 4 banger built after '89 has been an aluminum block and head.

Clark

I was not refering to short lived 200 or 250,000 mile engines but, 300,000 + engines-some going out to 400,000 miles.

Then you can put the subaru ea81 and ej22 motors in the long lived category. Aluminum, bulletproof motors. The ea82 will last forever too, but has a poor timing belt design and tends to leak oil everywhere..

If you take care of the timing belt and valve clearances and don't dog on them and wear out the seals, the Honda B18 and B20 engines should last a heck of a long time. I know a few of them with well over 300,000 miles and showing no signs of slowing down, I even know of one with over 600,000 miles on it that I posted on this forum before.

GM 5.7 Diesel of the 80's
Cadillac V8-6-4 and HT4100 of the 80's

JUST KIDDING!!!!

My votes go for: (just based on experiences!)

Chevy 350 - old and GEN 1,2,3
Jeep 258 (4.2)
Jeep 4.0
GM 3.8 (incl turbo 86/87)
GM 4.3V6
Ford 300 staight 6
Ford 302

B20 is not reliable, it is a B18 bored to 2.0L without much structural enhancement.

350 Chevy small block gets my vote. The only three vehicles I have ever personally seen with more than 400 K miles have all been powered by 350 Chevs.

Of the vehicles I have owned, a 350 TBI Chev, 302 MPFI Ford and a 305-4BBL Chev hold my high mileage records.

x2

Also the L134 & F134

I've seen some 2.2 GM OHV Cavalier motors take neglect and still run well.

How do the newer Volvo engines hold up like the 2.5T? I seem to recall lotsof Volvos with 300,000+ miles on them and still running.

Toyota 5S-FE 4 cylinder 2.2L

I still see plenty of them with over 200,000 miles, I'd say they're reliable still. Maybe the B18 more-so...

I had a 1988 Caprice wagon with 135k on it when we donated it in perfect running order. Goodwill actually called us back saying they appreciated a car that everything worked on about 6 months later. GM doesn't make them like that anymore unfortunately.

Ford 4.6L F150 engine (it has full floating piston pins that the other versions don't).

Delivery vans here have seen 900K with M1 and the 4.6.

Mine has 200K and consumes no oil between changes. It runs perfectly. Best engine I have ever owned.

The 4.6 is tough. A friend of mine has a 1998 F-150 4.6 with about 110K miles on it. The truck gets very little maintenance...my friend will drive it 8-9K miles on dino oil without a second thought. The truck gets no other maintenance. The check engine light has been on for probably 20K miles for a lean condition too...I believe it is something to do with a leak in the PCV valve hose that's common on these trucks. It keeps going though. It actually runs great to be honest. I have driven it a couple of times and it has all the power you would expect from a '98 4.6 and it runs smoothly.

Toyota 4.0L V8 1UZFE in first generation Lexus LS400 is very reliable. The gas mileage isn't good but it keeps going with very little maintenance, 12k/12mo OCI's with 5W30 synthetic and after 200k miles still running strong. The only engine maintenance was spark plugs changed at 120k miles, still has original plug wires.

B230 4 cylinder Volvo engine. AKA the red block.

What about the dodge 3.3/3.8 engines? I've seen lots of high mileage minivans, the tranny's weren't that great but the engines are pretty reliable.

Some SAAB engines also lasted an extremely long time.
If you never let your timing belt break, a Nissan VG30 engine lasts a long time, however, I have heard several horror stories about the Nissan VG33 engines. The Nissan KA24 engine lasts a long time, and when it dies, a SR20DET is a perfect fit.

This makes me wonder...
Would it be easier to start a thread called "Engines that die early" or something like that?

Honda f series engines( mine wont die)
GM 3.1,3.8
Chrysler 2.5,4.0,4.7
ford Vulcan 3.0,4.6,5.4

Not exactly and automotive engine but my vote goes to the 855 Cummins.

surprised no one's mentioned the 2AZ-FE

Nothing profound to really add here, but I'll mention some old customers' vehicles back when I used to turn a wrench. Most of the time vehicle rust got to these before the engine cashed in its chips.

GM 3.1L 300+k miles (Two lower-intake gaskets)
GM 3.8L (4 with over 200k, 3 with over 250k, 1 with over 370k miles)
GM 350 (10+ with over 175k, 3 with over 300k, 1 with over 400k miles that was a farm truck)
GM 2.2L (Cavalier platform--6 with over 150k, 2 with over 200k)
Ford 3.0L (3 with over 200k)
Ford 4.6L (4 with over 150k)
Chrysler (3.3L 2 with over 150k -- seems like the transmission was the limiting factor)

We didn't have many Asian models there for work being in a small, rural area.

My 1997 Chevy cavalier has 205k with everything being original except the abs and the timing belt. I met my wife when the cavalier only had 100k. My first oil change on the cavalier showed it was almost a quart low.
It currently doesn't burn or leak a drop of oil or any fluid for that matter. The auto trans saw it's first flush at 180k.

My 1999 Jeep grand cherokee with the 4.0L has 129k and still runs like new. We bought it with 104k from a family friend for 3k and it has served us well for the last 2 years. I had to swap out the alternator and rear main seal but thats about it.

The gas 4.2 M116 V8 Mercedes motors in the W126 S-class cars are good for a very long time if the timing chain and guides are serviced properly.

The earlier cast iron block 4.5 V8 motors were basically indestructable, as far as the bottom end is concerned, for 500,000+...

Not too fuel efficient, but built!