Quote:
Originally Posted by demonspeed
Another aspect that gets overlooked is gearing. One could build a weak engine but put it in front of an optimally built (ratio-wise) transmission/axle.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DGthe3
You own an Alero, which makes up to about 200 ft-lbs of torque (unless you've got a 4 cylinder) from a 3.4L engine -same as my Grand Am, and we can now get V6s slightly larger with 1/3 more torque. How is that not a big improvement in a decade? The V6 in the Camaro makes almost twice as much torque as its counterpart from 30 years ago.
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The 1/3 increase from the Alero/Grand Am 3.4 in 10 years is a bit misleading, because even when these cars were new, the 3.4L wasn't exactly cutting edge (it was arguably about 15 years or more old then already). And the 2.8 fuel injected Camaro had about 165 ft-lbs. Per displacement, that is only about a 30% increase in specific torque in about 30 years. Not bad, but certainly not a doubling.
Demonspeed made another good point that I'll admit was probably unfair to overlook. The engines themselves do somewhat better torque-wise than they used to, yes, but some of the gearing they are going with nowadays is starting to get ridiculous. Now, I don't have as much experience with newer GMs as newer Fords...maybe GM does a better job...but Ford is a seriously bad offender when it comes to mating their engine characteristics with gearing and transmission shift points.
So maybe in this discussion with me complaining about torque, perhaps it would be more accurate to say that my issue is more with the overall powertrain package, and not so much the engine alone in a lot of newer cars.
You brought up my Alero (and yes, it is a 3.4). As a daily driver, it is not that bad of a powertrain. It only has 4 gears, but it drops down more eagerly when you step on it than a lot of the overly fuel economy minded newer 6 speeds I've driven. And yes, it may run out of breath at higher RPMs, and never come close to the 300hp a modern V6 will make, but as a daily driver/commuter, 99.9% of the time is spent at or below 2000 rpm. In 171k miles, I have literally only taken it to the redline 4 times.
Well, I've probably made myself look crazy enough for the night. I'm thinking of getting a diesel to replace the Olds when it dies. Anyone else think that would be a good fit for my driving style?
