best stock engine

[Jaime]

I really don't have any basis of experience to argue either way as to the best offroad engine, other than to say that my D1 with 128k miles is still going strong and serves me just fine when it comes to both on road and off-road (2x month) performance.

What has really impressed me though is the electronics. I thought that the highly computerized engine would be prone to electrical failures, but I've been pleasantly surprized.

I've dunked my engine ECU twice, and had my truck flooded to the bottom of the glove box. In both situations, I opened the ECU box, dried the circuit boards in the sun, put it back together, and the truck started up just fine.

In the "up to the glovebox" dunk, I also removed all the wet relays, took the covers off and dried them. I also had to remove and dry the remote entry ECU and the radio amp. Both work just fine.

So to me, the convenience that the advanced electronics provide overshadow the inconvenience of waiting for an ECU to dry.

And to reduce the chance of water affecting my electronics, I've sealed my ECU with Hylomar, and coated every electrical connector I could think of with dielectric grease.

I've also built and installed a snorkel to keep the engine from inhaling water.

As you might gather, there is lots of water where I wheel.

 

[p m]

Jaime,

Personally, I think EFI in general, and OBD-2 EFI in particular, is the best thing that happened to internal combustion engine in 100 years. It just happens that there are more mechanically, than electronically, inclined people out there; and, while ECU can be fixed in one's garage, one would need skills and equipment outside even the dealer's capabilities.
I don't think electronics is that much of a reliability concern - if you have spare parts at hand, know how to diagnose faults, and bypass whatever functionality you've lost.

Consider this - Radio Shack has enough parts to get the Rover moving when ECU is completely fried.

 

[Jaime]

Apparently L/R does not have as much confidence in their electronics as I do.

I was in Ecuador in 1998, and the way D1s were equipped for that market at the time were with carburators, distributors, and manual transmissions.

The reason given was that 3rd world countries did not have enough mechanics with the tools/skillset to work on the more advanced systems.

 

[kennith]

PM,

If you are referring to the relatively simplistic nature of the second engine, I get your point. My only issue was with the almost equally simplistic nature of the 1971 Rover V8. Now, I don't actually have any problem with 4 cyl engines, some of my favorite cars in various endurance events run them.

I definately agree about the lack of trained service technitions in certain areas of the world, but you would be suprised at what some of those open air car shops are capable of.

Cheers,

Kennith

 

[BraveSirRobin]

I've never owned one, but most of the people I know who do are happy with them. I personally like straight sixes in general, so it would get a good vote from me, albeit not a particularly informed one.

Cheers,

Kennith

I can second that with a marginally informed opinion derived from acutal ownership of straight six off roaders. The Jeep 4.0 pulls like a tractor from very low revs (It is interesting to see where various engines make their torque--very important offroad). When coupled with an auto, 4:1 TC, 4.11 final get you some crawling credentials.
I've also owned a 22RE powered toyota pickup as well as a few V6 toyotas. Nice engines but make their grunt at a little higher an rpm. Our 4.0 LR V8 is a nice compromise but is decidedly fiddly when it comes to service, Lucastronics, and leaks.