Ward's 10 Best Engines list for '02

[LAUST]

like a wise man once said, "torque will break your neck but horsepower wins races."

Maybe in tubular frame cars but you add any weight and you BETTER have TORQUE or your done for the evening.

 

[Jason Clark]

Torque is necassary no question. Personally, it's tiring to hear "oh it's a honda/acura it has no torque" yet there are plent of hondas and other imports alike there that have no issue tearing up a big 8 or 6. I dunno but a 0-60 in the low 6's and a mid 14 second quarter mile is decent in most peoples books.

 

[TuffGuy]

of course. you're not gonna get any arguments out of me there. different strokes for different folks. i just prefer off-the-line umph. that said, the ITR's 2nd gear is ridiculous. and the rsx's fit & finish is great.

 

[Jason Clark]

Tuff, yeah, it will be interesting to see if Acura can top the previous gen ITR's with the new one. Only 20 more hp it will be interesting. That's one car I've never driven is an ITR.

 

[Evadman]

* General Motors Corp.
4.2L DOHC I-6


Hey, I agree with one

 

[Draco]

<< I drove the new maxima, was pretty disappointed, the shifter felt like you were ramming your foot into a wet bucket. Not sure what the new six speed is like but the five speed gearbox was awful. >>



The 2002 doesn't even have a new automatic tranny.. it's still the same 4spd pos from the previous years. Although suposidly they "Strengthened" it to accomodate the new, more powerful 3.5L

 

[TuffGuy]

only the future will tell.

the only problem with an 8k rpm is that the car has to be driven like it's been stolen for it to perform. so during regular everyday driving you don't get to experience the full "power" of the engine. in your experience, how often do you push it that hard?

anyway, gotta go. i'll check back later.

 

[NFS4]

Speaking of torque, the new 4 cylinder in the Honda CRV has more torque than it does horsepower. That is a FIRST for Honda

 

[Jason Clark]

Tuff, now that break in is over I'll be up around 7k a fair bit . But, I have to say and I drove the GTI 1.8T, WRX and a few others that the RSX is more drivable at low RPMS than any previous small displacement honda engine I have ever driven. No problems scooting around without getting into the screamer range.

 

[SuperTool]

<<

<< I drove the new maxima, was pretty disappointed, the shifter felt like you were ramming your foot into a wet bucket. Not sure what the new six speed is like but the five speed gearbox was awful. >>



The 2002 doesn't even have a new automatic tranny.. it's still the same 4spd pos from the previous years. Although suposidly they "Strengthened" it to accomodate the new, more powerful 3.5L >>


G35 will have the new 5 speed automatic

 

[vi edit]

<< Tuff, now that break in is over I'll be up around 7k a fair bit . But, I have to say and I drove the GTI 1.8T, WRX and a few others that the RSX is more drivable at low RPMS than any previous small displacement honda engine I have ever driven. No problems scooting around without getting into the screamer range. >>



It's tough to beat the 1.8t that makes its torque peak at 1950 RPM's

 

[NFS4]

I still don't see why they included the 2.7 liter flat six from the Boxster in the list. It's nothing special and it only has 217 HP. I say that the 5.7 liter Z06 engine (405/405) should have gotten the nod instead.

 

[BDawg]

Heh, that's a much easier list to get on since Ford stopped making the SVT Contour.

 

[Jason Clark]

vi_edit, yep it was nice for sure. I quite liked the GTI. But, I didn't like the suspension or tranny, and the styling is well just too dated a.k.a Golf'ish . Cost is about the same for leather interior as the RSX.

 

[vi edit]

Zuni, I agree on both counts. The suspension is pretty mushy even though they try and label it as a "sport" suspension. The tranny/shifter/clutch is even worse.

The clutch has FAR too much travel to it, and the stick shifter is just sloppy. I've got a '95 GTi VR6 and it's got a pretty short engaging clutch, far better than the current clutches. It still suffers from a mushy, and hard to place shifter though

 

[Emos]

Yep...VW/Audi really need to improve their manual tranny shifters. The 5-speed on my A4 had such a long throw I felt like rowing a boat! Needless to say I had a short shifter kit installed, really helped out. The 1.8T deserves to be on that list...the low-end torque is awesome and can easily be tuned to 200+ hp with an ECU upgrade. Further enhancements can squeeze out 280 or more hp...that engine can handle a lot of power!
Zuni, I'm also looking forward to the new Z!

 

[Jason Clark]

vi_edit, yep, I wonder if the new 6 speed coming for the 200hp 6 will be any better?. From what I've seen of the 2003 sketches the next gen styling is mucho better too.

 

[toant103]

i want the maxima

 

[NFS4]

I'm up for the new "6" from Mazda. It uses a breathed on version of the 3.0 Duratec V6. It also looks sweet...much better than the Altima.

 

[rominl]

wow, congrats on the new car zuni, it's a sweet ride. i have the TL type s and i love it. i have to agree with you that having a low 6 0-60 and mid 14 1/4 is a pretty damn nice car for me already. and when you throw in the price range it's just awesome.

i know there are cars with more torque but i think our cars already have plenty of torque. and yes hp and torque aren't everything at all... handling, braking, shifting, etc... all accounts for the truth performance of the car.

zuni, do you have any complains on your stock tires? the stock tires on my type s are horrible, it can't handle the power of my car at all, not to mention when i do hard cornering and stuff. i heard rsx has similar problems? also, do you think the type s suspensions are still too soft for a sport car? i thought so and that's why i changed mine not too long ago.

and glad that your 1st and 2nd gears are still doing fine. i have heard quite a few sad stories about tranny grind on rsx too.... fingers crossed. i am probably going to buy the rsx type s by the end of the year, so i'd like to get more feedback on the car

oh yeah zuni, i suppose you visit a lot of sites and forums about rsx?

 

[TuffGuy]

<< Tuff, now that break in is over I'll be up around 7k a fair bit . But, I have to say and I drove the GTI 1.8T, WRX and a few others that the RSX is more drivable at low RPMS than any previous small displacement honda engine I have ever driven. No problems scooting around without getting into the screamer range. >>


BREAK IN? BREAK IN? MAN, WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?

 

[vi edit]

<< I'm up for the new "6" from Mazda. It uses a breathed on version of the 3.0 Duratec V6. It also looks sweet...much better than the Altima. >>



I'll take the hatchback model in bright yellow, thank you

 

[LAUST]

<<

<< Tuff, now that break in is over I'll be up around 7k a fair bit . But, I have to say and I drove the GTI 1.8T, WRX and a few others that the RSX is more drivable at low RPMS than any previous small displacement honda engine I have ever driven. No problems scooting around without getting into the screamer range. >>


BREAK IN? BREAK IN? MAN, WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU? >>


Don't buy a centerforce clutch or many other performance clutes if you don't belive in break in

 

[Squisher]

General Motors Corp.
6.6L Duramax OHV V-8

What stump puller does that go in?

 

[PsychoAndy]

<< General Motors Corp.
6.6L Duramax OHV V-8

What stump puller does that go in? >>



Chevy Silverado's. AFAIK ,only on the the 2500 and 3500 HD models. I think its being offered as a $4,000 option. GMC may also use them.