The Top Ten Classic Six-Cylinders Ever

Photography by Josh Clason, Rémi Dargegen, and Yoav Gilad for Petrolicious

On Monday, we asked you to name the greatest pre-1990 six-cylinder engine. The responses were a bit more uniform than our four-cylinder question (too bad) but we still got answers that ran the gamut from Formula One engines like the one in Mr. Juan Manuel Fangio’s Maserati 250F to the nearly bullet-proof Mopar slant-six. While both of those engines were close to the top ten, ultimately they were beaten by, what we thought, were stronger choices. We’re sure quite a few people will be happy with number one, but let us know if you agree with the rankings and how you would change them.

#10 The Chevrolet Corvair Flat-Six–This may seem a strange choice given its limited use, but in its brief ten-year life the Corvair flat-six more than doubled its output (from eighty to one-hundred eighty horsepower). Also, it was a radical departure from GM’s somewhat conservative modus operandi with aluminum heads that incorporated integral intake manifolds. Today, in addition to powering the Corvairs still on the road, it has also spawned a cottage industry powering many home-built aircraft. We can’t help but wonder where it might be if the Corvair hadn’t been unceremoniously aborted.

#9 The Toyota M-series I-6–While it began life as a two-valve SOHC in the 1960s, the block stayed in Toyota’s rotation through the 1990s. Toyota’s first fuel-injected engine, variations can be found in the Toyota 2000GT and the last, most powerful version (about 230hp) provided power to the Mk3 Supra.

Photography by Josh Clason, Rémi Dargegen, and Yoav Gilad for Petrolicious

#8 The Aston Martin Tadek Marek I-6–Aston’s legendary inline six, designed by Mr. Tadek Marek made its debut in the DBR2, a Le Mans racer. Remarkable in the era for being an alloy engine, Tadek then developed the engine further to make it reliable enough for road use. It was such a success that it found its way into the DB4, DB5, DB6, and late-sixties DBS. Over the straight-six’s fourteen year production run (in road-going cars) its output grew consistently and early overheating problems were eventually dealt with. Regardless, how many cars can claim their engines are Le Mans racer-derived?

#7 The Nissan RB Series–Until recently, this series of engine wasn’t very well-known in the US because we never had the pleasure of importing the cars it graced. Typically found in the Skyline, the RB series is tremendously flexible (as most six-cylinders are) making up to 276hp (pre-’90) but easily tunable and solid enough to support much higher output. This engine is the reason that the Nissan Skyline’s popularity exploded in the late ’80s.

Photography by Josh Clason, Rémi Dargegen, and Yoav Gilad for Petrolicious

#6 The Buick 3800 V6–Over twenty-five million (!) of these engines were built over its forty-seven year life. It has been used in both FWD and RWD applications, sold off to another company in the ’60s and then bought back in the mid-’70s. Named one of the ten best engines of the twentieth century by Ward’s, certainly this workhorse could hardly be considered sexy, however in turbo-charged Buick GNX guise, it produced nearly 280hp in 1987! 

#5 The Porsche Flat-Six–Yes, the Porsche flat-six (any variation, really) is a very good engine. It is the heart driving the immortal 911 and, depending on tuning, can produce seemingly endless power and torque. But why didn’t it score higher? Two simple reasons: first, it has a split crankcase that tends to complicate matters. Second, the sound is completely disappointing unless you remove the mufflers and make other modifications. Additionally, their reliability is suspect, just ask a certain Petrolicious freelancer who likes visiting his 911 at the mechanic’s.

Photography by Josh Clason, Rémi Dargegen, and Yoav Gilad for Petrolicious

#4 The Dino V6–Now this is an engine that truly makes a great sound. Whether in two-liter guise or as a 2.4-liter, the Fiat Dino V6 has powered Ferrari’s 206 and 246 GT as well as the triple world champ rally-monster Lancia Stratos. Like the Aston Martin straight-six, this is another race-derived engine. Originally engineered by Mr. Vittorio Jano for use in Formula Two, the sixty-five degree V6 that Vittorio designed (that allowed for straight intakes) was so ingenious that the ideas behind it were carried over to Ferrari V8s and V12s.

#3 The Jaguar XK I-6–Since its introduction in 1949 until it was discontinued in 1992, the Jaguar XK engine found itself powering countless sporty (and some not-so-sporty) British cars due to its torquey, easy output. While most motors were cast iron, with a few aluminum alloy racing engines built, their distinctive alloy double-overhead cam heads covered an engine displacing anywhere between 2.4 liters through 4.2 liters. And they powered everything from the XK120 up to Formula racers, including the C-type, D-type, and E-type.

Photography by Josh Clason, Rémi Dargegen, and Yoav Gilad for Petrolicious

#2 The BMW M30 I-6–Like the Buick V6, this is another one of Ward’s top ten engines of the twentieth century. It enjoyed a smooth twenty-eight-year lifespan and eventually begat the M88, which powered Group 5 racers making up to 900hp! But even as a street-car-powering, naturally aspirated engine the M30 is renowned for easy torque that helps you power out of corners and is far more accessible than other cars on this list costing significantly more. It’s simply a wonderful powerplant.

And finally, #1… the Alfa Romeo Busso V6–There are engines that were produced for longer or in greater numbers or with better performance. But the Busso (named for designer Mr. Giuseppe Busso) V6, which began development in the early 1970s and has been built in a variety of displacements (we prefer the 2.5L), is simply the most glorious sounding six cylinder ever. You should be so lucky as to drive a car equipped with a Busso V6 just so you can listen to the song when you downshift. It is symphonious and really don’t we all just want a car to sing?

Images Sources: spannerhead.com, 2009gtr.com, oldcarmanualproject.com