engine reliability

[03gxeco]

i have seen so many forums bashing the reliability of the LA1 saying how much better the 3.8L from the Grand prix is and every 60* but the 3400.. why is it that i never had a problem with the 3100 or 3400 but everyone i know with a grand prix blew the engine somehow? are these simply bias opinions or truth behind the LA1?

I was considering an engine swap to the 3.5 or maybe even the GTP 3.9L, but i dont want to go getting an engine in my car that wont last me as long as the one i have would.


on a side note, What causes the whole *turns key, car cranks but doesnt start, turn key off, turn key back on and engine starts right up*? my dad's G6 GT does the same thing sometimes. is it bad gasoline?

[sleepyalero]

Originally Posted by 03gxeco

i have seen so many forums bashing the reliability of the LA1 saying how much better the 3.8L from the Grand prix is and every 60* but the 3400.. why is it that i never had a problem with the 3100 or 3400 but everyone i know with a grand prix blew the engine somehow? are these simply bias opinions or truth behind the LA1?

I was considering an engine swap to the 3.5 or maybe even the GTP 3.9L, but i dont want to go getting an engine in my car that wont last me as long as the one i have would.


on a side note, What causes the whole *turns key, car cranks but doesnt start, turn key off, turn key back on and engine starts right up*? my dad's G6 GT does the same thing sometimes. is it bad gasoline?

im sure its all about opinions, my 3400 has 177k miles on it, and still kickin.... ive never had anything bad to say about the 3400, its treated me nicely. also depends if you take care of your motor or not. alot of people will say the 3.8 swap is worthless on here im sure... its been brought up by a couple people but people say its not worth it. they are good motors, but for the say.... in my case.. 40-50hp gain i would get from doing that swap, its pointless to me.

id rather just do the 3.5

[a.graham52]

the 3.8s and its family of engines is a completly difference engine all together. doesnt suffer from the "piston slap" our v6s do. but a 40-50 hp gain over stock with a "stock" engine is quite the improvement. give a lot of room to play.

[Redog]

However the power to weight raito between those two engines is a lot. The 3800 is a lot heavier than the 3400, plus the 3800 is basicly a SBC 350 with 2 pistons chopped off, plus they come from the factory Supercharged so people automatically think they are better engines.

I'm not knocking the 3800, but in terms of life and dependabilty, they are about the same. Both engines are good power plants. And both engines have their issues, but the 60* V6 engine is known for it's LIMG issues which plauged from the start of the engine in 1980.

As for a swap into an Alero, no it's not worth it. For the SAME money, you can build a 3400 and put a blower on it and be lighter than the same car with a 3800 swap

[wws944]

Actually the 90º 3800s were based on Buick V8s, not Chevys. The 3800 evolved quite a bit over the years - ending up with split crank offsets and a balance shaft to make it very smooth. A well-maintained recent (e.g., 1988-onwards - when they got a balance shaft and other internal improvements) 3800 can go several hundred K miles without a lot of problem. Especially, after around 1993, when they got roller rockers.

A lot of 3800s were also turbo- and super-charged. The factory designed things so that the engine would make it through the warranty period with few or no problems. However some folks find it entertaining, but ultimately costly, to mess with the boost to see how high they can get it before the engine blows.

I have a LA1 in our 2002 Rendezvous. After 100k miles, about the only thing it has needed was a new intake manifold gasket. (As with most late '90s and early 2000s GM V6s and V8s...) It works a lot better in the Alero than the RDV due to vehicle weight and aerodynamics. In the Alero, I'm roughly getting 7.something second 0-60 times and between 28-33 mpg on the highway. That is fairly decent and balanced performance for a four-door family car. Of course other cars and engines are more exciting to drive - such as those with overhead cams, VVT, and direct injection engines that stay "on the cams" clear to redline. But you'll pay a lot more up front, and more when things go wrong too.

[mastershake]

215k miles on mine and still doesnt burn/leak anything. Does have piston slap though

[Nate's Alero]

208K, Bad LIM twice and a set of Headgaskets once, Two years and not a problem since the HG Rebuild. Used to be a DD, now i drive it MAYBE once a week. Still an awesome engine with no slap, just lifter knock. no burn/leak of anything either.