4 cylinders or 6 cylinders

[Brad B]

There's no replacement for displacement!

Yea, I've muttered that one or twice before! But then I can never make up my mind so I drive a mixture of flavors. V8's, Flat 6's, Supercharged 4's, FI 4's, FWD, RWD, AWD! :chuckle:

 

[GTO Pete]

I echo GTO Pete, but then my car is as much a form of entertainment as it is a transportation instrument. My current car is a BMW 550 which is a V8 with 360 HP and 360 lb-ft of torque. Maybe this is a midlife (hopefully not end of life) crisis, but I just love power and speed, though I rarely exceed speed limits.

I concur! 400hp & 400tq :2thumbs:



Tailwind put it very well. With modern V8s and proper driving, the difference between 4s, 6s and 8s are negligible in my book - especially when weighed against the "fun factor". 0-60 in 20 seconds? No thank you! I'll take my sub 5-second 0-60 :thx



Brad: I've been driving FWD for the past 6 years and having started with RWD throughout HS, I missed it. Considered AWD, but EVO, STi & MSP6 do nothing for me aesthetically. Had to go back to my RWD roots. :bigups

 

[spotter]

Another vote for the V-8. I tried to do the economy thing since 2000 driving a couple of different Accords with the 160 hp 4 banger and my wife has a CRV with the same engine. I was getting 26 mpg around town in the M/T Accord and my wife gets 22 mpg. My Lexus GS400 gets 20 mpg around town and is capable of a LOT more fun. Life is too short to worry about an extra 3 gallons per week of gas.....even when its premium.



I am not going back.

 

[Corey Bit Spank]

In the U.S.? Better do your homework on that! :idea

If you haven't noticed we have quite a few members that don't live in the United States.

 

[Corey Bit Spank]

I'd have thought this site, being fanatics about clean cars, would have more of an enthusiast bias towards it. Guys that would sacrifice a few MPG for a lot more fun.

I'm all for fun, but I like innovation as well. :nixweiss



Edit: Don't you also have that skip-shift...thing. :wall



I miss the I6 in the Jaguars. :sadpace:

 

[stewie]

if you were driving long distance, you would want a car that doesn't eat as much gas, hence you would want to go with a 4 cylinders. however, would it not be better to drive with 6 cylinders if driving long distance? say on a hot day where you use the ac or cold day where you crank up the heat. Would a 6 cylinder engine be better than a 4 cylinder engine driving long distance in these conditions?

what factors would drive a person to choose a 4 cylinders over a 6 cylinders other than:

4 cylinders offer better gas milage and 6 cylinders obviously is more powerful.

Thanks.

You can get the best of both worlds



V6 Diesel!!



There are many available now. Not sure you get many in the US yet though.



My Vauxhall Vectra has a 3.0 V6 24v Common-rail Turbo diesel. Standard it has 177bhp/273 ft lb torque. (this is now easily upgraded to well over 200 bhp/350 torque). Its smooth and with that level of torque over taking slower traffic is no problem at all!!



On an economy test last year I managed to get 47 mpg, yet average just over 40 normally.



(using UK figures)

 

[Brad B]

I miss the I6 in the Jaguars. :sadpace:

I agree! Things of beauty. I've had several Jag straight six DOHC cars. :up

 

[imported_Aurora40]

Edit: Don't you also have that skip-shift...thing. :wall

Heheh, in the time it took you to edit your post, you could disconnect the skip-shift. It's quite easy to do.

 

[Mr. Glass]

I also have to vote for a V8. My Lincoln does 30 MPG long trips and never below 26 on short trips. Around town is 20/21.

 

[eclipsegt05]

The V6 runs at lower RPMs at Highway speeds....70mph at 2400rpms for me is more comfortable than cruising in a 4 cyl. at 70mph and 3300 rpms. Plus I know I have that extra push if i wanted to take it up to 80 or so.

 

[boxer]

I drive a modded VW 1.8T

I get 23-24 mpg in the city, 31-32 on the highway.

I tend to drive the car hard, so I am sure I could improve the numbers.



Pushing 200whp, 240 wtq, and 2850 pounds.

 

[Kanchou]

the point being in the original post was wether or not a v6 was better for long trips while running accessories than a 4cyl.





The answer is 'not just because its a 4cyl.' a correctly made 4 cyl engine is designed to operate under load with its accesories safely and constantly.



As far as long distances, as long as its a 5spd or a 4spd with o/d, cruising differences should be minimal bewtween 2.



As for why someone would pick a 4cyl over a 6, I got an Impreza WRX with a boxer, so i have no problems with hp or torque... plus if i need milage, i can just keep it below 3krpms

 

[Quickstrike]

I drive a modded VW 1.8T

I get 23-24 mpg in the city, 31-32 on the highway.

I tend to drive the car hard, so I am sure I could improve the numbers.



Pushing 200whp, 240 wtq, and 2850 pounds.

How's the Torque Steer?

 

[imported_Astral]

zero cylinders here and gas mileage is like a v6

 

[ceiol]

4 cylinders or 6? Easy. Neither. Give me 8, in a V shape.

I've got a car with an inline 6 and another car with a V8.



I prefer the car with the 6 any day of the week!!!

 

[WSUcommuter]

I had a 4.3L HO in my last S-10 with the auto transmission. I miss the tire roasting and torque, but 20mpg killed me driving 25,000 miles a year. My '98 has the 2.2L L4 and a 5-speed manual transmission. Even though it can't get out of its own way, I average near 30mpg and have more fun with the manual transmission.

 

[ryotto]

if you want an automatic transmission i would go 6. but a 4 with manual tranny should be enough, as long as the car is light enough. i would never go back to auto, but if i did, i would not get an auto 4 cylinder. my Integra GS-R 4 cylinder 5speed is pretty quick.

 

[Kanchou]

i agree with him



(except i have an auto wrx and like it just fine)

 

[ceiol]

some of those WRXs (STIs) have more horsepower and more torque in their 4 cyl engine than many large V8s with more than double the displacement.



And I'm sure you've seen some of these modded WRX STIs -- with 400 or 500 hp at the rear wheels... crazy stuff.

 

[Mr. Glass]

some of those WRXs (STIs) have more horsepower and more torque in their 4 cyl engine than many large V8s with more than double the displacement.



And I'm sure you've seen some of these modded WRX STIs -- with 400 or 500 hp at the rear wheels... crazy stuff.

The WRX and STI both use a turbo charged boxer engine not unlike some Porsche engines. They are not at all like the inline 4 cylinder engines found in about 95% of commuter cars on the road today. I will also note that the Impreza comes in an RS version that is not turbo charged – this engine makes like 150 HP IRRC. Without it’s turbo the Subaru engine isn’t that impressive.



Having said all that, I love the Impreza and may have one as my next car in a year or two. At 32k the STI is a little more dough than I would spend on a Subaru but the WRX is a steal in my opinion.