20 WORST Car Engines From The 1970s!

20 WORST Car Engines From The 1970s!
The 1970s gave us muscle cars and iconic designs, but not every engine from that era was a winner. Some were notorious for poor performance, constant repairs, and terrible fuel efficiency. Curious which engines made driving a headache back then? Let’s take a deep dive into automotive history and reveal the 20 WORST Car Engines From The 1970s!

[@phonebackup8132]

The 225 is one of the best engines ever, you're tripping.

[@mpetersen6]

The Pinto's engine was the best thing about the car. Given a better induction system it was a strong runner. Many of these vehicles ruffered from engines designed to fit a different era trying to cope with new demands involving economy and emissions standards. Without the benefit of todays computer technology. Buick's 231 V-6 was developed in the early 60s from their small blockV-8. They see sold the tooling to Kaiser. After AMC bought Jeep they sold the tooling back to Buick.

[@dmandman9]

The slant 6 was bulletproof. It wasn’t powerful. But it was reliable.

[@Bryce-z9v]

I did some really good warm ups on the the old sloper. one of the most rewarding engines I ever tuned

[@cathyholcomb3878]

Chrysler slant 6 would often outlast the cars that it was installed in. The bodies were rusted away the engine still runs strong

[@dmandman9]

@@cathyholcomb3878 exactly!

[@ghw7192]

I had two cars with the 225 cu/in slant 6 engines and both poutlasted the cars with zero problems.

[@dmandman9]

@ That was typical. The only common problem I saw with the slant 6 was them being somewhat difficult to start on cold days.

[@dmandman9]

The Fairmount 6 wasn’t a 4.1. It was a 3.3. And it was reliable.

[@kennethanway7979]

The slant six was a tower of power!

[@southerncross3638]

I'd take reliability over power any time.

[@Bryce-z9v]

Yeah, sorry. most of these engines I am intimate with. I never realised, even being a mechanic for 45 yrs how the emission laws of the northern hemisphere nutted them,. Just seeing them on this list breaks my heart

[@victorwanstreet3038]

the gremlin had a 258 inline 6 it was great and reliable

[@southerncross3638]

Drove mine till the wheels fell off.

[@EricResnick]

The AMC Gremlin never had a 1.6 liter four cyl engine.

[@FedUpCanuck]

I absolutely love the styling of the vega and still do. Swapped the motor to a Buick v6 231 they were basically the same and the v6 went in with minor inconvenience. It was fast and end of oil consumption

[@dmandman9]

The 1977 Seville had a 5.7 (350) . The power was decent for its day.

[@dagnt8145]

When I saw the tach , on the dash of a Fairmont , I laughed so loud that I woke up my dog .

[@dmandman9]

The AMC Pacer never used a 4 cylinder engine. One of the many inaccuracies in this video

[@mpetersen6]

They tried putting the four in and it turned the Pacer into a literal Nova. As in Spanish No go.

[@dmandman9]

@@mpetersen6 i 100% believe it would have been painfully slow given the fact that it was barely decent with the 258 6cyl. The pacer was a fairly heavy vehicle. The 4cyl was outmatched even in the Gremlin. I can only imagine how it would have performed in the significantly heavier Pacer

[@Bryce-z9v]

Totally agree!

[@ghw7192]

AMC initially offered the Pacer with a 4 cylendar engine sourced from Renault, but besides being too small for that heavy car, it was also pure junk.

[@bewildered5444]

So much of this is utterly misinformed. The 'Pinto' for example suffered from premature cam wear in early iterations, but this was rectified and it was used in various capacities to power millions of Cortinas, Sierras, Granadas, Transits etc.

[@ghw7192]

I had a Ford Fairmont with the 6 calendar engine. It ate carburetors and had serious stalling problems. After it almost got me killed stalling in front of a semi, I got rid of it.

[@Bryce-z9v]

One thing I agree is the triumph engine was a dog. Even worse when BL made it into a V8. They stop and take a piss on every power pole and road sign, lick their nuts, have a scratch and have a snooze

[@mickjones1941]

2 litre ohc in uk was a wonderful engine

[@stephaneckes7438]

Downsizing is still a problem,look a Mercedes,BMW.VW,Audi! Trucky.

[@mpetersen6]

Triumph added insultto injury when they turned the 2.0 liter four into the Stag V-8. Argueably the worst V-8 ever put into a production car.

[@stephaneckes7438]

As I remember the 1.6l engine of AMC came from Audi.