Info on Engines in Today's New Cars

S

Sierra048

Joined
Feb 26, 2011
Messages
1,239
Location
N. Georgia Mtns
The wife and I have just now started looking at what will be a replacement for our 2014 Nissan Frontier. There is no hurry, especially right now, but we decided to start before the need arises. Started this thread to hopefully get some feedback on the engines in the vehicles we've looked at so far. Wanting to know how reliable they are, any known issues that would make it a bad purchase, etc... Most of the one's we've looked at so far have had turbos in them. I've never owned a vehicle with a turbo so when the time comes, and if the vehicle has a turbo, I'd like to know what to expect. Below will be the first few vehicles/engines we've looked at so far. The list should grow given the chance to visit more dealers/brands. Thanks in advance for any help.

1. 2022 Buick Envision with the 228 hp 2.0T.
2. 2022 Hyundai Santa Fe with the 191 hp 2.5L NA
3. 2022 Ford Edge with the 250hp 2.0T Eco Boost
4. 2022 Nissan Pathfinder with the newer 284 hp 3.6L V6
 
Turbos give you great torque but add complexity and the powerband is not as linear/predictable. Buying brand new i would consider both with a slight preference to turbo. RUN away from the chinese buicks. Hyundai/Kia is pretty solid today and the warranty backs you up.

Your truck will be worth a lot more right now but if you sell high you tend to buy high.
 
Sierra048 said:
1. 2022 Buick Envision with the 228 hp 2.0T. Don't know about Buick, but Impalas and Blazers with that engine seem to be having turbo issues quite frequently. Plus occasional piston melt special. Pretty rare-ish, but still frequent enough to highlight it.
2. 2022 Hyundai Santa Fe with the 191 hp 2.5L NA So far seems to be ok, but too early to tell. Last 2.4L was a hit or miss on quality control, engine-wise. Some go 200k with slight piston slap, others throw a rod through the block without warning.
3. 2022 Ford Edge with the 250hp 2.0T Eco Boost A hit or miss. Some make it past 200k with ease, others melt pistons and kill turbos by 60k. At least according to 2021 and earlier years. I'm unaware of any changes for 2022 model year.
4. 2022 Nissan Pathfinder with the newer 284 hp 3.6L V6 It's actually 3.5L V6, not 3.6L. Reliable engine, and should be a good combo with the RWD based 9-speed automatic, unlike previous generation with FWD based CVT.
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Take all this info with a grain of salt. I never owned any of these vehicles, but do watch the model-specific forums quite frequently. These are just main complaints I saw from owners while scrolling through. And of course most of these issues would be covered by warranty if you're buying new.
 
One of the many numbers I look into when I'm comparing cars gives me some idea how hard the engine will be working to move it around. I started looking more closely at this when turbo 4s started becoming common replacements for V6s.
The Pathfinder has the advantage of doing the least amount of work to move itself around, and isn't very highly stressed. It also has no turbocharger complexity. This doesn't necessarily make it the quickest, as the powerband in that 3.5 is very different than a turbocharged engine will be, but being a Nissan VQ engine, it's very likely to be bulletproof. Given the comments above as well, I'd go with the Pathfinder.

1. 2022 Buick Envision with the 228 hp 2.0T. 16.5 Lb per HP, 114 hp per liter
2. 2022 Hyundai Santa Fe with the 191 hp 2.5L NA 19.9 Lb per HP, 76.4 hp per liter
3. 2022 Ford Edge with the 250hp 2.0T Eco Boost 17.0 Lb per HP, 125 hp per liter
4. 2022 Nissan Pathfinder with the 284 hp 3.5L V6 15.7 Lb per HP, 81 hp per liter
 
They use the GM 2.0 (LTG) turbo in everything. My Malibu has one, the ATS, CTS, XTS, XT5, Impala, Blazer, Terrain, Traverse, Camaro and I am missing some. I follow them. There are millions of them out there running around with no issue.

The Malibu is 259hp and 295 FT/LBS of torque. The ATS. Camaro and other ones are 275 HP and 295 FT/LBS of torque.

The three biggest issues are oil leaks from the timing cover, carbon build up (D.I., but not a lot of complaints) and the 2013 and 2014 had piston issues, they are updated and it is no longer a problem. I have not heard of any turbo failures. Big thing is change the oil more frequently on them. Ours has been perfect. The Malibu has not been back to dealer for anything. (well water in the gas tank but this a different subject.) We are close to 80,000 miles on a 2015, no make up oil, no repairs. I did the spark plugs at 60,000 as recommended and one transmission drain and fill.
 
How long are you going to keep it? 8 years again? 100k? In general I'd think the turbo engines should last atleast that long without a major repair if they make it through the warranty period. If you are buying for a longer run, I might go for an NA engine, but you have to research the particular one for sure.
 
I gotta be the why not guy here.

Toyota Sienna, hybrid awd, 35+ mpg everywhere, zero doubt about quality, and you'll have way more space than any crossover.

Kia Telluride: You have to order and wait 6+ months but you may have instant equity if you can purchase at MSRP. Nice SUV too.
 
Last edited:
ls1mike said:
They use the GM 2.0 (LTG) turbo in everything. My Malibu has one, the ATS, CTS, XTS, XT5, Impala, Blazer, Terrain, Traverse, Camaro and I am missing some. I follow them. There are millions of them out there running around with no issue.

The Malibu is 259hp and 295 FT/LBS of torque. The ATS. Camaro and other ones are 275 HP and 295 FT/LBS of torque.

The three biggest issues are oil leaks from the timing cover, carbon build up (D.I., but not a lot of complaints) and the 2013 and 2014 had piston issues, they are updated and it is no longer a problem. I have not heard of any turbo failures. Big thing is change the oil more frequently on them. Ours has been perfect. The Malibu has not been back to dealer for anything. (well water in the gas tank but this a different subject.) We are close to 80,000 miles on a 2015, no make up oil, no repairs. I did the spark plugs at 60,000 as recommended and one transmission drain and fill.
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The 2.0T in my 2017 Buick Regal GS has been perfect for the last 4yrs with 16K on the clock, she gets regular oil changes and Premium gas. Hasn't been to the dealer also. (y)
 
Malo83 said:
The 2.0T in my 2017 Buick Regal GS has been perfect for the last 4yrs with 16K on the clock, she gets regular oil changes and Premium gas. Hasn't been to the dealer also. (y)
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I don't think the engine or turbo is what you would worry about in the chinese buick. Its all the other things. Would you buy a car from Harbor Freight?
 
ls1mike said:
They use the GM 2.0 (LTG) turbo in everything. My Malibu has one, the ATS, CTS, XTS, XT5, Impala, Blazer, Terrain, Traverse, Camaro and I am missing some. I follow them. There are millions of them out there running around with no issue.

The Malibu is 259hp and 295 FT/LBS of torque. The ATS. Camaro and other ones are 275 HP and 295 FT/LBS of torque.

The three biggest issues are oil leaks from the timing cover, carbon build up (D.I., but not a lot of complaints) and the 2013 and 2014 had piston issues, they are updated and it is no longer a problem. I have not heard of any turbo failures. Big thing is change the oil more frequently on them. Ours has been perfect. The Malibu has not been back to dealer for anything. (well water in the gas tank but this a different subject.) We are close to 80,000 miles on a 2015, no make up oil, no repairs. I did the spark plugs at 60,000 as recommended and one transmission drain and fill.
Click to expand...
Malo83 said:
The 2.0T in my 2017 Buick Regal GS has been perfect for the last 4yrs with 16K on the clock, she gets regular oil changes and Premium gas. Hasn't been to the dealer also. (y)
Click to expand...
In this case I stand corrected. I've seen a few bad turbo threads, so that gave me an impression that it is an ongoing problem, but I guess that must be just the early models and hopefully no issues on new ones. As far as pistons - in 2021 that still seems to be an issue, in and out of warranty. Not every 2.0T obviously, but a good amount to justify a borescope inspection before finalizing the purchase. That issue DOES NOT happen on Camaros for some reason though (longitudinal engine layout), but every other model (transverse configuration) seems to be affected to certain extent.

As some other posters mentioned - do not overlook the 2022 Toyota Sienna Hybrid AWD.
 
Your list is all so different from your 2014 Nissan Frontier it's hard to say! How has your Frontier treated you?

I'd avoid the all new 2022 Pathfinder. Many reports of weird problems that seem to be pointing to the new to this model transmission.
 
dareo said:
I don't think the engine or turbo is what you would worry about in the chinese buick. Its all the other things. Would you buy a car from Harbor Freight?
Click to expand...

So, by this measure, a made in China $99 Harbor Freight Hercules 1/2" impact is the same quality as a $300 Milwaukee M18 1/2" impact which is also... wait for it... made in China?

Or is it really that quality, regardless of manufacturing location, is largely dictated by the cost and effort a manufacturer is willing to put into designing and manufacturing quality products and there are plenty of high quality products made in China, like that Milwaukee impact or the iPad I'm typing this message on?
 
MrHorspwer said:
So, by this measure, a made in China $99 Harbor Freight Hercules 1/2" impact is the same quality as a $300 Milwaukee M18 1/2" impact which is also... wait for it... made in China?

Or is it really that quality, regardless of manufacturing location, is largely dictated by the cost and effort a manufacturer is willing to put into designing and manufacturing quality products and there are plenty of high quality products made in China, like that Milwaukee impact or the iPad I'm typing this message on?
Click to expand...
Yes, you can get high quality products made in China, and perhaps i would trust a chinese Toyota product, even though i would not be thrilled about it being made in China. Buick? Not so much. I'd rather it be made anywhere in Europe, mexico, canada, US, anywhere before china.

A lot of components are made in china and sent to final assembly so its practically unavoidable to be driving chinese but i would personally want to avoid a chinese built car if possible.
 
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