Ward's picks 10 best engines of 2014

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

In spite of all the criticism for the OHV valvetrain, I may admit the Chevy LS-series V8 is still among my favorite engines due to its lighter and more compact design than its DOHC competitors.

Originally Posted by mcrews

from the article.....

"But as logical as turbocharging is in gasoline engines, it makes even more sense when you boost modern diesel engines, which offer ridiculous fuel economy, gobs of torque and a very clean footprint on the environment. And we haven’t touched on the ability of a stout iron diesel engine block to keep going and going and going......"

Amen to that. We also might remember their adaptability to a wide range of alternative fuels, which is one of the main reasons I became a dieselhead.

[mechman600]

it makes even more sense when you boost modern diesel engines

The article speaks as if this is something new. All modern diesels must be boosted. There is no other way to make the EGR and aftertreatment systems function properly.

[RobertISaar]

Originally Posted by cRiPpLe_rOoStEr

In spite of all the criticism for the OHV valvetrain, I may admit the Chevy LS-series V8 is still among my favorite engines due to its lighter and more compact design than its DOHC competitors.

when i see someone verbally dump upon either(i'm guilty of it from days past), i just ignore it. they both have their advantages and disadvantages and either are capable of some fairly amazing feats that weren't thought possible 20 years ago.

[Miller88]

Which Japanese transmission does the Cruze diesel use?

[Arragonis]

Originally Posted by Old Tele man

...those are statements of LOCATION, certainly not statements of QUALITY, IMHO...

Care to be less unspecific ?

[Zoltan1]

Originally Posted by jeff88

The Chevy Cruze is pretty nice too. Not too shabby at 45MPG!

I was a bit surprised to see this. It is great to see GM putting Diesels back in passenger cars. However, with direct injection gas engines getting similar economy to Diesels, it would be tough to make a case to spend the extra money.

[Arragonis]

Originally Posted by Zoltan1

I was a bit surprised to see this. It is great to see GM putting Diesels back in passenger cars. However, with direct injection gas engines getting similar economy to Diesels, it would be tough to make a case to spend the extra money.

I'm not aware of this being the case. I know DI Petrol is improving petrol engines but there are a few other factors to overcome before they are at the same economy level, unless there is other evidence ?

The same "smaller with higher boost" is coming to Diesels too - where a 1.6 4cyl would have been the minimum size in a Cruze sized car a couple of years ago a 1.4 or maybe quite soon a 1.2 3cyl will provide more or less the same performance with less fuel used. Vekke is building a 1.2 engined Audi A8 on here too

[Arragonis]

Don't forget the internation engine of the year too.

International Engine of the Year Awards 2013

They rate the TwinAir with CNG as the Green Engine of the year. Wonder if the TwinAir is reliable yet

[Zoltan1]

Originally Posted by Arragonis

I'm not aware of this being the case. I know DI Petrol is improving petrol engines but there are a few other factors to overcome before they are at the same economy level, unless there is other evidence ?

The same "smaller with higher boost" is coming to Diesels too - where a 1.6 4cyl would have been the minimum size in a Cruze sized car a couple of years ago a 1.4 or maybe quite soon a 1.2 3cyl will provide more or less the same performance with less fuel used. Vekke is building a 1.2 engined Audi A8 on here too

I am using the Cruze ECO for my comparison. If memory serves me correct the manual ECO Cruze was rated at 42 mpg and costs $5000 less than the Diesel Cruze. I have never had the ambition to work out the payback on that, but I am guessing it would not look too good for the Diesel.

Admittedly the Diesel and ECO Cruze are not similar performance comparisons (auto vs manual trans, 151hp vs 138hp, etc). I am sure if they packaged a smaller Diesel, the numbers would look better. However, this is of little benefit for someone looking to buy a car now.

[Arragonis]

Ah, OK we are talking different things, I thought you meant MPG when you said "economy" - the TD Cruze is 46 vs 42 for the petrol one.

The difference in price is obviously the other factor. Here TDs tend to cost a little more (less that $6k) but hold their value better, plus in the real world petrols tend to struggle to make their "rated" MPG vs Diesels which often exceed them. Also Diesels tend to end up with higher miles.

Hard also to rate maintenance costs as both have the "regular servicing canary in the mineshaft" - a Turbo

The 2.0 GM TD pretty good IMHO, here taxi drivers take them to 2-300K in mixed driving without major failures.

I'd love to see a comparison of a 5-10 year old Jetta vs a Cruze - how many rattles, how solid, parts cost.

EDIT - We also get a Cruze Wagon and a Hatch!