Cars!

[kirbyklekter]

I was surprised

when I googled Chrysler Slant Six to learn that this engine had a longer run than I thought. 1959-2005. Like others have said, it was used in other applications such as farm equipment,industrial pumps and the like. So not sure when they stopped using them in new cars.The last time I saw a car with said engine was in a Dart GT and the owner had ordered the car with an added sport pkg, painted metallic gold with black vinyl top and twin pipes,on and on.

So I turned and asked my friends dad why do you think this guy ordered all the bells and whistles, tricked it out and then just went with a 6 banger? He said, the guy obviously knows what he's doing, that's a hell of an engine.

 

[suckolux]

They did have high performance options I think they called it the hyper pack in the late 60s maybe like four barrel and headers! I had a 68 Plymouth valiant with the 225 super 6 it might have been a two barrel I don't remember too long ago, but my best friend had a 66 Bel air with a 283 four-barrel and at the stoplight drag race I could kick his butt torque

 

[kirbyklekter]

@suckolux

I rode shotgun more than once in friends cars at red light races where we had our butts served up on silver platters. The look on my friends faces as the opposing driver waves buh bye and we're left saying what the? Was your '68 Valiant an automatic or stick?

 

[suckolux]

It was a very fancy Signet 200,2 dr sedan, drs car. Torqueflite

 

[madman]

I think the slant six stopped being in cars in the late 70s, and stopped being in trucks probably in the late 80s. But it's not uncommon for good old fashioned bullet-proof engines to continue to be in demand long after they stop going in cars. Look at I think it's the Chevy 454, they literally haven't stopped making them since the 60s... still make 'em!

Marine use was easily another use for the slant 6. I mean, if you wanted a 6 cylinder for a boat engine, you probably wouldn't want anything else.


@human - my LeBaron also has the vinyl sack you describe... it has two drain tubes that allow any water to drain out on the street.

 

[kirbyklekter]

@ MadMan

Chevy has a crate engine that is really popular and I think it's somewhere around 560. Do you know if it's a big bore 454 or a different block altogether. The compression ratio on my Chevelle 454 was 11.0 with the high domed pistons, I wonder what this big boy comes as. I imagine a lower ratio now days.

@suckolux Did your car have push button or had they stopped doing that. My grandparents '59 Desoto had the lighted buttons. Very "Jetsons" back then. I loved that car. Unfortunately he popped a freeze plug on the engine about half way across the bay bridge and they made him drive it to the other side which cooked the engine. I would have sued Cal Trans. Grrrr!

 

[weltron]

My daily driver is a 2005 Chevy Impala. I like the car a lot, but compared to the car that it replaced (1999 Olds Aurora), it's just not the same.

My weekend/fun/dream car is my 2001 Olds Aurora 4.0 Has 172,000 miles on it and goes like a dream. I say I get more smiles per gallon out of that car then any other car.

 

[human]

I had a couple of first generation Auroras, a 1998 model that got wrecked and a 1995 model that replaced it a few years later. The '98 model was a wonderful car and I was completely sickened (but thankfully not at all injured) when it got totaled. The '95 model had some issues that I was never able to fully resolve. I spent way too much money on it and finally threw in the towel a couple of years ago and donated it to the local public radio station. I put a link below for an Aurora enthusiasts' forum that I used to be much more active on.

I had a 2011 Impala up until last December, when it got rear-ended and totaled. I think it was a later body style than your 2005, although they both were on the 'W-body' platform. Although it never captured my heart the way the Aurora did, especially the '98 model, It was quite a nice car in its own right. The design was well thought out with lots of good interior storage and a cavernous trunk. It was also absolutely the most mechanically reliable car I've ever owned. I had it for five years and never once had a major repair. Other than putting a set of tires on it, nothing ever went wrong with the car that I couldn't handle myself.

https://aurorah.proboards.com/

 

[weltron]

@human

I've had 3 Auroras so far. The 99, the 2001 and a 2003. I wouldn't be surprised if I ended up with another first generation one eventually. The 99 was kinda rough when I bought it, but I fixed its issues and then drove it for a year and 30,000 miles. It so far is one of the most reliable cars I've ever had. What did it in was undercarriage rust. One of the spring mounts in the rear was giving out and then the engine cradle bushings started going bad.

The Impala's I like. Like you said, they're a nice car in their own way. I would love to have one of the newer ones. I had one as a rental and I loved it.

They weren't lying when they said "There's a Special Feel in a Oldsmobile". The Impala's are great cars but man, those Auroras are something special.

 

[human]

I haven't driven or ridden in the most recent iteration of the impala but my present daily driver is a 2013 Buick LaCrosse, which is built on the same Epsilon II extended platform. In many ways, it feels like a thematic successor to the Aurora. I imagine mine would feel more Aurora-like if it had the 3.6L, 300hp V6. Mine is the 4cyl hybrid, which gets great gas mileage for its size but performance at best is adequate but not exciting.

 

[madman]

@kirbyklekter, I believe that's the one. A 454 that they just bored out more and more.

 

[weltron]

@human

If you can sometime, take a newer V6 Impala for a drive. With that V6, it's downright quick for what it is and will pull 30 on the highway. It's really a very nice car.

On a side note, one time I had my 99 Aurora on a road trip. Managed to get 28.4 mpg with the V8. I was pretty impressed.

 

[human]

My '98 Aurora, which I believe would have been mechanically identical to your '99, would get 28 mpg or a little better, which I also found amazing. The '95 was a little thirstier. About the best I ever got on the highway with it was about 24, which was only a hair better than a '97 Cadillac DeVille I briefly owned, which topped out at 23 on the highway. I'm sure the V6 Impala or LaCrosse would be a real kick in the pants. The DeVille had a 300hp Northstar V8 and even at 4,000 pounds, that car would flat out move.

The LaCrosse hybrid, on the other hand, will do 27 in town and 37 on the highway. I suppose the fuel economy is a worthwhile trade-off for the comparative lack of horsepower. The hybrid system is a little weird. Rather than taking over for the gas engine, it uses the electric induction motor, which doubles (triples?) as a starter and alternator, in tandem with the the little four-banger to supplement its modest power to the tune of an extra 15hp during hard acceleration. Interestingly, the car has no exterior badging to indicate it is a hybrid. The only external indicator, if one knows what to look for, is a lack of cutouts for dual exhaust on the rear bumper. My mother has a nearly identical car and when my dad bought it, he was in complete denial that it was a hybrid because of the lack of badging. Although he understood the function of the recursive braking system, I'm not sure whether he ever fully accepted that the car was a hybrid.

 

[brando_husky]

You guys and your good mpgs hah. 


 


My best vehicle for gas mileage barely does 23. That's the Subaru wrx.


 


My daily driver, 08 sl550 Mercedes does 13/16 depending how I drive it


 


The Tahoe gets 15/18 or so.


 The bmw 525i gets 16mpg 


The Mercedes 560sl roadster gets 16 or so


 


The old Ford f100 averaged 7.2 highway driving 430 miles from Salt Lake City to Vegas 

 

[kirbyklekter]

My first reaction

when I read human's '97 Cadillac could get 23 mpg on highway was wow,that's great. I think here on the west coast our cars are more burdened with smog equipment, at least I think they are. I know we have 15% ethanol in a gallon of fuel. Price per gallon compared to the national average, through the roof!

I borrowed an Astro Van,Chevy, a while back. It had their Vortec V-6 engine and I was really impressed with the power and mileage. The other two vans they own,(large printing company) were special order Chevy Vandura 3.75 vans capable of carrying 1 and 3/4 tons of printed stock. Hardly any emission equipment on the 350 v-8 and you could burn leaded or unleaded fuel. Carrying no payload 16mpg, with full payload 9mpg, maximum on flat land!

Best mileage is my '89 Acura Integra,25-32mpg.
Worst mileage, but more fun, '70 Chevelle SS 454,9mpg. Cheveron 93 octane .41per gal. not a concern really!

 

[suckolux]

Not surprised with the caddy, my Park Ave did 27 highway and I fly! Landlady has a DeVille, actually shorter than my Buick and it does 24 highway. it would help if they would actually put the required premium in it but they're too cheap

 

[rivstg1]

my fleet

I'm currently doing some restorative work on a '65 Buick Riviera that I picked up last year ( electrical, mechanical (windows/hidden headlights), and mostly interior work.

My '57 Cadillac Sedan Deville runs like a top, still need a few electrical things , and about to replace the seat covers etc).

'89 Jeep Grand Wagoneer I"ve had for 7 years is finally running good again...now needs some cosmetic work and the interior headliner/seats are failing.

plenty to keep me busy!

 

[brando_husky]

Kirbyklekter


 


No difference in mechanics on cars in different parts of the country. Some areas are less likely to have ethanol fuel as the only option but from what I've seen it's nationwide common to see ethanol fuel predominantly. Especially in Midwest 

 

[human]

California Emissions...

My '98 Aurora was sold new in San Francisco and the RPO code sticker in the trunk showed it was equipped with California emission controls so there must have been a difference but I'm not sure what it was. That said, I do remember car ads in the mid-'70s showed a second set of slightly lower fuel economy numbers for California cars.

 

[lesinutah]

Impala

I wouldn't suggest this car at all. The car has way too much body roll.