Six Vs. Eight

[king_butt_head]

offenhauser i think that's how it's spelled neway makes pretty nice intake manifold's for the i-6 another advantage of the way a 6's motor wears is that there is equal piston ware on every side unlike a v setup engine that tends 2 wear on the outside because of gravity, i-6's = 300,000 mile motor's

 

[jkdillard]

I have a f-150 with a I6 as well as a bronco. I have no complaints about either. The I6 is a great motor, i don't think i'll ever swap it out for a v8. Just my opinion

 

[seawalkersee]

OK...NOW THAT I HAVE MY HIP WAITERS OFF...Firt off the reason the I6 has better low end is because of the LOOOOONG stroke. You must think that it has only six cyls and each of them is about .8 a liter. The 5.0 is a shorter stroke but has more cyls for smoother operation. Since it has a V type engine set up the harmonics allows for better rpm ranges.

As far as the H.O. goes. The cam is the only difference. Im not even sure if it makes any more ponies. It did in the 5.0. If you have a 5.0 and the fire order is 15426378 it is an ordinary 5.0. If it has the 13726548 it is a H.O. with a 5.8 cam. As far as the heads go...They were the same.

I go with the V8s becuse of availability of parts and you have a wider RPM band. If any I6 comes close to making the power throughout the band it has been really worked.

Chris

 

[texan79&96]

i have a 79 bronco ranger xlt 400v8 and a 96 f150 4x4 300-6. the 300 is an awesome motor. in the 70s when trucks were really trucks the 302 wasnt even used in 4x4s cause the 300 had more pullin power. the 300s are also used in oil feilds and even target stores as generators for thier off idle power and reliability. i am still conisderin puttin a 300 i have from a 79 f150 4x parts truck into the bronco. the last 2 years 95-96 they got a new 2 piece exhuast manifold that breaths alot better than the older ones too. clifford performance makes some good lookin stuff for the ford 300.

 

[Bradt]

That reminds me. The backup motors on some ski lifts are 300s. I forgot all about that.

brad

 

[Straight6]

What was the 300-6 primarly designed for automoblie, tractor, in other words why did Ford build the 300 when they already had good small v-8s like the 289?

 

[seawalkersee]

Like I said, it is the nature of the beast. It had more torque off of the bottom. It has a long stroke for this reason. It is not a fast rappping engine and has a fairly low redline. Not a whole lot of Power but tons of torque.

Chris

 

[KCMav713]

Since you are not trying to build a drag racing brick, and you want more power to overcome added weight of the tires, I would recommend a new intake and exhaust. Common sense shows that when you add more air, the engine runs better. Also to help the rig breath better, upgrade the exhaust. You do not have to put coffee-can tips on your rig, just unrestrict the exhaust. A good exhaust setup is a flowmaster with a series 40 muffler. It has the flowmaster rumble, and you will not lose that much power, and still keep it legal. Another simple trick is strip the internals of the rig to only the necessary stuff. Don't carry a bunch of crap in the back all the time, and you will get a little better fuel effeciency (about as good as you can get with a "boat anchor")

 

[JImmy Garcia]

81 bronco I6. I've had the truck for 13+ years and the only time that it has been Found On Road Dead it was caused by the module. If you want a great pulling, reliable, maintenace friendly motor, I would stay with the I6. I briefly considered swapping for a V8 when my last engine gave it all it could at somewhere around 250,000 miles but decided to stick with the I6 . Not to mention the 18-21 GPM I get. **** i only get 12-14 GPM in my 95 jeep YJ 2.5 liter I4. that is just my opinion. I have never had a V8 but I do know there Isn't nutttin' I wasn't able to do that a friend of mine with an 86 Bronco XLT V8 EFI could do except get speeding tickets. -_- /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />

 

[88custom]

offenhauser  i think that's how it's spelled neway makes pretty nice intake manifold's for the i-6 another advantage of the way a 6's motor wears is that there is equal piston ware on every side unlike a v setup engine that tends 2 wear on the outside because of gravity, i-6's = 300,000 mile motor's

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I have to agree with that, my '88 has 321,203 miles and runs great. Although, I have replaced the cooling system including the water pump, replaced the alternator, did a complete gasket/seal overhaul and am currently watching the rust grow like an ivy around the body. There is no question, in my mind, the straight six packs the strongest puch when it comes to efficiency and longevity.

 

[BLADE262US]

Im not goona argue that the I6 isnt a good motor . They have a rep for being a very long running motor and if you want reliability,milage,and a lot of low end grunt then it is the motor for you . I dont think youll ever get it to sound like a V8 or perform like a V8 can . My motor of choice is the 351W it can be built anyway you want low end top end whatever but face it the full size bronco weighs ALOT and it takes ALOT to get that much weight moving it will never be a race car but can be built to do pretty much whatever you want it to do . To me a lifted bronco with the rumble of a V8 is the coolest thing but thats what I like If you like something different then thats up to you . Build your truck the way you want it thats what makes it YOUR truck . As for the guy with the theres no replacement for displacement well I used to believe that too but Ill tell ya there is wanna know what its called WEIGHT . You take a full size bronco with lets say a 460 built up now you take one of these little rice burners you see running all over with the wings on the back line em up , Im sorry to say but all the displacement you can fit under the hood of that bronco isnt going to catch him because he weighs a 1/4 of what you do and has close to the same horsepower pushing it. So again if you want a race car ya better pick another body to build it from . And for the 5.8 vs 5.8 ** conversation I have both of them ** is an 86 and the regular is an 85 . There is no difference in them other than the cam and the intake thats it . Now the 5.0 is another story a regular 5.0 has big combustion chambers and cast flat top pistons with 4 valve reliefs the ** version particularly 86 has FLAT I mean FLAT top pistons which are forged and also has metric stainless steel rings from the factory and the heads are special too the combustion chambers are way different very tight . I just put a set of these heads on my 351 I built for my 89 a little port work and drilling the head bolt holes out to 1/2 and they were good to go and man does it go . So anyway like I said its your truck so build it the way you want too. /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />

 

[84broncorig]

if want to fix up your 300 go to http://www.cliffordperformance.com they have great parts for performance and power. i had plenty of six's n they ran great and strong. i will swear by them n they r so damn easy to work on too!!

 

[seawalkersee]

Nothing personal to any of you I6 guys but I like to "BE ABLE TO GET THERE TODAY" outlook of things. The I6 will run forever but it just has no range of horsepower. Again, its all in what YOU want to do. Blade, I 100% agree with you again.

Chris

 

[Justshootme84]

Here's a chart that I like to use for comaprisons:
Engine Specs

In general, the two V8's make slightly more HP than the I6. THe main difference is where the peak HP and torque occur in the powerband. The 300 I6 has a suprising amount of pulling power (low-end torque), so you will only notice a big difference at higher RPM's.

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I sometime forget what I post, but this sounded good! I also agree with Blade, build it like you want it. Do you want a daily driver, weekend trail rig, fullout race truck, tow rig, hunting rig?

I look forward to see what gas milage I get with the 300 I6. I cureently get 11.5-12 mpg with the 351W H.O.

 

[sandmann999]

I have an 81 I-6. My first question is, about what do the older ones weigh? It has absolutely no luxeries of any kind except power steering and power brakes. (Doesn't even have a headliner.)

Also, what are some good mods to do to the engine? I'm definitely building it for off-road (as I like to go camping and fishing), but I also use it to get around every day and get tired of going 40 mph up hills that everyone else is going 70 or more. I just want some more horsepower without losing my low end torque.

 

[Justshootme84]

I think a stock Bronco will weigh about 5500-5600 pounds, not including any passengers or cargo. Even at 5000#, it's still a brick that takes a while to get moving. I'm happy to go 40 mph, and let the speedsters go by. But I'm not sure how much you can "soup up" the 300-I6. You can get too much HP in the V8's (over 400 HP), and overload the rest of the drivetrain or twist the frame. The axle gearing and tire size has alot to do with performance, too.

 

[sandmann999]

I think a stock Bronco will weigh about 5500-5600 pounds, not including any passengers or cargo. Even at 5000#, it's still a brick that takes a while to get moving. I'm happy to go 40 mph, and let the speedsters go by. But I'm not sure how much you can "soup up" the 300-I6. You can get too much HP in the V8's (over 400 HP), and overload the rest of the drivetrain or twist the frame. The axle gearing and tire size has alot to do with performance, too.

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True, true. I don't mind moving along at 40 either. It's just sometimes when a six hour trip back home turns into an eight, I just wish I had an ounce more cruising power. But, if nothing else, I'm happy with it. It does what I mainly want to, and that's kick butt off road. I was mostly looking for some minor stuff to maybe toss it up 30 - 40 HP.

 

[Bradt]

Nothing personal to any of you I6 guys but I like to "BE ABLE TO GET THERE TODAY" outlook of things.

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You may take off out of the gate slightly faster with your V8, but I run my 6 at 80mph on the highway all the time, so the get there today argument just doesn't hold any water.

The basic thing is this. For the average joe and weekend trail rider the benifits of the inline engine far outweigh any actual needs of anything else. I have rarely seen anyone in a V8 go any faster on a trail than an I6 could handle, but I have seen a 302 get bogged down in spots that the 6 cruised on through.

Now if you're going to make something for mud races where starting speed is an issue, then ok a higher end V-8 is the way to go. Other than that, or something similar, I just can't see it. Trying to build a racecar out of a Bronco is like trying to use a brick as a cannonball. It will work, but there's probably better ways to go about it.

If you get the V8 because it rumbles and sounds mean, I don't ever want to hear you make fun of a ricer's muffler. You're both doing the same thing with a different sound.

just my .05

brad

 

[seawalkersee]

Wow...I just keep getting flamed here. What you consider to be getting there today and what I consider it are probably two different things. The fact is unless you have steep gears and/or heavy engine mods, your acceleration can not hold a candle to that of a rev happy v-8. As far as souping up the I-6, YES it can be done. It needs several hours of extensive head work and different rods and pistons in order to accomplish that but it can be done. There is a guy that used to manage the night shift at the Ford plant years ago. He built several I6 engines and then took them to the plant and tuned them on thier dyno. His were like the 230 and the 270 (not sure on the displacement) and not the Loooong stroke of the 300. You would have to give up some torque probably. They made good horsepower and would/had spanked several of the 50 and 5.7 guys on the track.

Chris

 

[BLADE262US]

Well no matter how you look at it , it all comes down to what you want and your preferences . Ill tell ya that there is no way a stock inline 6 is goona take a V8 just isnt goona happen the 6 will run out of legs and the V8 will happily motor by thats just the way it is all comes down to math the V8 is capable of higher rpms than an I6 by design . Shorter rod quicker stroke more rpm,s , There is a direct relationship to the rpm put to the input shaft and the rpm of the output shaft of the tranny . The faster the input spins the fatser the output spins so as far as stock vs stock the V8 will always win thats just the way it is as for off the line grunt the I6 is very good at that because of the increased stroke which directly translates into torque so yes it will have the towing grunt some people are looking for but for cruising down the highway with a C6 mated behind it right next to a V8 mated to a C6 the I6,s RPM,s are goona be screaming trying to keep up at highway speeds. Heres some info on the six I found for building one http://fordsix.com/recommendedmods.htm http://www.edmunds.com/reviews/generations...26/article.html http://fordflaresides.clubfte.com/300.html