Ward's Top Engines for 2005

[Poverty]

Well C/D has just proven themselves to be a crap Publication. The porsche is a drop top which comprimes performance and then they are trying to compare two sports toures to a supercar like the GT? The DB9 and SL65 AMG are high luxury machines. The DB9 is nearly like 2 tonnes and the SL65 is over 2 tonnes.

 

[Tornado]

Well C/D has just proven themselves to be a crap Publication. The porsche is a drop top which comprimes performance and then they are trying to compare two sports toures to a supercar like the GT? The DB9 and SL65 AMG are high luxury machines. The DB9 is nearly like 2 tonnes and the SL65 is over 2 tonnes.

It also has more than 700 lb/ft of torque. And more than 600 BHP. Look at it's performance numbers. It hides it's weight very well. The DB9 should not have been in there, maybe more likely the Vanquish S, but Astons in general aren't very fast compared to this crowd. And it has already been said why they didn't test a Turbo Coup'e. As an aside, does anyone else find it funny that Lamborghini's keep having transmission failures during performance tests? Motor Trend broke the shift linkage in a Murcielago a couple of years ago, and Car and Driver even managed to break the tranny in the imitation Lambo.

 

[Joey D]

Guess Lambo doesn't really build "racecars" if the tranny breaks on the simple magazine tests.

 

[My_Sterious]

I completely missed that list!
But anyway, there are some pretty nice engines there that really deserve to be there, but this: GM 2.8L turbocharged DOHC V-6. WTF? One of the crappiest engines made this year. All I've heard of it has been bad.
And yeah, I too am surprised there are no Honda engines on the list. I thought the 1,8L SOCH L4 was quite good and definately worth putting to the list.

 

[Joey D]

But anyway, there are some pretty nice engines there that really deserve to be there, but this: GM 2.8L turbocharged DOHC V-6. WTF? One of the crappiest engines made this year. All I've heard of it has been bad.

Explain how it's crappy? I've heard only good things about it.

 

[YSSMAN]

Guess Lambo doesn't really build "racecars" if the tranny breaks on the simple magazine tests.

Maybe its because the edditors get so used to working the tremec units in Dodge Vipers and Chevy Corvettes that they think that the transmission in the Lamborghinis can do the same. But it seems like they had this problem even with the Diablo and the Countach.

C/D is hardly a crap publication, BTW. I would rank it as high as Top Gear worldwide, and by far the best American publication out there as they actually DRIVE the cars and then rate them... I really cant say the same for Motor Trend (C/D's biggest compeditor in the US) as they take a lot of pictures and then make a decision.

...And even then, if C/D is such a crap publication, why were they the ONLY Automotive Magazine invited to test the Bugatti Veyron 16.4 and take it to the 253MPH limit? Top Gear only got to drive one, too bad.

 

[Joey D]

I just don't like some of the stuff in C/D, I'm sure its a good magazine but I don't bother to read it. I think AutoWeek is the best outta all the magazines.

 

[YSSMAN]

Wassent Autoweek started by a former C/D edditor? Or was that Automobile? I know that C/D and R/T have had a long history of a bitter rivalry, and its funny hearing them bash eachother in every issue.

 

[niky]

Lambo's clutches are notoriously lousy at handling all the power+the AWD system... Jay Leno cited it as a problem with owning a Lambo... "You're going to get embarrased at the stoplights by Civics because you don't want to fry the 17,000$ clutch" (not an exact quote, but that was the gist of it)...

A local publication here fried the clutch in one day of driving on a brand new Murcielago.

 

[Joey D]

Wassent Autoweek started by a former C/D edditor? Or was that Automobile? I know that C/D and R/T have had a long history of a bitter rivalry, and its funny hearing them bash eachother in every issue.

I think that was Automobile but I'm not entirely sure to tell you the truth.

 

[My_Sterious]

Explain how it's crappy? I've heard only good things about it.

Well one of our friends bought the Saab 9-3 Aero with that exact engine and after like 2500 km it started to eat a little too much oil than what it should. Plus the owner said it's not as powerful as it could've been. Ofcourse the oil-thing could be just a "monday-piece" but still... He wasn't happy with the engine. And that's all I've heard about that engine

 

[Joey D]

Well one of our friends bought the Saab 9-3 Aero with that exact engine and after like 2500 km it started to eat a little too much oil than what it should. Plus the owner said it's not as powerful as it could've been. Ofcourse the oil-thing could be just a "monday-piece" but still... He wasn't happy with the engine. And that's all I've heard about that engine

You might wanna check out some reviews on it, things I've heard said it was good. All cars can be sucky if you get a bad one.

 

[JCE]

You might wanna check out some reviews on it, things I've heard said it was good. All cars can be sucky if you get a bad one.

A friend of mine last year bought a brand new Acura TL and after a little over 5000mi the engine seized up. Honda's got decent enough quality for that not to happen...but everyone gets a lemon now and then. The 9-3 is a very good car so I chalk that guy's up to just being a lemon.