Your least favorite engines to work on

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Your least favorite engines to work on

January 07, 2005, 11:59:24 PM

This question is up in the air for anyone, weather you fix lots of cars or just try to keep your vehical running.

What are your least favorite engines to work on?

This includes but is not limited too Ford, gmc, dodge, (any make), atv's, snowmobiles, motorcycles, tractor trailers, lawnmowers, anything.

Somehow the 3.8L SC comes to mind.

Re: Your least favorite engines to work on

Reply #1 – January 08, 2005, 12:10:30 AM

That would have to be the 3.1 liter in my wife's old 92 Chevy Corsica. Everything was tightly packed together so I was always getting minor cuts and ses everywhere from my fingertips to my elbows. It didn't help that in the last 3 or 4 months we had the car it just decided to turn evil and break every chance it got.
I've never actually worked on a 3.8 SC just the standard 3.8's. The look like a bear though, just waiting to make you use band-aids.
What about transmissions/transaxles? Can we add that to the question and make it a 2 part deal?

Re: Your least favorite engines to work on

Reply #2 – January 08, 2005, 12:12:20 AM

J-bodies are really bad. especially the v-6's. I know that there was a thread on this earlier, but since I have worked on two more. It sucks ass to have to bust up your elbow shoulder wrist's and knuckles and still no be able to reach the bolt. I am not to fond of 3.8 fords either.

Re: Your least favorite engines to work on

Reply #3 – January 08, 2005, 12:12:31 AM

The 3.8 in my cougar. It is easy to work on, but it feels like I am wasting my money. It's a reliable engine, but it has no marbles

. I hate to buy parts for the 3.8 when I could be using that money towards a 5.0.

Re: Your least favorite engines to work on

Reply #4 – January 08, 2005, 12:26:59 AM

for cars, i have to say the 3.8L SC, and the LT1's in the 93-97 camaros/firebirds

as for anything else, the refrideration units on larger straight body trucks are a BITCH, single cylinder diesel engine pretty much tucked behind plastic, metal, rubber, bubble gum and anything else you can think of

Re: Your least favorite engines to work on

Reply #5 – January 08, 2005, 12:48:49 AM

Tbird232, I know whatya mean about the LT1 engines, had to put a water pump on one in my 94 Caprice, it wasn't the 5.7 version, it was the 4.3 liter version, but same thing on the outside, man, I hate that shaft drive water pump...what was GM thinkin?

Re: Your least favorite engines to work on

Reply #6 – January 08, 2005, 01:03:01 AM

Actually Duramax Diesels (the Isuzu built versions) are my lest favorite at the moment.

Anyone wanting to add a transmition they hate feel free.
The Fwd Transaxel on a cadillac northstar V8 comes to mind.

Re: Your least favorite engines to work on

Reply #7 – January 08, 2005, 01:09:16 AM

I gotta transmission I well could do without, it's the M5 tranny,
most commonly found in newer Ford trucks with the 302...my 92 has the thing, and it is a pos....Mazda built, I may add...it shouldn't hve been used in even a Ranger, let alone a half ton...they only put em behind 302s, if you have a 351 windsor with a stick tranny, it's either a 3/4 ton with a ZF trans. or it's been swapped into the truck.No 1/2 ton trucks ever came from the factory with a 5.8 and a stick...

Re: Your least favorite engines to work on

Reply #8 – January 08, 2005, 01:19:06 AM

My dad 2000 Chevy Venture is pain in the a$$ to do engine maintenance....

I cant even have a full acess to the battery. Even if i remove the fuse box over it....

Re: Your least favorite engines to work on

Reply #9 – January 08, 2005, 07:59:49 AM

The Chevy 3.4 DOHC and the Ford Duratec V6 (when mounted in a Contour or Cougar) come readily to mind, as does the Isuzu 1.6 DOHC turbo when mounted in an AWD Impulse

Re: Your least favorite engines to work on

Reply #10 – January 08, 2005, 10:23:31 AM

I remember being under the hood of a 1983 Subaru GL Wagon. What a pain that was.

Chris

Re: Your least favorite engines to work on

Reply #11 – January 08, 2005, 10:49:15 AM

My cousin has an 80 Turbo Trans Am. Nothing is easy. The oil filter fits in such a way that you have to bend the old one to get it out and hammer the new one before you can start twisting it into place. To fill the motor with oil, you have to remove the air cleaner assembly to get to the oil fill tube. Three belts all of which have a specific order to go on. To take the third belt off you have to remove the first two. There is no way of changing plugs without cutting yourself.

Re: Your least favorite engines to work on

Reply #12 – January 08, 2005, 11:40:54 AM

Quote from: FordTruckFreeek

Tbird232, I know whatya mean about the LT1 engines, had to put a water pump on one in my 94 Caprice, it wasn't the 5.7 version, it was the 4.3 liter version, but same thing on the outside, man, I hate that shaft drive water pump...what was GM thinkin?

then you obviously havnt had to change an opti-spark

basically, its a a distributor like device, mounted under the water pump...making it pr0ne to failures, hard to change plug wires, and harer to change the unit itself

Re: Your least favorite engines to work on

Reply #13 – January 08, 2005, 12:17:59 PM

lumina Z34 was the worst i ever had the missfortune of working on.i didthe tranny in one with a tune up as well.that was the first and the last i will ever work on

Re: Your least favorite engines to work on

Reply #14 – January 08, 2005, 01:47:48 PM

The 246cc Sohc from my Suzuki Quadrunner.....very big engine in very small displacement and its really hard to take apart the engine from the trans (its one piece only)......