Thought I'd get opinions

PSUTE

Back to herding cats...
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On what the most reliable engine ever made. My vote would be for the 225 six, maybe followed by the 300 six, and the 350 eight... Diesels excluded, have no personal experience with them...
 
Gas has got to be the Ford 300 six and/or the Jeep 258 six.

Diesel is unquestionably the 12 valve Cummins and the 7.3 IDI, 7.3 Powerstroke.

And yes, I've had my hands on all of them.

Like you with the diesels though Ute, I have no experience with the 225.
 
I know you said excluding diesels but.....
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This Detroit 16V149TI is the best 2 stroke ever made. I have built several of these but it was many years ago. The biggest I see now are the CAT C-15’s and the Detroit 8V71TT’s.
 
Have you ever cut any out of an old tug boat and replace them? Fun times.
Mine were mud pumps and gen sets mostly. I’m glad I don’t see these big ones any longer. I’m too old to do that heavy shit anymore. I have a CAT 3306 rebuild waiting on me right now.....plenty big enough for me.
 
Favorite gas engine would be the older Chevy 4 bolt main 350’s. A quality build on those engines with the right Holley carb....they were bulletproof.
 
Favorite gas engine would be the older Chevy 4 bolt main 350’s. A quality build on those engines with the right Holley carb....they were bulletproof.
The splayed four bolt main 350 block compared to the straight four bolt main block is good for 900+ hp.

This is coming from a Blue Oval guy but I've seen it at the strip and dirt track.

We're getting quite a bit off op's question at this point though and I could talk about this stuff for hours.
 
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The 3.7l 5cl in my Colorado is the little engine that could. Hauled many a loads and towed a smaller trailer from Texas to Cali to Louisiana to Cali, and back to Louisiana.

It's by no means the best engine, but fuck me, it's the most dependable I've ever had outside of a 7.3
 
The 3.7l 5cl in my Colorado is the little engine that could. Hauled many a loads and towed a smaller trailer from Texas to Cali to Louisiana to Cali, and back to Louisiana.

It's by no means the best engine, but fuck me, it's the most dependable I've ever had outside of a 7.3
GM hosed everybody on that engine though.

They took the straight six from the Trailblazer and decided to lop off a cylinder for the Colorado/Canyon.
 
2 stroke Detroit Diesels, 53 and 71 series are way up on the list.


Noisy, oily, and dirty. But i’ve seen them ingest some of the nastiest looking fuel ever, and just keep going.

I thought I had a 71 series and it was just as you described: nasty, oily and dirty. I was mistaken, it was the 72 Duster's original slant six. That bastard was tough. As much as I added oil, I am sure it was a two stroke.
 
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