1UZ-FE Pros and Cons

[jibbby]

I've been a huge supporter and still am of the 1uz-fe engines for over 10 years now, and am still amazed today by how durable these little V8 engines are....

However, as the years fly by other larger and more effecient engines over shadow the older 1uz-fe's in comparison..

This is my take on the 1UZ-FE and would love to know your thoughts too? -

PRO's -

1) A very well designed and reasonably effecient motor for the liter size..

2) Incredibly durable and reliable...(probably because of the outstanding engineering design and also do to the fact that each 1UZ-FE engine is blue printed at factory production)......Very slow to wear out...

3) A very smoothe and quiet operating engine at stock with an outstanding smoothe idle feel...(do it's dual over head cam design)

4) Decent fuel economy for a V8 motor...

5) Maybe the best priced used motor for the $......

6) Great cost effecient motor to swap into light weight cars for performance......Also has the ability to handle up to 400-500whp with good tuning...


CONS-

1) Underpowered in comparison to todays V8 motors..Even the smaller new V6 infinity and Nissan N/A motors which are rated at 280-300hp at stock overshadow the 250hp rated older 1UZ-FE motors..(In power and fuel economy)...

2) Building these motors for power is painfully limited due to the smaller engine block 4.0 liter size..(N/A speakiing). (300hp max on average)...No after market boost applications are manufactured except for the Eaton Superchargers...No ready made turbo applications...

3) Turbo, supercharging and building up the engines internals to support "BIG HP" becomes very costly compared to other V8 engine builds. The 1uz-fe motors are simply not consumer friendly when building in comparison to others.....



Do you guys agree with my assessment?

 

[bango]

Well Yes and no,Big HP have to be defined..how big?,Its true after market performance parts are costly,ie rods,pistons arp's etc...but that surely applies to other motor also.
From what I understand,with Mild SC,or Turbo's ,the cost is not that bad,which should give 400-500 hp with stock internals,with tuning offcourse..What cost are the base engine from the newer breed ,ie V6 infinity and Nissan N/A motors ?

 

[jibbby]

Bango - Just looking into recent Ford and GM V8 engine builds you save tons of money on installed forgies, engine bores, also the power gains are far greater because of the larger liter sized motors that is offered by Ford, GM, Dodge, etc..........

The V6 newer engines that I mentioned would probably be very costly to build up but I was only referring to the stock rated horse power differences between the newer smaller engines and the 1uz-fe motors....

 

[bango]

Yeah,i know the GM and ford Motors are cheaper and parts are cheapers,I have also ironblock pushrods motors(2 of them).They cost a bit too,once you get above 450 hp,the cost climb also,though probably not as much as 1uz-fe ,but hey..4 cam 4 valve heads..
You still looking at $8000-12000 Aus,to have these GM/Ford pustrods giving 500-600 HP NA..Good heads for these not cheap.forged crank /pistons etc..
Still,have to weigh it all up,I personally got to like the 1uz for its "smaller" capacity capablities...In the end im sure the cost will work out similar in real terms..Im talking off the shelf performance,though you have more chance in picking up good deals on GM/ford parts caused there's a bigger market..

 

[Anaema]

here in the States there are 700+ HP NA small blocks, and 850+ big blocks. but those engines are running anywhere from 350 cid to 652(the biggest ive heard of). even small blocks are pushing 7.4L(454). thats way more displacement than a small 1UZ could even try to push. and even though they are reliable motors, they just cant stand up to the aftermarket you get with a domestic small block. there are even aftermarket LSX blocks now, also capable of 454 cid. the kind of displacement that modern domestic small blocks is impossible to achieve in a 1UZ. you might, MIGHT, be able get a 427 out of the new Tundra engine, but i wouldnt get my hopes up.

 

[Lewis]

You wouldn't want to get that out of these engines though, would you? That's the beauty of it, a small little V8 engine, capable of great things, if anything I'd even make it smaller, reduce stroke to get a more rev happy engine. Look at exotic super car V8's, namly Ferrari, so far the 4.3L in the F430, is one of the bigger ones they have, and it's pushing out 490 BHP N/A, although there is huge amounts of engineering that is put into those engines but still.
Just my thoughts.
Cheers,
Lewis

 

[jibbby]

Aneama - Well said...

Guys, guys, I know the 1uz-fe are great little motors that is why I own one....Little is the key word I am usiing here, not poor and bad...Dual oiver head cams rock and I do love these little engines.......

If the 1uz-fe was a stock 5.0 liter or larger motor tell me you wouldn't be happier? I know I would....That would bring an extra 100hp or so and that would make a nice N/A difference...Building engine power on that would be achieved with much greater success........That is all I am saying...

 

[Lewis]

I wouldn't me happier

 

[jibbby]

Sure you would Lewis.....Come on the exact same engine design, block size but one or two liters sizes bigger...How could you hate that? Maybe for fuel economy but that would be it.....

Also why do so many lextremers think about or perform larger engine bores on these engines? To down grade, I don't think so.. and most use American forged internal engine parts to fit in these larger bored out 1uz-fe engines....See my point... Bigger is better...Athough, some women seem to think the size of the wave is not as important as the motion of the Ocean... Could that same theory apply to the 1UZ-FE engines too????...:33:

I do think these engines are really the best for swapping into smaller and lighter weight cars and 4X4 trucks.. For the $$$$$$ you can't beat it....

 

[bango]

Love the one you're with...was a good line in a song....Its the 4 litre FI,thats got us all going,I cant wait to driver one of these 1uz with F1 around 25 psi..:should make up for a few litres..

 

[Lewis]

Haha, Jibby :smileeek:
Cheers,
Lewis

 

[jibbby]

Love the one you're with...was a good line in a song....Its the 4 litre FI,thats got us all going,I cant wait to driver one of these 1uz with F1 around 25 psi..:should make up for a few litres..

Good song...So is "I can't drive 55"....Boosting will make up for liter size you definetely have a good point...However 25psi boost you better install some expensive forgies and go broke or you may throw a rod or crack a piston...Hey but boost away that is what I say.........Peek the power until she pops...These engines are fairly cheap to replace hear in the States anyway.....

 

[Anaema]

Sure you would Lewis.....Come on the exact same engine design, block size but one or two liters sizes bigger...How could you hate that? Maybe for fuel economy but that would be it.....

Also why do so many lextremers think about or perform larger engine bores on these engines? To down grade, I don't think so.. and most use American forged internal engine parts to fit in these larger bored out 1uz-fe engines....See my point... Bigger is better...Athough, some women seem to the think the size of the wave is not as important as the motion of the Ocean... Could that same theory apply to the 1UZ-FE engines too????...:33:

..... hmmmmm. only if you have a turbo

 

[cjsupra90]

Compairing the early 1UZ to todays V6's and V8's is an unfair compairson. The early 1UZ cam out in 89 in the states and back in 89 there weren't any 6's making even close to 250hp and 260tq in stock form with the exception of maybe the 4.3L chevy V6 in tq rating and the 8'd of that time were at about the same power rating yet didn't get near the gas milage of the 1UZ.

Look at lets say a 98 C5 vette with an LS1, the LS1 made 345hp and a 98 sc400 made 300hp IIRC, yet the SC is 4.0L and th LS1 is 5.7L. Which that works out to 75hp per liter for the SC and only 60.5hp per liter for the LS1.

Yes it is costly to build compaired to other 8's, but then again it is not nearly as popular as those and popularity dictates price.

 

[bango]

Also,early on the attraction of just adding a SC in stock form,say with m112 with perhaps 10-12 psi,with headers,and you have a very nice 400+HP for cheap,Its just a shame that early adapations for SC was overpriced from the start.However,once a manifold could be had now,finding a suitable SC shouldn't be too hard...Yeah,4 litre ,4 cam,light weight power..still Rules!

 

[skid]

I'm sorry to say Guys but it is not all about Cubic capacity!

I know the adage is there's not replacement for displacement but please that's a little old now.

The 1UZ challenge is all about maximising from a fantastic lightweight engine all the power possible. I honestly believe stroking an engine and increasing the bore is some how.......... cheating I guess?

The idea of a lightweight alloy engine that can be tuned so redibly and to such effect is it's best charm.

If we look at a 'proper' car (and I'm being inflamatory here) somehting that has to live on street or track then handling is more important than an extra 50bhp!!! A simple drag strip queen to me is a show boat that raises a modicum of passing interest from an engineering point of view to me.

However the idea of a properly set up vehicle maximising all the laws of physics to propell itself around a track and getting the best chemical efficiency from it's engine (and fuel) of set displacement gives me the proper horn!

For example it does make me wonder the thinking of some people here (I'm not being insulting - I'm instigating a genuine query) who bang on about qtr mile times yet drive a 2 ton saloon/sedan. Come on if you're serious put the motor in another car, or just strip out your show pony of all the bling and sounds and do it properly.

Am I missing something as a Limey/Pommie b'stard? Sure we have strip racing here in the UK but it's in an appropriate vehicle with a sorted chassis. We don't generally (though not totally) take production vehicles with oversized rims (often heavier and affecting acceleration due to losses of power to turn the wheel) and excessivley overly accessorised bling to the strip. The biggest offender here would really be 17 - 20 year old kids in their first car who are heavily restricted by insurance and misguidedly tart their cars with crap in the hope to get respect/quick strip times/lose their virginity.

Then they grow up.

So to progress the point about the 1UZ and pros and cons and with others bringing in references about American domestic V8's, the 2 points are absolutely diverse. With Formula 1 decreasing capacity this year from 3000cc to 2400cc (20% reduction) they are achieving virtually similar power and track times. Phenominally these are revving close now to 20,000rpm!!! In a 4 stroke this amazes me that fuel can atomise and burn so quickly!

So with that example it is not all about cubic capacity it is about engineering for the greatest performance in an all round package. I vote for 1 UZ!

M

 

[Anaema]

I'm sorry to say Guys but it is not all about Cubic capacity!

I know the adage is there's not replacement for displacement but please that's a little old now.

The 1UZ challenge is all about maximising from a fantastic lightweight engine all the power possible. I honestly believe stroking an engine and increasing the bore is some how.......... cheating I guess?

The idea of a lightweight alloy engine that can be tuned so redibly and to such effect is it's best charm.

If we look at a 'proper' car (and I'm being inflamatory here) somehting that has to live on street or track then handling is more important than an extra 50bhp!!! A simple drag strip queen to me is a show boat that raises a modicum of passing interest from an engineering point of view to me.

However the idea of a properly set up vehicle maximising all the laws of physics to propell itself around a track and getting the best chemical efficiency from it's engine (and fuel) of set displacement gives me the proper horn!

For example it does make me wonder the thinking of some people here (I'm not being insulting - I'm instigating a genuine query) who bang on about qtr mile times yet drive a 2 ton saloon/sedan. Come on if you're serious put the motor in another car, or just strip out your show pony of all the bling and sounds and do it properly.

Am I missing something as a Limey/Pommie b'stard? Sure we have strip racing here in the UK but it's in an appropriate vehicle with a sorted chassis. We don't generally (though not totally) take production vehicles with oversized rims (often heavier and affecting acceleration due to losses of power to turn the wheel) and excessivley overly accessorised bling to the strip. The biggest offender here would really be 17 - 20 year old kids in their first car who are heavily restricted by insurance and misguidedly tart their cars with crap in the hope to get respect/quick strip times/lose their virginity.

Then they grow up.

So to progress the point about the 1UZ and pros and cons and with others bringing in references about American domestic V8's, the 2 points are absolutely diverse. With Formula 1 decreasing capacity this year from 3000cc to 2400cc (20% reduction) they are achieving virtually similar power and track times. Phenominally these are revving close now to 20,000rpm!!! In a 4 stroke this amazes me that fuel can atomise and burn so quickly!

So with that example it is not all about cubic capacity it is about engineering for the greatest performance in an all round package. I vote for 1 UZ!

M

just so you know, F1 cars lost 200 BHP in that change, and they have had the 19K redline what? 3 or 4 years. the new 2.4L V8 actually does take the high RPMS as well as the old V10.

F1 cars also have the problem of... absolutely no torque. they make just about as much torque as you could expect from a heavily modified honda 4 banger. the whole point to the majority of domestic V8s is that you can make lots of torque AND HP, not just one or the other. small displacement V8s dont do this as well as a larger model.

the whole point to the domestic V8 is its aftermarket, thats why people use them so much. the 302 cid Ford V8(5L if you want to know) gets much better HP and torque figures than a 1UZ, even when its on a carb. not because the extra 1L of displacement, but because the research and developement for that engine has been going on for what? 40 years? it has alot more engineering put into it than a 1UZ could ever hope to get.

dont get me wrong, a 1UZ is a great little engine, reliable, able to take raised power levels, 4 valves per cylinder, but it doesnt have the age and the engineering that comes with age that an old domestic V8 has. you cant build a 1UZ using totally aftermarket parts, from block to computer. it just cant be done. but you can do it with an old domestic V8, thats the whole disadvantage.

when i compared the old, higher displacement V8, with the new low displacement V8, this is what i had in mind. if you really want a new V8 with all the charm of both the engine families, you wont find one. the closest you will come is an engine in the LS family. and hell, you can build those from scratch too.

the whole point to alot of the cars on this website is the Lexus comfort with some good HP figures and the acceleration that goes with them, not just 1/4 mile times.

 

[jibbby]

You definetely have a lighter weight engine (1uz-fe) when boosted in comparison to a larger sized liter engine that are both producing around the same amount horsepower...Reduced front end weight is always a good thing.......As Anaema said reduced torque is what you are going to get when comparing the two...

Akthough, I believe the LS1 engine is a 5.7 liter alluminum block engine and all in all is probably lighter in weight then the 4.0L iuz-fe....so if boosting the 1uz-fe and or building more n/a power out of the LS1 for example the differences are not that great in weight comparisons and or power......Lowend grunt from the LS1 would put it out in front of the boosted 1UZ-FE and the weight difference would still be close I would think....Many factors to consider....

I think it is still impressive to be able to reasonalbly compare a 14 year old engine to the newer larger liter engines... Hoooraaahh for the IUZ's.....

Now if you ran a belt driven root supercharger in combination with a nos system, built forgies, the immediate torque will be very impressive even on a 4.0L 1uZ-fe... With today's technology you can do just about anything with any engine and see big results...

 

[Nick M]

I think it is a great engine.

I know the adage is there's not replacement for displacement but please that's a little old now.

Actually, it has been that way since the beginning of time, and will never change. The bigger the pump, the more it can move. You can improve eficency of any pump. All else being equal, the larger pump will move more air.

And boost is artificial displacement.

 

[bango]

Myself,i would love a lightweight motor with good fuel economy and have available huge power at the "flick of a switch"..if its all possible.To do that ,you would think the starting points are,lightweight/strong block,solid bottom end,ablity to rev when wanted (4 cam/4 valve),deliver low down torque/power,well don't cost an arm and leg give good fuel economy,and must be bullit proof/reliable for everyday drive..Im off course talking about the 127 type 35 Bugatti...only kidding...And Thd Winner is 1UZ..!(mind you that 1927 Bugatti is my dream car,2.3 litre straight 8 supercharged,capable of 110 mph back then,in stock trim,a few went to win GP's...