I got curious about why I6 and V6 motors perform so differently and why the I6 outlives a lot of other engines. I searched around and no one really seemed to have a technical explanation about why I6 motors are so durable, and why V6 motors perform differently. Can anyone help me out?

 

because most I6 motors are mopar, thats why. Mopar isnt too big into v6's either.

CUMMINS!!!!!! WHOOO!!! now that is a bad @ss I6

 

I've always believed that inline motors last longer than "V" motors because they have more bearings on the crank so the wear and force on them is spread out among more. Could be nonsense but, it makes perfect sense to me.

 

The I6 engine is an old tested design. A former American Motors factory worker told me that the I6 was originally used in the early/mid '50s Rambler, and has been carried through since then. I've had several mid-60s versions in Ramblers that ran almost 200,000 miles before the bodies rusted out beyond repair. My lady friend's '98 now has 150,000 on it, and still doesn't use a drop of oil between changes.

 

it might be bcause the v motors put diagonal stress on the bearings while the inline motors put stress straight down. It makes sense to me, so does what Buck said.

 

A couple ideas I've heard before, the cast iron block as opposed to the aluminum block, the fact there is less vibration due the straight configuration, and the increase in bearings that Buck mentioned. Seems to me if they've been making/perfecting this motor for close to 60 years they must have figured out just about every conceivable way to make this motor into a bullet proof beast.

 

the best I6 is Fords 300-6!

 

No way man AMC slant 6 it wil run forever

 

Iv always heard that I6 how more low end torque While the V6 has more top end speed

 

i agree with whats been said, also having an all cast iron motor is part of it, cast iron head and block, newer motors are cast blocks and aluminum heads, or all aluminum. its just a great time proven engine.

good thing they got rid of it.

 

how many mopars I6's are there?(hemi sixes(Aust.), 258, 232, and the 4.0L) After you answer that look at how many ford I6s there are?(300-6, 200-6, 250-6, 170-6, 240-6, 144-6, fords aust. 4.0L)

Cummins aint mopar thats a company on its own, so that motor dont count but ford has more I6 than mopar. I may have missed a few mopar but I belive thats about all of them.

 

Slant- and Inline are two different blocks.

 

but! mopar puts cummins in thier trucks! I still thinks cummins is the best.

 

the slant is an inline motor

X2 on cummins

 

Dito

Longer life could be from the fact that the L6 turns less RPM's than what a V engine would. This could probably play a factor.

I also think that the L6 has less piston crown & skirt wear, due to the fact that it runs vertical in the cylinder wall, as opposed to a V engine, where the bottom half of the cylinder wall would see more wear- and overtime perhaps an out-of-round condition could occur- resulting in poor ring performance. Could be wrong.

I've had similar discussions with diesel mechanics- they say that the L6 lasts longer as opposed to a V engine because of less vibration. With regards to diesels, I don't see how they draw that conclusion. My 7.3 IDI is a 444 CU IN V8, and has nearly no vibration compared to a 6BT Cummins of the same year.

In discussion of V's to L's on diesels- a diesel is a slow lugging motor, and so is a straight 6. A V8 is a high revving motor, where as a diesel isn't. To me, a V8 diesel makes no sense at all. It's an oxymoron. My truck has no power down low, it has to wait on boost pressure, which only comes about as a result of higher RPM. It's got power on the hwy, but around town, a L6 Cummins would be the better bet.