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.
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.